Victoria, October 15th, 2011--With the concern and support of the Education Section at the Chinese Consul-General in Melbourne, 17 volunteer Chinese teachers sent by Hanban to teach in Victoria gathered together to sum up their experience and feelings about teaching Chinese in primary and secondary schools in Victoria. Ms. Yuan Li, an advisor of Chinese language sent by Hanban to the Education Department of Victoria, was invited to the meeting.

Unlike previous years, the volunteers held the meeting outdoors, not in the conference room. They sat around and talked with one another pleasantly. The new place of gathering not only helped the volunteers relax themselves and enjoy beautiful scenery, but also made them feel the warmth of the Education Section's concern.

At about 10 a.m., the volunteers, guided by staff members from the Education Section, drove to the Mountain of Dandenong that is located in the suburbs of Melbourne, to enjoy the plants and animals unique to the Southern Hemisphere and to overlook the whole city of Melbourne. On their way to the destination, Consul Counselor Guo Xiaojuan from the Education Section presented every volunteer with a moon cake, which was a big surprise to them. Counselor Guo said, "The moon cakes were prepared for you during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and have been stored in the refrigerator for the occasion. I am guessing you have had no time to eat breakfast, so please enjoy them." The volunteers burst into cheers. They felt happy and warm to eat moon cakes in a foreign country.

The meeting began at about 2 p.m. Counselor Guo Xiaojuan first extend her cordial greetings to the volunteers on behalf of the Education Section, and conveyed the concerns of the Education Section's staff members to the Volunteer Program and the volunteers, stressing the important significance and role of the Volunteer Program in carrying forward Chinese teaching in primary and secondary schools in Australia. Afterwards, the volunteers talked about their feelings about living and working in Australia in simple but funny words, including how to be a good teaching assistant, how to get along with their host families, how to adapt to Australia's food, climate and culture, how to solve problems they encountered in work and life, and how to handle cultural conflicts. They shared their feelings about work and life, and concluded that it's a great opportunity for MTCSOL students to have teaching practice abroad and that the one-year struggle made them more independent.

Counselor Guo Xiaojuan listened earnestly to their words, and fully affirmed the achievements they accomplished in the past one year. She encouraged the volunteers to keep on working hard to fulfil their mission. She also thanked Shi Chao, head of the volunteers, for what he had done. "Your performance in the past one year can be summed up as mutual help, friendship, professionalism, devotion. Each volunteer is a business card representing the brilliant image of the Chinese volunteers, and is an envoy of the Sino-Australian friendship. I hope you can make more contributions to the promotion of Chinese language and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries," Guo said. Chinese language advisor Yuan Li conveyed the praise of the Education Department of Victoria for the volunteers.

The volunteers were greatly encouraged, and stated that they would continue to work hard to fulfil the tasks Hanban entrusted to them. The event came to a successful end at 4:00 p.m. and the volunteers said goodbye to each other reluctantly.