The fall semester is around the corner. More than 300 students from the international division of the Beijing Etown Academy and the Affiliated High School of Peking University as well as the Beijing Lu He International Academy are going to pack and go abroad for studying. Overseas safety and the safety of studying abroad are common concerns for teachers, students and their parents.

To forestall risks students may encounter overseas, the Beijing Foreign Affairs Office brought the "Consular Protection of Beijing & Personal Safety for You" themed lectures to schools on June 11 and 14, offering a special "consular protection gift package" to the students via video links.

1. Careful design enabled the lecture to be more targeted

The Beijing Foreign Affairs Office attaches great importance to the safety of students who go study abroad from Beijing. Therefore, it selected three schools with a large number of such students to collect questions from them and their parents about the safety of studying abroad. For example, "What should I do if I encounter a shooting abroad?" "What should we know when it comes to cultural taboos?" "How to identify and prevent all kinds of fraud?" Based on these questions, a series of tailored virtual lectures was organized for the students. In this way, students could learn more about relevant knowledge and solutions so as to forestall trouble and avoid casualties as well as property losses as much as possible when studying abroad.

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2. Experiential learning made the explanation more straightforward

Liu Jianliang, former director of the Tactics Research Office of the Special Police Academy and senior trainer of the People's Public Security University of China, was invited to give a keynote lecture. He enumerated real cases and explained common risks on overseas safety. For scenarios such as robbery, kidnapping, shootings, explosions, and stampedes, he offered hands-on demonstrations from perspectives of preventing, hiding, escaping, resistance and keeping a safe distance, etc. In this way, he elaborated on methods to cope with emergencies so that students could better handle them.

3. Answers hit the nail on the head, receiving more enthusiastic feedback

After delivering speeches, the lecturer answered questions raised by teachers, students and their parents one by one, including "How to protect ourselves when we encounter an indiscriminate shooting?" "What should students know when it comes to overseas safety?" "How can girls ensure their personal and property safety?" In addition, the lecturer reminded students to keep in touch with their families and protect their privacy.

The vivid, elaborate, and satisfying lecture was well received by teachers, students and parents. "I'd like to thank Beijing Foreign Affairs Office for inviting the expert to deliver such a wonderful lecture for our students. The lecture is juicy and comprehensive. The analysis is down-to-earth. As a teacher, I have learned a lot, too. How to ensure the safety of students going abroad concerns themselves, their parents and schools. The experts' lecture answered the questions that worry us the most. We are looking forward to more activities like this in the future," said Dong Xiaoyang, a teacher from the Affiliated High School of Peking University.

"My kid is about to go abroad. Recently, many overseas safety incidents have occurred, which particularly concerns parents like me. This lecture is really practical. After this lecture, we will practice what we learned today with our child at home," said a parent whose child studies at the Beijing Lu He International Academy.

"I have learned a lot from this lecture and become more confident in studying abroad. The experts also answered my questions on the message board. I am very happy to have such a lecture before going abroad," said a student surnamed Wu from the international division of the Beijing Etown Academy.

The Beijing Foreign Affairs Office will continue to promote preventive consular protection, allowing the Consular Protection Lecture to reach more Beijing citizens to enhance their preparedness to handle overseas safety risks.