The third stage of the “UPC Foreign Language Corner” for 2023 was successfully held. The event attracted over 600 students and teachers from diverse fields of study of UPC and more than 90 students and teachers from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School. Held on the evening of April 7th in the U-Shape Plaza of Arts & Science Building and Room 346, the event was themed with “Why is phubbing harmful to us” and “Русский юмор”. The hosts and hostesses for English Corner and Russian Corner were Wang Xuechun, a graduate student majoring in English Interpreting, Chen Ziyan from Class 2003 of English major, Chen Jun, a graduate student majoring in Russian Translation, and Zhang Shuo from Class 2102 of Russian major. The event also saw the participation of many teachers from Department of English for Academic Purposes and Department of Russian Language and Literature, as well as English foreign teachers Neville and Steven and Russian foreign teacher Юрий, who served as tutors. The event was organized by Department of English for Academic Purposes, Department of Russian Language and Literature and the SFS General Office and Youth League Committee of SFS, with Class 2003 of English major and Class 2101 of Russian major taking on the mantle of undertaking the event.
Students from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School at English Corner
Full Shot of English Corner
Host and Hostess for English Corner
The English Corner persisted as a collaborative effort between teachers and students. During the sessions, students self-organized into distinct groups, and with the assistance from teachers around they had some in-depth discussions on the theme “Why is phubbing harmful to us”.
Ms. Li Tiantian from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School
Teacher-Student Interaction at English Corner
The students discussed the topic heatedly and expressed their views on phubbing phenomenon and its harm. During the discussion and interaction, both the teachers and students were fully aware that although electronic products, indispensable to more and more people in real life, can bring us a wonderful virtual life, they are also harmful to phubbers who may suffer from eyestrain, cervical spondylosis, bad physical and psychological states or even severe impairment. According to most students, face-to-face social interaction is an excellent way to keep away from electronic products. They also said that they would be more self-restrained and give priority to their study.
The grand finale of the English Corner featured a fierce competition between seven contestants who made impromptu speeches on the stage. Finally, Li Songze from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School and Wang Shixin from Class 2202 of Safety Engineering major at UPC, emerged as the victors of the championship.
Awarding Prize to the Champions of English Corner
The Contestants and Teachers
In addition to the UPC students interested in learning Russian, there were international students from Russia and students learning Russian from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School participating in the Russian Corner. During the event, the host Chen Jun started with an introduction to common imagery in Russian humor and shared related videos, immersing all the students and teachers in the atmosphere of Russian humor. The students were divided into four groups to practice reciting, and the champion was selected through a recitation contest. Eventually, Miao Lin from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School and Zhang Shuo from Class 2101 of Russian major won the unanimous approval of all students and teachers for their excellent performance and became the winners. With this event, all participants experienced the charm of Russian humor and deepened their understanding of Russian culture.
On Russian Corner Site
Awarding Prize to the Champions of Russian Corner
The Students and Teachers of Russian Corner
Thanks to the Foreign Language Corner, students have gained a lot. This time I plucked up the courage to go on stage to fight and became the champion, which made me understand that I should be brave enough to seize the opportunity during learning. Although at present I’m just a high school student, I should learn from the excellent students of China University of Petroleum, grasp the opportunity to actively go on stage and not back down in front of difficulties, said Li Songze from Qingdao West Coast New Area No.1 High School, who won the champion during this activity, I’ve got a very good experience after coming to the UPC Foreign Language Corner. Here one can find many excellent students, and we have actively communicated under a particularly good atmosphere.
For the first time the UPC Foreign Language Corner has embraced such a large number of participants from outside units on a large scale, who were attracted by the strong atmosphere of foreign language learning and the rich campus cultural life. This is a constructive practice in expanding the influence of the college and the school, widening the communication channels with high schools and refining the enrollment promotion. It is also a full manifestation of the college giving full play to its excellent language services and actively serving the local community by adhering to its motto of Think Global, Act Local.
The UPC Foreign Language Corner has adopted the motto of “Practice Together, Progress Together”. Through this initiative, participants are encouraged to show themselves, creating a lively atmosphere for language practice. The Corner is a key step towards the construction of a foreign language learning environment, and it promises to cultivate national pride and global perspectives among the students.
