The BRIDGE School Partnerships Project – connecting Australian and Malaysian schools
Sixteen schools across Malaysia and Australia will be connected through the launch of the innovative Australia-Malaysia BRIDGE School Partnerships Project this April.
Eight Australian teachers and one school principal have travelled to Malaysia this week to partner up with teachers from Malaysian schools located in Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang, Kedah, Selangor, Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Labuan. The teachers will spend three days undertaking professional development training, before spending a week teaching side-by-side in the Malaysian schools. The teachers will then work together to build ongoing relationships between their students through online technology including Wikispaces and video conferences.
The project will enhance the already strong connections between Australian and Malaysian citizens and foster intercultural awareness and communication skills. The inaugural project is a partnership between the Malaysian Ministry of Education and the Asia Education Foundation, with funding from the Australia-Malaysia Institute.
The Australia-Malaysia project builds on the success of existing partnerships across Australia and Asia. Since 2008, the Asia Education Foundation has established over two hundred BRIDGE school partnerships between Australia and China, Indonesia, South Korea and Thailand under the Australia-Asia BRIDGE program.
At a reception celebrating the launch of the BRIDGE Project, Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia, H.E. Mr Rod Smith said: “The Australia-Asia BRIDGE Project has been recognised internationally for its innovation in supporting school partnerships between Australia and Asia. I am delighted that Australian and Malaysian students and teachers will have the opportunity to learn from each other and build lasting friendships through this exciting program.”
