High School Experiential Learning Programs in China

My name is Lucy, and I had the incredible opportunity and privilege to go on a Dragons trip, specifically the China Language Intensive, in the summer of ’25. I truly believe that anyone who has the chance to do a Dragon's trip should go for it. Knowing what a great privilege it was, I can say it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done, something that will stay with me forever. The program is beautiful, raw, and so full of meaning. You get to connect with people and experience life in a way you never have before, and it stays with you. It’s impossible to choose a single “favorite” part of the trip, but the homestays were definitely a highlight. In the village of Nanyao in Lijiang City (Yunnan Province), I remember meeting my homestay mom and dad and feeling slightly hesitant at first. Despite the language barrier, their hospitality and kindness needed no translation. I felt right at home almost immediately. I made lifelong friends who feel like family, and I still have all their contacts. I cherish memories of playing soccer, cooking meals, and spending time with my homestay siblings; I think about them all the time. Kunming was amazing as well, an urban homestay full of energy, busy yet organized. I loved taking the Kunming Metro every day to and from Mandarin class and Independent Study. I even learned to play a traditional Chinese instrument, the guqin. My homestay parents were so sweet. One of my favorite memories is simply making dumplings with them, talking, heading down to the back entrance of the bottom floor to see kittens just outside the complex, and sharing family meals. Our instructors on this trip in particular let us do stipend meals often, a chance to practice the language, manage foreign currency, and spend independent time with your group, whether all twelve of us went together or split into smaller ones. Everyone was inclusive because everyone wanted to be there; the group was so tight-knit. Every meal felt special, even when it was just street noodles or hot pot (my favorite). My instructors, Rosalyn, Cy, and Martina, were incredible. They made me feel supported, inspired, and seen. I learned so much from them about language and culture, but also about perspective and slowing down, appreciating absolutely everything while you’re in a place that can feel new and, at times, intimidating. I carried my Canon camera everywhere (my neck still remembers it), but I’m so glad I brought it. The photos mean everything to me now; I look back on them frequently and fondly. This trip was especially meaningful because I was adopted from China. Returning as a young adult to learn, explore, and connect felt incredibly empowering. I even turned 18 on the trip, which was really fun. One of the biggest takeaways is how it helped me feel more connected to where I come from and deeply grateful for the people who shared their lives with me. Dragons changed the way I see the world. If you can do it, you absolutely should. It’s not just a trip—it’s an experience that will change you for the better. Be eternally grateful if you get the chance to go on one.

I would highly reccomend this program because it is an opportunity of a lifetime, especially for teenagers our age who have not yet traveled independently. It has not only developed my independence, but also expanded my comfort zone concerning socializing with locals and asking questions in the local language.

It is really fun, I met a lot of new people and had a lot of new experiences. I liked the overall structure of the CIEE program; the homestay, the short class in the morning with cultural activities in the afternoon, the scheduled free time, etc. The only thing I would say is that we sometimes got our schedules and things very last minute - I did not know anything about my host family until a week before my flight here. It would have been nicer to know further in advance so I could get to know them better beforehand. We also didn’t find out the details about things such as our excursions until the day before or even day-of, which made things uncertain and a little stressful.

Wandering the streets of Chengdu with my host sister, we created a game called 这是什么？or 'what is this?' as I knew almost no Chinese upon arrival. Throughout my six weeks in country I pointed at ingredients from the local market, signs advertising the newest tech in the city's downtown hub, and of course, the pandas at the Chengdu Research Base of Panda Breeding all the while expanding my vocabulary and understanding of Chinese culture. By the end of my time in China with AFS I could order my favorite dumplings from a street cart on the way to school and even sang Beijing opera style for our program's closing ceremony! All of this was made possible with the support of AFS and the funding of the NSLI-Y program. My 6-weeks in China simply wasn't enough, so I enrolled in Chinese classes at university and have been in pursuit of reuniting with my host family (and those dumplings) ever since. My exchange experience not only opened up opportunities for cross-cultural understanding, but also prepared me for a globally focused academic and professional career.

AFS-USA responded to this reviewOctober 14, 2022

Thank you so much for your wonderful review Marria! We are so happy that your exchange experience with AFS was so impactful!

I choose AFS because, I felt like with other exchange programs, after you got into the foreign country they just kind of left you. I felt like AFS took care of us while we were in France by organizing weekends and checking up on us!

I am a high school student back in the US and I decided to go to China during the summer holidays (last year). I joined Go Abroad China, their high school program. It was very interesting, first of all my Chinese language classes were held at a university BLCU in Beijing, but I was living with a Chinese family as my hosts. I had class everyday with some other classmates, they tried to keep people around a similar age and Chinese level together. I really liked learning Chinese. In the afternoons they would take us out to see the city, sometimes they organized activities right on campus. It was really cool being in a campus. My Chinese host family was so great to me, I liked the family that Go Abroad China help arrange for me. They could speak some English and shared a lot of Chinese food with me and made me feel welcome. My time there was great, I enjoyed and learned so much.

I cannot recommend this program more highly. I had been studying Chinese for a few years, but was feeling discouraged in my Chinese classes at school and wondered why in the world I was memorizing all of this vocabulary- what was it all for? That's when I stumbled upon Dragon! I considered tons of other programs (SYA, etc), but kept coming back to Dragons because it had everything I was looking for- intensive Chinese, tons of rugged travel, homestays, trekking, community service, a small group, really experienced and passionate instructors, and I could go on. Part of why my experience was so great was because of my group- we were 11 strong (6 guys, 5 girls), and clicked from the beginning! I was worried that everyone would know each other or be from the same schools, but we were from all different areas of the country, and no one knew each other going in, which was perfect! One of the best parts of the group was how different we all were- we all got along, but there was never any cliquey-ness because there were so few of us and we all mixed together. When we did have a few issues with a member of the group, the instructors handled it really well, checking in often with both sides of the issue and monitoring closely, while still giving us freedom and responsibility. The group overall was just amazing though-- looking back, I can honestly say I've never been that happy for such a long period of time as I was while in China, and I think a lot of it was because of our group! The homestays were another amazing part- it was so great to get to see such disparate areas of the country and really get immersed in the culture- I loved both of my families, but the good news was that if your family was hard to communicate with or something like that, you weren't constantly with your family, and had a lot of other things to do (especially in Kunming). I loooved traveling around as well, seeing rural and urban areas, and planning our trip at the end- I felt like I not only got a great feel for Yunnan, but that I now know so much more about what it take to travel "close to the ground" in China- so empowering! After being back in the US for a few months now, I can also honestly say that my Chinese has improved SO much. Particularly with my listening and speaking skills, I feel soo much more confident in the classroom (and am making better grades!) and am actually loving learning Chinese now, because I know it'll all be worth it when I go back to China and can communicate even better! All in all, I honestly wish the program had been 12 weeks rather than 6, because I just loved it so much-- if you're on the fence, just go for it!