We work at a secondary school in Qingdao, China. Our student demographic is 100% Chinese. The students (ages 14-21) that attend our school have the aspiration of attending a university/college in an English-speaking country (UK or USA). Our school is a combination of traditional British values (and British national standards/curricula) alongside the Six Arts of Confucius. During school, this means that students take a combination of rigorous academic courses such as Business, Economics, Physics, and Biology as well as arts courses such as Chinese, Art, Current Issues, and Physical Education.
We had no idea what to expect for the opening ceremony at our school. All parents were invited to the event. It was a way to honor to the Six Arts of Confucius and welcome new students into the school. Students were divided by grade (G1, G2, AS, and A2) and house (Zong Zi, Meng Zi, Kong Zi, and Yan Zi) as they were honored on the red carpet. Primarily, new G1 and G2 students were honored. Here are some images of the morning’s festivities:
View of the student dormitories and parent seating areaView of the school on the left, faculty and staff seating area, mural to be signed, and red carpetPrefects stand at the entrance to welcome parents, teachers, and honored guestsTeachers arrive on the bus for the morning’s opening ceremonyScience Department prior to the ceremony startingReturning students stand on the left in front of the dormitories. Headmaster and Miss Sandy stand in front on the red carpet. Teachers stand to the left of the school’s entrance. New students (in white uniform) stand in front of the school’s entrance.The business department is welcomed to the ceremony.New students are ushered down the red carpet by returning students. This was the entrance of Meng Zi house. Teacher leaders Gregory and Rachel stand on the left. The young man holding the flag is Leo, the student head of house. Alison belongs to this house.Kong Zi house prepares to walk down the red carpet. This is the house that Grant belongs to.Headmaster, Mr. Carolan, delivers the opening address at the opening ceremony. Note the signatures behind him. Each person (teachers and students) that walk down the red carpet sign their name on the mural at the end. Miss Catherine translates headmaster’s speech into Chinese for the families (image below).
Lily and Alison listen to four student speeches. Student speeches were delivered by a CISQD alumnae heading off to university, the Student Council president, and two new G1 students.Olivia, a new G1 student, delivers her speech.After the speeches, new students come to the front to be honored. They receive their CISQD acceptance letters from Mr Carolan and Miss Sandy.Gavin, one of my students who is beaming in the front row, is proud to receive his acceptance certificate. At this point in the ceremony, I became quite teary-eyed. Another new teacher like me from South Africa, Shelley, shared my sentiments. There is only so much pride and happiness one can feel until the only reasonable action are tears. I felt so happy to work at CISQD and to work in a school that has such a high degree of honor, dignity, and respect. There is no other school like this, and I had never before experienced a ceremony like this.CISQD Family Photo for 2018-2019Business Department Photo
Click here for the complete album of photos from the event.
& just one more for kicks…
In the halls of CISQD
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2 thoughts on “CISQD Opening Ceremony”
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Your style is so unique in comparison to other folks I have read stuff from. I appreciate you for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this page.
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