The HarvestED Victoria 2022 Youth Program is a cross-curricular student learning program funded and supported by The William Buckland Foundation. The program was delivered by educators at Asia Education Foundation (AEF), Asialink at The University of Melbourne.
Five Teach For Cambodia students were selected to participate in their first-ever international program, where they learned and interacted with high school students from across Australia and the Asia-Pacific. TFC teacher leaders and students believed that despite language and cultural barriers, students could gain new insights and contribute to this program community.
The program was an interactive 3-day learning module designed and delivered by Chris Higgins – most influential educator of 2022, to deepen students’ understanding of agriculture across Australia and the Asia-Pacific. Students explored different knowledge, experiences, and perspectives to discuss the past, present, and future of agriculture in the region. This helped students build their capabilities to be active and informed global citizens.
“This is the first international program I have participated in, and I realized how important English is as a door opener to many opportunities. I learned that in order for me to contribute my ideas in an international space, I need to use English. I also learned about global citizenship and my role in it.” – a student participant from Chea Sim Chroy Chongva High School.
These activities culminated in a final presentation where students proposed solutions to address a chosen issue in agriculture and imagined solutions to the problem. This was a unique opportunity for Cambodian students to engage at a regional level, which instilled a sense of possibility in them.
“This was my first online and international program. I learned about concepts like design thinking and collection versus connection from this program. Now, I can apply this to other spaces of learning. For example, in English reading, I can connect different ideas, and not just collect ideas.” – a student participant from Chea Sim Samaky High School.
Chris Higgins, Director from AEF added “what a wonderful joy it was to have 5 enthusiastic, active contributors from TFC join the program. Students were brave to embrace the opportunity. All students benefited from the TFC students’ participation, learning and sharing with each other. Students from TFC exemplified what it means to be a global citizen.”
We thank the Asia Education Foundation for creating this opportunity for students to participate. We look forward to sending more students to these opportunities and helping them grow in this international community.