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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE July 12, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| November 2, 2004 |
Singapore – GET Challenge Programme: English as a tool for global communication |
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| Little India, one of Singapore's many flavors |
Arriving in Singapore meant a day of exciting cultural exchange for the 52 participants taking part in the GET challenge programme. The Global English/Espanol Training (GET) is Peace Boat's onboard language programme, which teaches English and Spanish for over 180 students. In the ports of Singapore, Mombassa, Cape Town, Auckland and Sydney, students can take part in "Challenge Programmes." These are study and exchange programmes which challenge the students to use the language they have learned as a tool for friendship and understanding, by engaging in real communication with local people. In conjunction with Singapore Management University (SMU), the GET students teamed up with local university students for a one-day tour of the city and the unique Singaporean style of English called "Singlish." |
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| Singaporean students and Peace Boat participants warming up with the human chain game |
The day started out with some icebreakers to ease communication between both parties, as the GET teaching methodology emphasizes confidence-building activities to facilitate language learning. Divided into small groups, the Peace Boat participants and SMU students then ventured out to experience the delights of Singapore, using English as a tool for fostering cultural exchange. Singapore, as an ethnically diverse society comprising people of Chinese, Malay, Indian and European origins, is a living example of a community which relies on English for its intercultural communication. While there are four official languages, English is the language of administration and education and the language which allows a Chinese person to communicate with an Indian. |
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| Sampling side-street offerings in Little India |
Some groups headed straight for "Little India" to buy sari material, sample delicious Indian cuisine and walk around the pre-Diwali festival market. Others strolled around Chinatown, munching on local dim sum and absorbing the atmosphere of fortune-tellers, traditional medicine doctors and street calligraphers. Many also visited Singapore's famous "Merlion" landmark, while others sipped on high tea in the Raffles hotel and spent their afternoon shopping in the labyrinth of underground shopping malls. At the end of their jam-packed day of sightseeing, GET students brought their Singaporean friends onboard for a ship tour and to learn the answers of the "Singapore City Quiz" they had undertaken. The students from SMU sang their national song and gave speeches reflecting on the chance to share their culture with their foreign guests. |
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| Kish Jehan and Reizo Fuke |
Kish Jehan (a 21-year old student representative from SMU) has taken part in this exchange with Peace Boat three times. This time she was matched with a group of elderly Japanese men and her face was beaming as she explained that the day had not only been a great cultural experience but that it had also broken down generation barriers. She explained that the old men's enthusiasm and sense of humour, especially that of Reizo Fuke, a 63 year old Japanese retiree, was what made communication of body language, smiles and basic English so much fun. Other GET participants stressed the fun they had learning about Singapore, and that "Singlish" gave them renewed motivation to study English. |
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| On-stage English language learning |
The onboard GET programme is one of outstanding success and popularity, as over 180 participants, between the ages of 16 and 92, are taking this opportunity to learn a foreign language while travelling the world. The ship itself provides a unique educational space, as the students are able to put their recently acquired learning skills into practice with the teachers, guest speakers, staff and crew. The GET approach stresses the point that simply attempting to communicate using the skills students have is more important than the perfectionist standard that most Japanese people are taught in school. Through daily intensive classes and contact with locals in each port, students often leave the ship with more confidence to speak out. |
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| The GET teachers putting personality into the learning process |
As GET teachers are from diverse countries including Canada, the US, the UK, Australia, Mexico and New Zealand they bring a strong international flavour to the ship. Their wide contribution beyond teaching makes them an integral part of Peace Boat's onboard schedule. Environmental issues, salsa dancing, astronomy, Korean drumming and puppetry are among the variety of interests and talents they will be sharing with participants along the way. At their introductory event, the GET coordinator, Audrey Howatson, made the objectives for programme very clear in her welcome speech by saying that "Learning a language is not just about communication, it is about broadening your horizons and building bridges between local people. The limits of your language are the limits of your world."
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