Year 8 Hmong Students from the US Visit NIST

On Tuesday 10 May, 24 Hmong students, together with four teachers from Community School of Excellence (CSE), visited NIST. A four-year-old leading Hmong Charter School in Minnesota, USA, CSE is an International Baccalaureate candidate school. The aim of the trip was to connect the students with the region from which their families come and to visit IB schools. The group visited four schools in Laos, two in the city of Vientiane and two smaller village schools. NIST had the privilege of being the only school in Bangkok that the group visited and one of only two IB schools visited on the entire trip.

Mr. Julian Edwards, NIST Secondary Principal, welcomed the students and escorted them on a campus tour, giving the students a taste of the learning environment and curriculum, as well as the mission and aims of the school.

After lunch in the NIST canteen, with NIST buddies helping them with the coupons, the group visited Thai classes, where they learned how to make plaa ta phian (a fish mobile made from palm leaves) and tung (a northern-style vertical flag made from paper). They also learned some traditional Thai dances and participated in an activity with NIST students to explore their similarities and differences.

Mr. Edwards said, “The visit illustrated an interesting interconnection between two very different IB schools. The NIST population is culturally diverse, with a mix of students living in their home culture and others for whom Thailand is a temporary home. The CSE was created in Minnesota to help students of Hmong origin maintain their cultural heritage whilst their families settle in the USA”. He continued, “Common to all of the students is that they are somehow growing up in a global world whilst many of their families hold traditional Thai or Asian values. I am sure that many of our NIST families would identify with this and agree that it brings both richness and tension”.

The CSE is keen to build relationships in the region to keep its students connected to their family culture.

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