by Colin Churchill, Executive Director
The ERDT enVision Social Research in America (SRA) course is held twice a year – winter (January/February) and summer (July/August). The participants are Chinese university students who come to California for a 17-day home stay and culture program that is structured around five topic areas: Education, Public Safety, Healthcare, Public Service & Volunteerism, & Family Structure. Workshops relevant to each topic area are given & onsite visits to universities, community colleges, & high schools; police & fire departments; hospitals & medical centers; & local community non-profit organizations are provided.
A group of 10 teachers for the enVision Social Research in America (SRA) program visited China from November 5 to November 14, 2016. The group, accompanied by Roger Riske, ERDT President Emeritus; Colin Churchill, ERDT Executive Director; Tracy Gautier ERDT enVision Director, arrived on Saturday, November 5. On Sunday, November 6, while struggling heroically with jetlag, the group visited Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City in Beijing.
On Monday, November 7, the group met with personnel from our Beijing-based Chinese partner, CSCEE (China Service Center for Educational Exchanges).
We listened attentively...
On Monday & Tuesday, the group split into traveling pairs and departed to various universities throughout China to meet with university personnel, and to give presentations to prospective applicants for the Winter 2017 SRA program. Teachers also had the opportunity to meet with students from university student SRA groups that they have taught in previous years.
In addition to Beijing & Nantong, enVision SRA teachers also visited universities in Dalian, Nanjing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen.
The group reconvened in Beijing on Friday, November 11, and under the direction of CSCEE staff, made a series of promotional videos in support of the program.
The group went sightseeing to the Great Wall, the Ming Tombs, and the Temple of Heaven on Saturday & Sunday, and returned to California on Monday, November 14.