Recently, a visiting delegation of teachers and students from Mahidol Wittayanusorn School, Thailand came to SHSID for exchange and study. During the one-week visit, they entered the classrooms of SHSID, studying and exchanging ideas with SHSID students.

On October 10, the SHSID high school sports meeting was held on the brand-new sports field, where Thai students also participated in watching this sporting event, experiencing the competing atmosphere of sports at SHSID.

On October 11, in Ms. Zeng's biology class, students from Thailand studied chapter “Cell Structure” with students from Grade 10. Ms. Zeng first introduced the structure and function of cell nucleus to the students. After that, Ms. Zeng delivered transmission electron microscope (TEM) images of cell nucleus to the students, directing students to identify the important structures of the nucleus. Subsequently, under the guidance from the teacher, students discussed and summarized the similarities and differences in the morphology structures and functions of various organelles based on their TEM images. At the end of the course, Ms. Zeng briefly introduced the principles of therapeutic mitochondrial transplantation technology to the students. Students from the two different schools had a heated discussion on the ethical issues involved in this technology. Different educational and cultural backgrounds form different perspectives. The collision between these perspectives gave students a new understanding of how biological technology can impact human society and life.

On October 14, students from the Thai exchange group joined in the mathematics and physics classes. In Mr. He's Multivariable Calculus class, Thai students and students from SHSID learned about the definition of the derivative of a vector function in class and studied the Differentiation Rules and their proofs based on the definition. In Ms. Wu physics class, SHSID student Jonathan, gave an exciting lecture entitled "The Mystery of Solar Neutrinos - A 40-Year Journey to Capture 'Ghost Particles'" and introduced in detail about the progress of human's discovery and exploration history on neutrinos. Thai students and SHSID students sat together and performed actively in class, which enhanced their understanding and interest in the frontier of physics.

On October 15, students from exchange group learned about the "relative rate of change" in Mr. Hong’s Calculus course. Taking the relative change rate during the sliding process of a ladder as an example, Mr. Hong explored the relationship between the relative change rates of several variables with the students. The students discussed and summarized the strategies of solving problems related to this topic in groups. Meanwhile, the case involves the force analysis on the ladder, giving students an opportunity to experience the process of solving the same problem from two physics perspective and mathematics perspective, making students feel the unity of mathematical thinking. After a short break, the Thai students took part in the chemistry lab class under the leadership of Mr. Zhao. Students first learned how to use the infrared spectrometer and sample preparation operations. Under the guidance of the teacher, students from both schools discussed, assisted and cooperated with each other and completed the entire process from sample preparation to spectrometer detection of samples. After that, by comparing the data with the spectrum in the database, the chemical formula of the sample was finally obtained. Through the hands-on operation of the lab class, the students cooperated and helped each other, forged a strong bond, and understood the importance of experimental operation in the learning and exploration process of scientific subjects.

During the SHSID classes, teachers and students interacted frequently, and Thai students also enthusiastically participated in answering the questions and discussion, deeply experiencing the diverse and interactive classroom atmosphere of SHSID. SHSIDers and the exchange students not only learnt academic knowledge, but also got the opportunity to have in-depth exchanging ideas with classmates from different cultural backgrounds, thereby exploring new perspectives of thinking. This exchange program not only enriches the students' learning experience, but also further promotes the diversification and internationalization of SHSID curriculum. It is hoped that such educational and cultural exchange programs can be developed in long term and bring more colorful learning experiences to teachers and students of the two schools.

(Written by Xiao Deng      Pictures by SHSID high school teachers     Reviewed by Qian Zuo)