Page 2266 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 16 August 2006
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speeches and also a wonderful opportunity for Australians and the international students to mix in a social environment. I was particularly encouraged to see the “interfaith barbecue” being run, where halal, kosher and vegetarian options were all available.
Helen Keller said that the highest result of education is tolerance. Well, here in the Canberra university community students and staff are moving beyond the simplistic notion of tolerance to truly celebrate their cultural diversity, and I congratulate them all on it as I believe the concept of tolerance is redundant in the city of Canberra where “understanding” is the important focus. To tolerate someone or something is to bear it, to put up with it, to endure it, to stand it. The diversity of culture in Canberra, which is so enriched by the international student community, is not something that Canberrans tolerate but something we should both understand and embrace. The increasing globalised nature of the world means that multiculturalism is here to stay, and I would like to see all Canberrans follow the example of our university students and celebrate, not tolerate, the diverse nature of our city. I think we are very lucky that this is in fact acted out on a daily basis in our city.
I am here today not only to highlight the important contribution made to our community by international students but also to recognise the invaluable role played by student organisations in providing support for international students. The National Liaison Committee for International Students in Australia, the NLC, is the peak representative body for international students in Australia and it works in conjunction with the National Union of Students. This committee does wonderful work in seeking to represent international students on a national level by lobbying for improved living standards, better quality education and enhanced international student welfare. The NLC has seven branches around the country, including an extremely successful one here in the ACT. It is the role of our universities to provide a positive educational experience for international students. However, it is the wonderful student organisations at the ANU and the University of Canberra that provide rich social and cultural experiences for international students.
I want to tell the people in this place a little bit about the wonderful work done by the ANU and UC student associations in supporting university students who come from overseas. Following a series of discussions, the Australian National University Students Association recently identified that international students often struggle to fully participate in the Western educational context. Voicing an opinion in a university setting in your second language is understandably a daunting experience. As a result, the ANU Students Association has launched a series of English conversational classes in which Australian student volunteers work with international students to increase conversational skills. This is a wonderful initiative as it fosters both learning and friendship between international and Australian students.
Both of the Canberra universities provide mentors for new students and this service is being overwhelmingly accessed by international students. New students are assigned a mentor who helps them with signing up for classes, accessing student email, understanding the library system and much more. I can remember that my first day at university as a mature age student was a daunting experience in that I was confronted by an array of information which I did not quite understand when I was signing up for my classes. We must have empathy with our international students who must find that even more daunting. Mentors usually share a similar field of study to the new student and so
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