Dimensions of China offers a unique four–week experience for bright and motivated high school students from different parts of the world to study, play, and travel together, learning about the culture and the people, the changes and the challenges of a country that is becoming an increasingly important influence in the world. This program is unique amongst opportunities for study and travel in China because of the breadth of topics covered and its emphasis on teaching students to analyze, ask questions, and develop a multi–dimensional understanding on issues and phenomena they come across.
Our international group of students will choose from a broad set of courses, designed to help them gain insights on some of the most essential aspects of China’s social and economic transformation, as well as the deep traditions and history that underlie the current changes.
Students will work with a combination of Chinese and Western instructors, as well as Teaching Assistants from some of the best Chinese and American universities, and undertake frequent field studies to explore the key issues discussed in classes.
Through extensive opportunities to interact and discuss with different people in and around Shanghai, from artists, entrepreneurs, NGO leaders, to ordinary workers, and by visiting homes, workplaces, and neighborhoods, students will integrate ideas discussed in class with first–hand experiences. This combination of high–level academic instruction, investigative field studies, and in–depth, issue–based discussions is a special hallmark of the Dimensions of China program.
Mandarin Tutorials convened every afternoon in small groups of two to four students will allow students to pick up, develop or sharpen their skills in Mandarin.
In Arts Appreciation Workshops, students will immerse in the classical genres of Chinese arts from calligraphy, painting, seal carving, music, folk dances to martial arts. The workshops will provide a guided and experiential introduction to Chinese artistic traditions and their distinctive ideas on nature, self, harmony, and human spirits.
Besides getting to know Shanghai well, students will visit two important historical cities, Suzhou and Hangzhou, as well as a traditional water–town in the Jiangnan region. Participants will learn about this most economically developed region of China and look at some of China’s finest architecture and art in Suzhou’s classical gardens.
Students will share and compare their experiences with each other, but perhaps most importantly, they will learn in a wide variety of ways from Teaching Assistants who serve as mentors and facilitators. Students will get to know Chinese students from some of the best high schools who will participate in different activities in the program and host optional homestays.
Learning, seeing, asking questions, listening, experiencing, traveling, and thinking – students will come out of their four weeks in China with a different view of the country and a deeper understanding of themselves. For some, this will have been their first visit to China, and they will return home with much to ponder. Some, who have familial connections with China, will be enthralled by experiencing first–hand what is Chinese in China today and, as a result, discovering more about what is Chinese about themselves. Perhaps for some the greatest reward will have been the friendships established with other participants and with Chinese students. Regardless of the backgrounds of the students, Dimensions of China will be a meeting place for some of the brightest and most interesting students and will be remembered and treasured for the rest of their lives.
As much as has been said about what Dimensions of China is, this program is not for everyone. This is not a typical four–week leisure tour of China. Nor is it a Mandarin immersion program where language training is the key objective. Our goal is to introduce students to the fascinating and complex reality in contemporary China, cultivate in them a strong ability to think beyond their own cultural framework, and prepare interested students for further China Studies and potentially China–related careers.
