DISCOVERING TASMANIA THROUGH EXCHANGE

Two Year 8 students from Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School (BCGS) in Western Australia, Hayden Starr and Alyssa Ong, recently joined Scotch Oakburn College as part of a Round Square student exchange. Hosted by Leni Derbyshire and Ryan Dhanaraj, they have been embracing the opportunity to experience life in a different school, community and part of Australia.

While both students admitted to feeling nervous about their first day, particularly when meeting their exchange partners’ friends and adapting to a new environment, they were quickly made to feel welcome by their host families, teachers and new classmates.

Hayden and Alyssa enjoyed discovering some of the similarities and differences between Scotch Oakburn and their school in Bunbury. They noted our strong connection to Round Square, our broad language offerings and the different structure of the College. Alyssa also observed that students at here generally remain in one classroom while teachers move between classes, unlike at BCGS where students move between rooms for each subject.

Outside the classroom, the students were equally impressed by Tasmania’s distinctive landscape, cooler weather and the opportunity to explore Launceston with their host families. A visit to Cataract Gorge was a particular highlight for Hayden, while Alyssa enjoyed experiencing the hills and mountains surrounding Launceston, so different from the flatter coastal landscape of Bunbury.

For both students, however, the most memorable aspect of the exchange has been the people they have met and the friendships they have formed. Their experience reinforced an important message at the heart of Round Square: stepping outside your comfort zone, seeing the world from another person’s perspective and embracing every opportunity to try something new.

Stuart Walls
Director of Round Square