Malaysia’s Chief Representative Praised! Kai Ping Culinary High School Students Plan ‘International Week’ to Broaden their Horizons

Three Months of Intensive Course Exchange, with Multiple Malaysian Cultural Lecturers Participating in Teaching.

  “International Week” is a signature project course of the International Bridge Program (IBP) at Kai Ping Culinary School. Each year, a theme country is chosen, allowing students to showcase the results of their international exchanges through diverse static and dynamic methods. In the past, Kai Ping collaborated with schools from the Netherlands and Puerto Rico. This time, the School partners with the Malaysian sister school, Sin Min Independent High School, for joint course preparation. Through multi-stage course planning by teachers from both sides, students gradually learned about each other’s local customs and culinary features through cultural introductions, feature interviews, and itinerary planning. Finally, students planned the “International Week” project, integrating learning materials to introduce the history and national conditions of other countries to the public. During this period, to enhance the cultural depth of the course, Mr. Wu Wei-Chung, a teacher from the International Bridge Program at Kai Ping Culinary School, specifically visited Malaysian cultural day activities, the Malaysia Friendship and Trade Centre, and related educational units. He coordinated various resources for teaching and outcome sharing, allowing students to present content closer to the local development background during International Week. The fruitful results received much acclaim from many distinguished Malaysian guests.

At the start of the exchange program, Kai Ping Culinary School students each chose topics such as Malaysian cuisine, festivals, art, nightlife, etc., and paired up to conduct online interviews with second-year students from Sin Min Independent High School. When asked, “If you could only introduce two most important features of Malaysia to foreigners, which two would you choose?”, Sin Min Independent High School’s students mentioned “multiculturalism and cuisine.” This response highlighted Malaysia’s unique integration of Malay, Chinese, and Indian communities and explained how different ethnic backgrounds shape the current lifestyle in Malaysia, setting the main theme for subsequent interviews. Ultimately, activities designed for the International Week included experiences like Nyonya kuih from Baba Nyonya culture, local delicacy nasi lemak, the Rangoli art of Indian Deepavali, and the traditional Malay craft of Wau (kite).

After the interviews concluded, the students from the International Bridge Program at Kai Ping Culinary School, along with the students from Sin Min Independent Hight School, organized a two-day in-depth travel planning presentation about Malaysia. This allowed them to share their key learning points and integrate all the gathered information to write the International Week project proposal. The proposal was evaluated by teachers and students from Sin Min Independent High School, resulting in the selection of “MARCH” (short for Malaysia and Arch) as the theme for this year’s International Week. The aim was to lead the audience into Malaysia and experience its multiculturalism. The event was planned to quickly introduce key information about Malaysia with “Multicultural Malaysia,” compare daily life in Taiwan and Malaysia with “Taiwan-Malaysia Life Exhibition,” explore the cultural features of Malaysia’s three main ethnic groups with “The Faces of Three Ethnic Groups,” demonstrate contemporary award-winning Malaysian cuisine with “Malaysian Michelin Showcase,” offer an Indian Deepavali traditional art experience with “Rangoli DIY,” and present Malaysia’s blended food culture with “The Ethnic Dining Table.” These six exhibition areas displayed Malaysia’s charm from multiple perspectives. To create a more authentic learning stage on the day of the event, the chief representative of the Malaysian Friendship and Trade Centre, Aznifah Isnariah Abdul Ghani, was specially invited to give a speech and tour the exhibition. She shared that international culinary education not only enhances students’ global perspectives but also fosters an appreciation and respect for diverse cultures. Through interactions and feedback with the students, more opportunities for cultural exchange were created.。

It is worth mentioning that to enrich the event’s content, the International Bridge Program invited many Malaysian cultural instructors to participate in teaching during the planning phase. For example, Mr. Huang Tsu Shun, who is dedicated to promoting Malaysian culture, held a lecture titled “Unveiling the Charms of Malaysian Culture” at the School, significantly enhancing the students’ understanding and knowledge. In the process of students’ recreating cultural features, they invited Mr. Lim Chin Kang, a kite master from Pekan Nanas who won the championship in Malaysia’s kite fighting competition, to demonstrate and teach, ensuring the exhibited works closely reflected local techniques and spirit. The eye-catching performance of the traditional Malaysian frame drum made from goatskin (Rasa Sayang) at the opening ceremony was taught by Mr. Ng Jin Nam, a multicultural instructor from Malaysia. He not only accompanied the students in repeated practice sessions beforehand but also performed with them on the day of the event. This allowed the students to share in the instructors’ passion for cultural promotion, creating a greater sense of mission and commitment to cultural dissemination for this event.

Additionally, the event also invited Ms. Aninawati, Director of the Malaysian Friendship and Trade Centre, and Deputy Director Ms. Naimatul, as well as Associate Professor Chang, Yi-Jie and Assistant Professor Wu, Hong-Li from the ASEAN Human Resources Education Center at National Taipei University of Education, and Advisor Cheng Chee Yoon of the 51st Malaysian Student Association in Taiwan. After being guided by the students, the distinguished guests highly praised the multifaceted presentation of Malaysia. Sin Min Independent High School homeroom teacher Ng Kok Tze, who participated online, remarked that this event marked the first step for his students in international exchange. Through this opportunity, they were able to introduce the cultural beliefs, cuisine, clothing, festivals, and tourist attractions of various ethnic groups in Malaysia. The students felt deeply moved and engaged, and they look forward to more educational exchange activities between the two countries in the future, which will further enhance the friendly relations between Malaysia and Taiwan.

In the teaching environment of “Natural Development,” children are cultivated to think independently and find their future direction. For more details about the School’s educational content, please visit the official website: https://www.kpvs.tp.edu.tw/ or contact Ms. Yang at 02-2755-6939 ext. 341.

Students from the International Bridge Program at Kai Ping Culinary School organized the Malaysia International Week, inviting Ms. Aznifah Isnariah Abdul Ghani (fifth from the right), the Chief Representative of the Malaysia Friendship and Trade Centre, along with several distinguished guests from Malaysia to experience the students’ achievements.