Chinese Students May Head to Area Schools

COLERIDGE — Area schools could soon see as many as 14 foreign exchange students from China.
China is ready to send 14 students to the U.S. They will be attending school in Coleridge, Laurel-Concord, Newcastle or Wynot.
“We need host families for these Chinese students,” said Dan Hoesing, who is Superintendent for the four schools involved in an inter-local agreement for sharing.

Host families could be paid around $300 per month for opening their homes to the students for nine months, said Hoesing.
“This would be a different way to have students from other countries,” said Hoesing. “This would be an organized program. All of the host parents would meet quarterly and would be available to help each other out. The host families would have some support. These are good students  the students and their parents all speak English.”
Hoesing said this is not like the normal foreign exchange student program — an application for an F-1 status has been filed, Hoesing said.
There is money available from outside the U.S. to help educate these students, he said.
“F-1 students can stay for more than one year and we have a lot more involvement with the selection of students,” said Hoesing. “We are looking at the impact level our own students will have from this. We have little or no diversity in our schools now.”

“These kids that will be coming are the same kids that our students will be competing against when they are out in the world,” he said.
The math and science test scores from students in China are higher than the students in the U.S. but the standard of living in China is lower than that of the U.S., Hoesing said.
China is hoping to gain from what their students learn while living in the U.S.
Two representatives from China previously visited the Coleridge School. They were impressed with the Distance Education that is being used.
“The people from China were even interested in buying classes from us,” said Hoesing.
The Laurel-Concord School will be the host school for the students but will be receiving funds to pay the Coleridge school for the education of the students who live with host families in the Coleridge district.
The foreign exchange student funds are just one of the ways the interlocal agreement has aided the small area schools.
The schoois are also sharing equipment, staff, classes and books.
To find out more on how the schools are working together, check out Hartington.net.