FK Youth Exchange

2018-10-16T09:33:40+01:00August 9th, 2014|

Preparing for FK Youth exchange with UWC Red Cross Nordic

Eight Norwegians and two Thai volunteers have spent two and a half weeks at UWC Red Cross Nordic preparing for their posting abroad with FK Youth exchange (Fredskorpset). Two Saharawi volunteers are delayed because they are waiting for their visas, but they will hopefully arrive this week.

The FK volunteers experience another culture through teaching languages and assisting staff at UWC Red Cross Nordic and then at the Mercy Centre in Thailand during their posting abroad. Furthermore they learn about humanitarian values and issues and every-day life for Saharawi refugees, people in the slum of Bangkok and Norwegian society. This is how Solveig, one of the Norwegian volunteers, sums up the FK preparation course from 20th July-6th August:

Training week

In the classroom with some of the English Summer Course students

During the first week it was only the other FK volunteers, Summer Course activity volunteers and a couple of interns at the College. We were taught how to teach and also planned out the Summer Course for the students. We learned how to approach students, how to handle different situations in the classroom, lots of learning techniques, tips about classroom communication, and how to plan classes. This week was mainly led by RCN teacher Peter Wilson and former UWC RCN student Madeleine Benishek. There were also some classes giving us information about the project, FK and HDF Mercy Centre, led by FK Project Coordinator Hilde Genberg.

Pernille, who volunteered for HDF Mercy Centre last January to May, came to RCN to tell us about her experiences to help prepare us for our time there. She told us how our everyday life would be like, some of the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ in Thailand, and about the Mercy Centre, its work and its surroundings. This was the first time we reallygot to know what would be expected of us and what we could expect during our stay at the Mercy Centre. So yes, Pernille’s visit was very informative and helpful, and I’m positive this is when we all realised how near our departure to Thailand actually is! Thai classes were also held throughout the whole summer course by the two Thai FK volunteers at RCN; Pui and Aoey. Sadly, I cannot say I’ve become fluent in Thai, but we all learned some phrases, and important key words for everyday communication.

In the afternoon we had lots of spare time. Some of it was obviously spent looking over Thai notes, but we also had time for more exciting activities such as kayaking, swimming, tanning in the hot summer sun, hiking, playing cards, reading, working out in the gym nearby, watching movies and bicycling to the closest grocery store. All this and the fact that the weather was perfectly sunny and warm made it totally OK that my summer break had been shortened by three weeks due to the Summer Course.

Second week: The students arrived

Working with the students. Does it look like fun? It was!After a calm and relaxing weekend the students arrived, and we were about to have our first classes on Monday morning. The teaching was quite nerve-racking in the beginning, but as the week passed we became more and more confident about the teaching. Each class was 40 minutes long and we had two classes a day. In the beginning we taught classes in pairs, but as we became more confident we taught classes alone as well.

The aim of the Summer Course is to give the students a gentle introduction to RCN, the IB programme and Norway, while encouraging the students to speak, write and read English in order to improve their English skills. Teaching these students was as wonderful as can be. They were extremely motivated to improve their English, and every single class made me aware of my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher, as did the feedback Pete and Madeleine gave me. The teaching itself definitely improved me the most as a teacher.

The rest of the week consisted of planning and preparing classes, attending more Thai classes, correcting homework we had given the students and tutoring and helping some of the students with their homework. This week was definitely more hectic than the previous one. For instance, some days I wasn’t done before 11 o’clock at night! But all in all, it was very joyful due to all the interesting and great people I was surrounded by.

Being at RCN and experiencing the summer course makes me regret I never applied to UWC as a student myself. However, I am extremely happy I got to experience the school as a teacher and FK volunteer. This school deserves a wider reputation and more publicity. It was also great to finally meet all the other FK volunteers who are also going to Thailand, and meeting the others volunteers and interns made the weeks fly by with lots of laughter and fun. We were all such a good group of friends by the end!

Most importantly though, the FK Preparation course prepared me very well for my journey to Thailand. Now I know what the Mercy Centre actually is, what I will be doing there, how to do it, what my everyday life will look like and who I will be travelling with. It’s not until now that I can say how excited I am, because it’s not until now I know what I’m heading towards!

ps: Want to see how the exchange works out in the year to come? Follow Solveig and the other FK Youth participants on FK Youth’s blog that will soon be updated.

