The Great Wall, The Bund, and the skyline of Shanghai. These are only a few of the landmarks students had the opportunity to visit this summer. After an extensive application and help from their Chinese teachers, three students traveled to China for a month with one goal in mind: to perfect their Chinese.  

These students won full scholarships to China, through Chinese Summer Language, Culture and Technology Initiative, a program for CPS students. China was a new destination for all the students, but for Jessie Hwang, Div. 758, going to China was an experience both familiar and unfamiliar.  

“Being Chinese in America is totally different than being a native Chinese person,” Hwang said. “When I came to China, it was just so different not only in culture but also in lifestyle. I had to adapt to even the westernized areas. It just showed the authenticity of China and how they are influenced.”

Along the way, however, she said she immediately fell in love with the culture and lifestyle in China. Although education is the primary goal of the program, they also encourage all 24 students to explore local customs and practices. One way they accomplish this is by placing students in Chinese families and allowing them to live with that family. Hwang said she learned a lot from her host family.

“Chinese culture is all about respect,” Hwang said. “When we met the family, we were advised to call them aunt, uncle, and older sister or older brother. From that, I could see that the culture is also family-based. The tables are round so they can put as many chairs as they can around it.”

As for how many Americans perceive China from what they see on television, Hwang said the perception is both correct and incorrect.

“We went to Hutong and you can tell that it was very old,” Hwang said. “It looked like the stuff you see on T.V. You don’t see anything westernized there. We were in a carriage and we were able to see the shacks and the street. It contributed to the culture difference. It’s a bit dirty and rugged but it also showed the poverty in China. A lot of the house were run-down, and so were the shops, but it was really nice to see the history.”

The program also has college students help the group find their way around the streets and also aid them in their daily homework and workshops. The college students work on their English while the students work on their Chinese.

“I improved greatly on the language and I have people now that I can connect to who are native Chinese people,” Benjamin Laughlin, Div. 858, said. “I still talk to them. They helped with the sped up learning process. All the little things, like talking to waitresses, really improved my ability.”    

Along with volunteers, Hwang and Laughlin were accompanied by many other CPS students. They both said that going into the program, they only knew one other person and that made them nervous. However, that quickly changed.

“I spent a lot of time with everyone else on the trip and through working together on our Chinese, we now have a greater bond,” Laughlin said. “The bonds from that trip are everlasting.”