Students from Melbourne Polytechnic ran workshops at the Harmony Week Festival in a celebration of culture and diversity.
Jithmi Rathnayake is a student studying English as an Additional Language at Melbourne Polytechnic. She participated in the festival by running a badge design workshop that enabled students to share their culture with others.
“We shared with others the meaning behind the colours and symbols of our country flag,“ she said.
“Students had the opportunity to design their own badge with their country flag and learn how to say ‘hello’ in their language.
“Harmony day is important to me because it’s all about being inclusive and sharing my culture and learning about other people’s cultures.“
Student Engagement Officer at Melbourne Polytechnic, Anh Pham says that Harmony Day is an important reminder to acknowledge the contributions migrants have in our community.
“It’s an opportunity to celebrate all the different cultures that make us who we are,” she said.
“This year, we worked with our Young Adult Migrant English Course students and Adult Migrant English Program students to manage six cultural workshops which allowed them to create a sense of belonging, respect and inclusion in the school and community by bringing people together to reflect, discuss and acknowledge everyone’s identity.”
Hannah Hammoud
