BoeingHigherEducationProgram

2014 Visiting Kofu Higashi High School Report １March 11, 2014

　For many of us, the disaster of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami will still be a sad memory in our minds, even now, 3 years later. Which was why I was very surprised, that this date was chosen for our visit to Kofu Higashi High School in Yamanashi Prefecture for a cultural exchange program. However, being a part of this trip has changed my life forever.

　Our task for this trip was to prepare a presentation about our country and share it with the students of the school who will then present to us something about their country in return. It may seem very simple and straightforward, but what impressed me the most was the amount of effort that they put into their presentations! It was very detailed, and most of it had hand-drawn pictures to explain their chosen topics to perfection!

　Usually, the image of most foreigners when it comes to communicating with Japanese students are that Japanese students are very shy and reserved, or that they don’t understand much English, and so it becomes a very formal English-lesson type of environment when speaking with Japanese students, which I feel should not be the case at all. What is special about foreign students coming to visit is not about the knowledge that they bring or possess, but the contact and the opportunity to speak with someone from a different country, which they cannot do when watching television or studying from a textbook.

　And so I believe that communicating and being able to let the students know what kind of a person you (who come from a foreign country) are, is more important that what you have to say or present. I’m sure this kind of heart-to-heart communication will be cherished by then students all the more when compared to what they can learn from the powerpoint slides that we bring.

　When I say this trip changed me, it has. I see the hope and joys of the students, and it made me realize that they are our future generation who must be protected and given a chance to pursue their goals and dreams, and we, as their guardians, should do all we can to help them to achieve it.
　Pada Mac 11 2014, sebagai pelajar asing di Jepun, kita dijemput untuk mengambil bahagian untuk aktiviti kenal-mengenal dengan pelajar Jepun. Kita ditugaskan untuk membuat presentasi powerpoint untuk membantu pelajar-pelajar Jepun untuk mengenal lebih tentang negara-negara kami.

　Perjalanan kami dari Tokyo ke Yamanashi mengambil kira-kira 3 jam dengan bas. Dalam bas, kita diberitahu bahawa pelajar-pelajar Jepun telah membuat presentasi tentang budaya-budaya negara Jepun untuk membolehkan kami lebih mengetahui tentang budaya Jepun.

　Setelah tiba ke sana, kita diberi kuih-muih tempatan seperti mocha dan dango. Selepas itu, kita telah diberitahu jadual waktu kita. Seorang telah diberi 3 kelas, dari tahun 1 dan tahun 2. Pelajar-pelajar Jepun sangat mesra, dan kita telah mengenali dengan lebih dalam tentang budaya-budaya negara Jepun seperti Hari Kodomo, Hina Matsuri dan sebagainya.

　Saya berasa sangat bahagia dapat menyertai aktiviti ini dan berharap saya boleh menyertai lagi aktiviti-aktiviti seperti ini pada masa hadapan.