A United World College in China
A United World College in China
Monday, 8 October 2007
Last Monday, 1st October, we had a holiday to celebrate National Day. It was yet another reminder that the colonial era is over and Hong Kong is now once again part of China - as it has been now for more than a decade. In keeping with the practice of most schools and public facilities in Hong Kong, we routinely fly the Chinese national flag as well as the Hong Kong regional flag and the College flag.
It surprises me that people in some parts of the world still talk about the need to establish a United World College in China, as though Li Po Chun United World College didn’t exist, or was in another place. Yes, Hong Kong works under Deng Xiaoping’s distinctive “One Country, Two Systems” philosophy. But our nation is China and our national flag is the red five-star banner. Hong Kong is certainly a unique part of China, but every part of China has its own unique characteristics - Beijing is different from Shanghai which is different from Tibet which is different from Sichuan, and so on.
I remember talking with the founding Principal of Li Po Chun United World College, Dr David Wilkinson, in late January 1991 over breakfast at an IB Heads’ conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Actually, the conference had been cancelled at the last minute due to the first Gulf War (as many North American Heads were afraid to travel at that time), but a few Principals (David and I included) had not received the fax notifying the cancellation - this being in the days before e-mail. Our breakfast meeting was a year and a half before LPCUWC was due to open, but I still remember David being very excited (as he always still is about most things!) as he explained the concept of the College, how it was to be located on a remote site between the water and the mountains in the New Territories, how it was being designed to blend with the shape of the foreshore on which it was to be built, how it would provide a way for the first students from Mainland China to study the IB legally and with government support, and how in 1997 it would become the first United World College in China following the handover of Hong Kong by the British.
It is interesting to think about the ways in which being a United World College in China makes LPCUWC different from all other UWCs. Of course, LPCUWC shares the common mission and values statement with other UWCs, but one would hope that there is also a genuine and distinctive interaction between the College (any College) and its host environment.
Li Po Chun UWC tries to reflect its location in a Chinese city by being a two-way bridge of understanding between Chinese culture and the cultures of the world. We do genuinely try to honour the deep roots of Chinese culture by placing emphasis on the Confucian traditions of proper conduct, practical wisdom, appropriate social relationships and respect for academic learning - although this might not always be appreciated by a few students from non-Chinese backgrounds! The College's links with other parts of China also provide practical opportunities for students to learn about China's remarkable economic development, its political and environmental challenges, and its rich diversity.
Our co-curricular program is known by the Chinese term "quan cai", which means "the fully formed person" - another tribute to our joint UWC/Chinese identity. Students participate in five areas of quan cai, these being creativity, action, service, campus support and global concerns. Ongoing sustainable service programs take place in several areas of China, including a leper village in the mountains of Yunnan, a primary education program for Yao nationality children, work with an AIDS clinic in Kunming, and several organisations in the city of Shaoguan. All our students are given experiences serving others “off the tourist trail” in remote parts of China.
Furthermore, we use our location at the crossroads of Asia to develop deep understandings of the world's most dynamic region. For example, we teach Chinese language at all levels, from beginner level to advanced study of literature. We have established an initiative to build links with North Korea that has involved a number of student visits to that isolated country. On the environmental front, we have a unique coral monitoring program and a wetlands project in Mai Po, near the boundary with Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.
In summary, the College truly aims to reflect its location in China by being an authentic community of individuals (the “Western” approach) which is committed to working together towards common ideals in a positive and harmonious manner (the “Chinese” approach).
Going back to that breakfast in January 1991, upon learning that the conference had been cancelled, I immediately made plans to return home (which was in Sydney at the time), because my wife was heavily pregnant. Two months later, our fourth child was born. His name was Andrew and he is now in his final year studying the IB at Li Po Chun UWC!
And of course, I could have never dreamt at that breakfast in 1991 that a decade and a half later I would be the Principal of this first United World College in China.
Flags fly for National Day. Looking from the Academic Block to the nearby beach at Starfish Bay