Designing Meaningful Programs that Actually Promote Student Empowerment & Independence
Shuier Zhang
How do we design programs that truly push students to engage deeply with the places they visit while simultaneously grow deeply as individuals?
In this interactive workshop, we’ll walk step-by-step through Where There Be Dragons’ course progression model. We’ll explore each stage of this model in detail, looking at how it prepares students before departure, helps them take ownership of their learning on course, and integrate their learning once home, so their travel experience has a deeper impact on their lives. At every step, we’ll share practical tools and invite you to reflect on how you can adapt this progression to your own programs, whether you’re designing a 3-day or 3-month long trip . We will end the workshop with a summary of student outcomes that this approach can foster to use as a base to gain buy-in from your school and parent community.
About Shuier
B.A. in English Language and Education – Yunnan Normal University
M.Sc. in Translation Studies – University of Edinburgh
M.A. in Interpreting and Translation (Diplomacy), University of Westminster
Shuier is originally from the city of Kunming in Yunnan province China. Her journey with Dragons began in the summer of 2006 when she taught a group of visiting students Mandarin as part of a Dragons language intensive program. In 2008, Shuier’s parents became a host family in Kunming and they have since hosted many Dragons students over the past decade with Shuier acting as older host sister, language tutor, and informal city guide to the best noodle spots in Kunming.
After university, Shuier moved to the UK where she completed her graduate studies and worked for over a decade. She returned to China in 2016 with a desire to re-strengthen her ties to her Chinese culture and identity. It was also during this time that Shuier became a Dragons instructor and led student groups on almost every type of program that we offer in China. In addition to her work in China, Shuier has traveled and lived in Southeast Asia for years developing on-the-ground experience in Thailand, Cambodia, Taiwan, and other countries in the region.
Shuier possesses a uniquely comprehensive understanding of both Chinese and Western cultures as manifested linguistically in her work as a professional translator and interpreter between Mandarin and English. She loves being able to use her skills and experiences to bridge different cultures and languages. Shuier is currently based in Taiwan.
