Yōkoso. Hoan nghênh. Huānyíng. Hwan-yeonghada. Svaagat. Willkommen. Welcome!
In a post-COVID boom, international students are back in record numbers at South Australian public schools this year.
Students started arriving in mid-January with more than 690 new international students set to be welcomed throughout the year into more than 60 metropolitan and regional public schools across the state.
The students come from 34 different nationalities, with the largest numbers this year from Japan, Vietnam, China, Korea, India and Germany.
More than 40 per cent of the students were here for Term 1, with the remainder arriving later in the year and staying for varying durations ranging from a couple of terms to several years.
The previous largest intake was in Term 3 in 2019, when more than 570 international students were welcomed across South Australian public schools.
While developing their academic skills, the international students also gain an understanding of the South Australian lifestyle.
Quotes
Attributable to Blair Boyer
This record level of interest in South Australian schools brings diversity to our classrooms and gives young people a chance to build global relationships.
The fact we have a record number of students coming to South Australia, is a testament to the quality of our public schools in the state, and their reputation internationally.
There has been a huge swell of support from our homestay community who are eagerly preparing their spare bedroom, planning uniquely South Australian experiences for their student, and supporting them to attend Australian schools.
Hosting an international student is a wonderful and mutually rewarding experience. Close bonds are forged, and lifelong friendships made. I would encourage more families to get involved in the program.
Attributable to Member for Newland Olivia Savvas
Banksia Park International High School has a wonderful reputation for its homestay program. The school has about 1039 students this year and are hosting students from Japan, China, Korea and Vietnam.
The school has an International Support Program that includes three staff for in-class support and tutoring as well as hosting an International Student Ambassador’s group of local students who look for opportunities to engage with other cultures and global understanding.
It’s a wonderful program that not only benefits the local students, to expose them to other cultures, but also for the students who come to study here – forging life-long connections and experiences.
Attributable to Banksia Park International High School Principal Natasa Penna
We feel privileged to host 24 students from a wide range of countries at our school, and pride ourselves on helping our students be ethical global citizens.
The participation of our international students in classes and extra-curricular activities strengthens our intercultural understanding and delivery of our curriculum and learning in a practical way – in this way our local students get as much from this program as our international cohort does.
Attributable to Homestay parent Victoria Chaplin
My family has hosted a dozen different students off and on since about 2018 from a range of countries.
I like our house to be busy, and this is a wonderful opportunity to show off our state to these international guests.
It gives my two girls exposure to different people and different cultures and has made us all more adaptable while meeting some wonderful people.
