Wealden Times | WT191 | January 2018 | Interiors supplement inside

Education
Study Swap
Just how popular do student exchanges prove
to be, and what are the benefits of choosing
to study abroad. WT finds out...
Cranbrook School
How do students apply for an exchange – who is/what
subjects are eligible? The students sign up on a first comefirst
served basis, anyone studying French is eligible.
Does an exchange necessarily involve foreign stays or
travel? It does, as we go to Bayeux (Normandy) with the
Y9s for 6 days, and we go to St Jean-de-Luz (Basque area)
with the 6th form for one week. The students also receive
their exchange partners in Cranbrook for a similar amount
of time. The two visits are within a term of each other.
What are the benefits of studying elsewhere? In MFL,
the home stay is invaluable to absorb the language, as
each student is hosted individually in a French family.
It also brings an individual human dimension to the
experience of an exchange. We have group visits to see
local sites, which also bring an historical dimention to the
exchange, as the French and British histories are closely
linked. The time spent in schools is also a great eye opener
for our students, as they can visualise their counterparts
in their academic and social environment.
What type of feedback do you get from students and
host schools? The students fill out a feedback sheet after the
exchanges, which helps us assess the success of some activities
and of the exchange itself. The schools usually give verbal
feedback and emails, but their keen interest to repeat the
experience every year is positive feedback in itself. The teachers
and I review the programme of activities every year, in order
to achieve the most positive experience for the students.
How popular have exchanges proved to be? In general, about
20 Y9s sign up for the Bayeux exchange, and the 6th Form
exchange is a lower number as our 6th form is much smaller.
For the 6th form, we join forces with Kent College to get 14
students to take part. The St Jean students are split between
the two schools during their Kent visit, even though we join
together for out-of-school visits. Kent College and Cranbrook
travel together to St Jean and do a fully joined visit there.
Considering our number of students, I would say
the exchanges are popular. We are starting a miniexchange
experience with our Y7s in the summer; they
are in contact with a school in Le Touquet, and will
visit the area and the school in the summer term.
cranbrookschool.co.uk
Sevenoaks Prep
How do students apply for an exchange – who is/
what subjects are eligible? At Sevenoaks Prep, all Year
6 pupils are invited to take part in our French Exchange
programme and the vast majority of students participate.
Does an exchange necessarily involve foreign stays or travel?
The annual exchange sees our pupils travel to Villeneuve d’Ascq
near Lille in the Easter Term, before the French students return
to Sevenoaks a few weeks later. It is a relationship cultivated
between the two schools by the Head of French at Sevenoaks
Prep, Mme Clark, and her counterpart in Lille, Mme Delannoy.
What are the benefits of studying elsewhere? Our pupils
are put into pairs and assigned a host family in Lille who will
have a son or daughter of a similar age. It is a very popular
highlight of Year 6 and an experience through which pupils
get to develop their independence, social skills and resilience,
by learning to overcome any initial nerves that come from
stepping out of their comfort zone. As well as practising their
French language, they learn about French history and culture
by visiting a national art museum and our pupils are always
eager to welcome their French partners back to their homes
to spend a few days together again. It is wonderful to see
how the friendships develop over email before and after the
visits, and to watch the young students’ confidence grow as
they enjoy time away from their own countries and culture,
bonding over shared interests like sport, singing and films.
How popular have exchanges proved to be? The
exchange programme is so popular that it has been
running for over six years now, and will continue to
be an important part of the Year 6 curriculum. We are
fortunate that our parents are so supportive of it and
hope that it will continue successfully for a long time.
theprep.org.uk
“They return to school
in the UK with unique
knowledge and experiences,
able to encourage and
inspire others to consider
similar exchanges” -
Sutton Valence School
151 wealdentimes.co.uk