Argentinian students embrace Highland culture during UHI Inverness visit

UHI Inverness welcomed a large group of senior secondary students and their teachers from Argentina to campus this week as part of a long-standing cultural exchange partnership.

Shinty, curling and a ceilidh are all on the packed six-day programme organised for the 54 pupils and eight teachers from Colegio Mariano Acosta in Almagro, Buenos Aires. The visit is designed to help the students develop their English language skills while experiencing Highland culture and traditions.

The group arrived in the Highlands on Saturday and has been enjoying a range of educational, social and sporting activities. These include morning classes in cooking, acting and politics at the campus and a cruise on Loch Ness, curling sessions at Inverness Ice Centre and visits to the Inverness Castle Experience and Culloden Battlefield.

One of the highlights of the visit so far was a shinty experience hosted by Inverness Shinty Club on Monday when they learned about the sport and its history, played a shinty match with local youngsters, and visited its newly-renovated pavilion. Later this week the group will attend a traditional ceilidh at Inverness Town House and the Highland Youth Parliament at Eden Court.

The visit is run by CII GLOBAL, an Argentina-based education organisation that runs English immersion camps and coordinates study trips to the United Kingdom and Ireland. This is the fourth year the organisation has visited UHI Inverness.

Craig Lowther, Curriculum Lead of Computing, Land, Science and Education at UHI Inverness, said: 

"We are delighted to welcome our visitors from Argentina and to share our classes, community and culture with them. Opportunities like this enrich the learning experience for everyone involved, helping students develop greater global awareness, build international friendships and gain a deeper understanding of different cultures and perspectives.  I am sure this trip will create lasting connections and encourage mutual understanding. At UHI Inverness we value the links we are fostering with schools, colleges and universities overseas and I am grateful to everyone who contributed to making their visit such an enjoyable and positive experience, particularly the local organisations that have welcomed the group.”