SCEN Update February 2024
Happy Year of the Dragon! 过年好！
Many of you will be attending school and community events up and down the country to celebrate the coming of the Year of the Dragon. For example, many SCEN Network members and their families enjoyed the wonderful New Year concert at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh held on 10 January and organised by SCEN Trustee Jessica Guo along with her colleagues. Please enjoy any events you are attending – and look forward to health and prosperity during this Year of the Dragon.
RESEARCH PROJECT ON THE LEARNING AND TEACHING OF MANDARIN IN SCHOOLS ACROSS SCOTLAND
The final report of this major research project is nearly ready (after a slight unavoidable delay) and publication is expected shortly. The work has been led by Professor Antonella Sorace of Bilingualism Matters , supported by SCEN and by the Confucius Institute for Scotland’s Schools (CISS). We will keep you updated about the launch of the report and on subsequent engagements – such as a conference type event.
****HOLD THE DATE****
FRIDAY, 7 JUNE 2024 - MANDARIN SPEAKING COMPETITION AND PRESENTATION
At Ramshorn Theatre (University of Strathclyde), Ingram Street, Glasgow
(8 minutes on foot from Queen's Street Station)
The event will be appropriate for all ages of school pupil/ student, and at its heart will be a competition which will be a celebration of spoken language in Chinese. We will be in touch soon about applications to take part in the competition to be handled directly by Yun Shen at admin@scen.info Watch this space!
****HOLD THE DATE****
THURSDAY, 20 JUNE 2024 - SCEN LECTURE 2024
AtAt Royal Society of Edinburgh, George Street, Edinburgh
(10 minutes on foot from Waverley Station)
Registration: 5:00 pm
Talk: 6:00 pm
Networking event: 7:00 pm
Speaker: Professor Jane Duckett, Chair of Politics, University of Glasgow, specialising in Chinese politics and social policy
Title: Re-making the Chinese Welfare State: Towards Common Prosperity?
The event will be free, but all attendees must register in advance through Eventbrite (Details to follow) Watch this space!
YOUTH VOICE WITHIN SCEN
Youth Voice within SCEN, now led by SCEN Trustee Juliet Presly, is developing plans for student participation across schools. Juliet, her student and teacher colleagues in Boroughmuir High School, Edinburgh, are preparing a video showcasing the school’s approach to learning Chinese – and encouraging other schools and young people to develop something similar in their own schools. SCEN will disseminate such videos through our website and other means.
ERIC LIDDELL 100
SCEN is supporting the events associated with the Eric Liddell 100 celebrations. The celebrations feature a number of activities led by the Eric Liddell Community in Edinburgh and Chief Executive John Macmillan (also Advisory Council member of SCEN). SCEN supports a series of events – leading to the Paris Olympic Games in summer of 2024 (100th anniversary of Eric Liddell’s gold medal winning performance) – including educational materials aimed at school students about the inspirational life and legacy of Eric Liddell. We are delighted to share the Eric Liddell School Resources provided by the Eric Liddell Community, including the film, detailed lesson plans, supporting materials and a Sports Day Toolkit. Please click the link if you are interested in introducing the Eric Liddell to your school. Look out for more materials and information coming to your school from CISS, SCEN and other supporters of these celebrations.
UPCOMING DATES...
SCEN TEACHING CLUB
Next meeting scheduled for Friday, 31 May 2024, on line at 3.30pm. Acting Chair is Dr Zhu Zhu, University of Aberdeen, while Lynnette Doherty is on parental leave. For further details about the Club and how to take part, please contact admin@scen.info.
SCEN ADVISORY COUNCIL
Friday,10 May 2024, on line at 2: 00pm.
