From November 22nd to 25th, 2017 the annual conference of CEAIE-AFS Intercultural Program and the congress of Volunteer Committee for Intercultural Education of China Education Association for International Exchange were held in Chengdu. A total of more than 200 representatives from the 23 local chapters and 118 program schools from 17 provinces and 47 cities attended the meeting. At the same time, the conference attracted administrative department officers and school representatives from Daqing, Heilongjiang, Shenzhen, Guangdong, and Guizhou who were interested in conducting intercultural programs and international comprehension learning in the future. The conference was presided over by Mrs. Yang Meng, Chair of the Volunteer Committee for Intercultural Education of China Education International Association for International Exchange (CVCIE hereinafter ). Mrs. Zhang Ling, Vice-Chair of CVCIE, delivered the work report. Mr. Li Shoumin, Director of Hebei Provincial Department of Education, Mrs. He Yu, Deputy Director of the International Exchange and Cooperation Division of Sichuan Provincial Department of Education, Mr. Yu Jia, Head of the Foreign Affairs Department of Jiamusi Bureau of Education, Mr. Zhong Mingjin, Secretary General of Guangdong Education Association for International Exchange, Mr. Yang Zhen, Deputy Secretary General of Changzhou Education Association for International Exchange, and Mr. Gao Zhiwen, Principal of Shuangliu Experimental High School participated.
The meeting summed up the work completed by CVCIE in the past year in the field of intercultural exchanges, international comprehension learning and volunteer committee organization. The conference also made it clear that CVCIE will continue to serve the needs of the internationalization of regional education and help the region to form a unique landscape of international education through precise cooperation at multiple levels and in various fields. The conference elected two board members for the CVCIE through democratic election, respectively Mr. Yu Jia, Head of Foreign Affairs Department of Jiamusi Bureau of Education and Mr. Zhong Mingjin, Secretary General of Guangdong Education Association for International Exchange. In the meantime, the conference commended the outstanding voluntary units and advanced volunteer workers who had completed the program in 2017.
During the conference, staff and volunteers from the national office jointly outlined the framework of international standards and risk management for intercultural programs. Mr. Gao Zhiwen, Principal of Shuangliu Experimental High school delivered a keynote speech titled "the AFS project and international comprehension education". Mrs. Di Yan, an international trainer at AFS, introduced the theory of intercultural learning in the core course of international comprehension learning. The national office carried out interactive discussions with delegates through activities such as the new program school training, international comprehension learning seminar, and the forum on curriculum design and teaching method for students in China, laying a solid foundation for the next year's program development. In addition, since the conference was held at the 35th anniversary of the AFS program in China, all the delegates expressed good wishes for the development of CEAIE-AFS intercultural program, and took the opportunity to sign the Declaration of ACCRA initiated by AFS International.
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