The Summer Season

2014-08-06T11:25:02+01:00August 4th, 2014|

The summer season at UWC Red Cross Nordic has been blessed with nearly continuous sunshine, with a fjord temperature between 20 and 25 degrees! The Red Cross Holiday Camps were well attended, excellently run by Ragnhild Tveiten and her summer staff. A big thank you must go to the Red Cross in Sogn og Fjordane and our neighbouring counties for making this possible for so many participants.
The UWC English Summer Course is now in full swing, under the supervision of Peter Wilson and Madeleine Benishek – there are many new faces on campus, eager to get involved.

Semester at Sea

2018-10-16T09:33:40+01:00August 1st, 2014|

In 2013 and 2014, Shelby Davis has kindly offered scholarships to students from each United World College to attend a Semester at Sea voyage. Åse (Norway) was the first UWC RCN recipient of the award with Frida (Denmark)and Emma (The Netherlands) due to join a voyage in the forthcoming academic year. This summer, recent alumnus Johan (Norway) was invited to be an ‘interport’ guest speaker on the leg between Ireland and Norway. He reports:

On board for the summer voyage

On board

In July, I was given the opportunity to represent UWC Red Cross Nordic and Norway as an ‘interport’ student during Semester at Sea’s summer voyage. ‘Interport’ students are guest speakers who board the ship a few ports prior to their home countries, in order to prepare the students on the voyage about cultural and political aspects of the coming county. In my case, I flew from Oslo to join MV Explorer in Dublin, and spent the next nine days sailing back to Oslo through Bergen. During my stay, I participated in classes, joined on shore excursions, held presentations about UWC and Norway, as well as participated in activities on board. I disembarked in Oslo having met hundreds of people who were all eager to learn about the world around them. I have had discussions, debates, chats and even arguments with more people than I can recall, as well as having gained some very good friends.

Semester at Sea is a very unique experience, and I am very grateful for my chance to get a little understanding of the journey the students go through. In many ways, Semester at Sea shares the same ideals of cultural understanding and appreciation as UWC, and it was a gratifying experience seeing how the concept of a ‘World Citizen’ also can be so much more than what you can experience at UWC.

I am truly grateful to everyone who made me feel welcome during my stay- and I hope that other students will be able to experience the same as I have.

Johan Ludvig Holst, UWC Red Cross Nordic ‘14

To the Top!

2014-06-09T06:26:05+01:00June 7th, 2014|

This year UWC Red Cross Nordic was invited to participate in the annual Red Cross event ‘Til Topps’, an ascent of Norway’s highest mountain, Galdhopiggen. Til Topps is the year’s most energetic multicultural integration event, supported by a phenomenal team of volunteers who ensured that the day ran smoothly and safely. Over 1000 people joined the event this year.

The aims of Til Topps are as follows:

  • To increase inclusion and improve health.
  • To create long-lasting networks through nature, culture and people-to-people experiences.
  • To encourage friendship and knowledge gained during the trip to continue once the hike is over.
  • To give positive attention to integration work in Norway.
  • To encourage people’s desire to take part in practical integration work in their local communities
  • To inspire people to get out and move!

Five students and two staff members left the College early on the last day of term, driving through spectacular scenery on their way to Lom, where we were based with the Sogn og Fjordane Red Cross.


The evening before the hike, participants were treated to a culture evening with delicious food and exciting entertainment, including a performance by the lively “Awesomnia”.

The big day dawned, we packed up our rucksacks and were bussed to Juvasshytta, where we registered for the hike, received harnesses for the glacier crossing, and set off! The walk was challenging, even for hardy Norwegians, but as always, the thought of reaching the top and the encouraging words and smiles of other participants and Red Cross organizers provided all the motivation we needed.

Although the top was cloud-hidden and the views of the surrounding landscape were non-existent, looking around us, we had a stunning view of happy, smiling faces and groups taking photos. The air was alive with congratulations and a shared sense of achievement.

We are very grateful to the Sogn og Fjordane Red Cross for including us in their team, giving us the opportunity to have this extraordinary experience.

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