Teenagers from a Tyneside school have recently returned from a trip designed to challenge their understanding of the world. Almost 30 pupils, aged between 15 and 18, from Central Newcastle High School, in Jesmond, travelled to the Far East to China's capital Beijing. Here the pupils met with children from three of the city's top schools; Beijing Bayi High School, Anhuali Primary School and No 6 Kindergarten. The Central High pupils attended lessons, met students to discuss issues of the day and were treated to some outstanding dance and musical performances by the Chinese pupils. "We all learned so much," said Jenny Hay, 15, from West Jesmond. "The Chinese pupils were as excited to meet us as we were to meet them. Their English was fantastic and we had so much to talk about. "The most startling difference that we noted between the Chinese and English educational system was the amount of time Chinese pupils spend in school; the 15-year-olds we met worked at school from 7am to 5pm, then went straight home and did homework until about 11pm or midnight." Jenny added: "When asked what they did in their free time one pupil replied; `Well, we don't have any'. "The experience has made us all appreciate that our workload is quite reasonable!" Beijing's schools are slowly starting to open their doors to visits from schoolchildren in other countries, offering an insight and opportunity for shared experiences. Central High's headmistress, Hilary French, said: "I want to open our pupils' eyes to other cultures and help them to understand how people live in other parts of the world. "China is a fascinating country and we have so much to learn about its history and way of life." In the past year, Central High has introduced optional lessons in Mandarin for pupils aged eight and above. Ms French added: "We must prepare our pupils for work in a global market and China is the fastest growing economy in the world. Being able to communicate in Chinese will give our pupils huge advantages in the future. "We will continue to develop our links with China. Central High is part of The Girls' Day School Trust (GDST), the largest group of independent schools in the UK, educating 20,000 students each year. "The GDST is planning to open two new schools in Shanghai. The opportunities this will create for Central High pupils in the future are considerable." Central High is not the only school in the North East to form links with China. Park View Community School, in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, has formed a partnership with Suzhou High School, near Shanghai. Park View is now offering students the opportunity to learn Mandarin in preparation for next February, when a group of students will be visiting Suzhou to carry out enterprise projects. What's more, young children at Bedewell Primary, in Hebburn, South Tyneside, having been learning Mandarin for the last two years, after the school formed a link with one in China. The school's walls are brightly decorated with Chinese artwork, including traditional dragons and symbols, and below the signs on each door the English words are translated into Mandarin. | 
Northumberland
