Bay of Plenty teachers to go on an Asia aware road trip

The Asia New Zealand Foundation and Instep/Priority One are sending a group of Bay of Plenty teachers on a bus trip to demonstrate why Asia is important to their region.

The Business Education Partnership (BEP) Field Trip will visit three important local businesses to showcase how a number of key Bay of Plenty businesses have strong links with Asia and why it is important for schools to teach young New Zealanders about the Asian region.

The bus tour is specifically for Business Studies and Social Sciences teachers at Bay of Plenty schools and will take place on Monday March 28. The teachers will get firsthand experience which they will be able to draw on in order to teach their students about why it is important to know about Asia.

Two proactive local teachers Nyssa Poffley (Otumoetai College) and Karen Gilby (Bethlehem College) have prepared resources to support the Field Trip for their fellow teachers to use in the classroom once back at school.

The three businesses featured – Comvita, Zespri and Port of Tauranga – all have significant ties with, and are highly dependent on the Asian region. The bus tour will conclude with a networking function for Principals, participants of the field trip and local business people.

The idea for the Business Education Partnership Bus Tour was proposed at the Bay of Plenty BEP Symposium held in Tauranga in August last year.

The Business Education Partnership was first launched in Wellington on 16 November 2009 by Education Minister Hon Anne Tolley. Over 50 New Zealand businesses and business organisations have signed a declaration calling for greater attention to be given to “making New Zealanders, in our schools and educational institutions, in our boardrooms and in our workplaces, more informed about
Asia”.

The businesses involved in the BEP are committed to working with our communities to ensure that this initiative can help deliver greater Asia Awareness to all New Zealanders. A core part of the initiative is to connect New Zealand businesses (involved in Asia) and secondary schools to develop partnerships which will increase Asia Awareness in schools in New Zealand.

For more information, visit our website:
http://www.asianz.org.nz/our-work/action-asia-business/business-education-partnership

The Business Education Partnership Bus Tour will depart from the Smart Business Centre in Tauranga at 11am. The networking function will begin at 5:30pm.

ENDS

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