MEDIA RELEASE
MONDAY, DECEMBER
14, 2015
New Years in Myanmar a
unique opportunity for Auckland
students
Two University of Auckland
Psychology students are trading in their summer break for a
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to teach in
Myanmar.
Lucy Cowie, 22 from Ardmore, and
Alexandra Bijl-Brown 21, from Mt Eden, have been selected
for a three week teaching internship to Dagon University in
Myanmar.
They will teach Introductory Psychology to fellow
undergraduates. Departing for Myanmar on 26 December, they
will join two students from the University of Hong Kong also
taking part in the scheme.
“The benefits of this type of
teaching arrangement are high for both sides,” says
Professor William Hayward, Head of the School of Psychology
at the University of Auckland. “Students from South East
Asia welcome the chance to learn from world-class
undergraduates from Hong Kong and New Zealand, and likewise
the journey offers rich learning experiences for our
students.”
Alexandra, who is the final year of a
conjoint Science and Health Sciences degree, has previously
volunteered at a Cambodian orphanage, and in New Zealand
with children from difficult backgrounds.
“I am also
hugely interested in global health and the related politics,
so Myanmar, as a developing country, is incredibly
interesting to me, and I believe the best way to understand
a country is to spend time there,” she says.
Lucy, an
honours student and part-time tutor in the Psychology
Department, hopes the unique experience of travelling to
Myanmar will enrich her teaching and research skills. Lucy
is involved in the 20 year New Zealand Attitudes and Values
Study (NZAVS) of social attitudes, personality and health
outcomes.
“Teaching in Myanmar will be a unique
experience and as a budding researcher, it’s an incredible
opportunity to apply the skills I have learnt in Psychology
to a situation which has practical implications for both
myself and the people I am working with,” she
says.
Notes to editors:
Dagon is the
largest and one of the newest universities in Myanmar,
established in 1993.
The students each receive NZ$3000 in
support to cover most living and travelling
expenses.