Cynthia Vu: Assistant English Teacher at Ohara Gakuen

投稿日時: 2017-11-23 投稿者: KCJS29

Every week, I go to a Ohara’s elementary/middle school to help with their English classes. Every week, the teacher puts me with a different grade level, so I get the opportunity to work with all the students. The school is very tiny with about 7 or 8 students per year, but it makes it much easier to remember the name of the students. During the class, the usual routine starts off my own self-introduction followed by questions from the students. The English teachers are in the room translating what I am saying just in case the students do not understand. Afterwards, the students themselves give their own introduction in English, and then we end the class with some activity the teacher decides to do. The students, contrary to my thought, are always lively and joke around quite a bit. They even play around with their teacher–which is extremely fun to watch and listen. I do not spend much time speaking Japanese, but I do think it is good listening practice since everyone around me speaks Japanese. It is especially fun listening to the different students speak and their style.

I also try to get involved with the students outside of class as well. Before the students start fifth period, which is when the English class starts, they divide into small groups comprised of students of different age to clean the classrooms. The teacher encouraged me to clean with them, so sometimes I find myself wiping the desks or sweeping the floors. I never cleaned my classrooms in school in America, so to see 5th graders vacuum the floor is really impressive. The teachers said the goal is let them become independent and learn how to be responsible–which I think they have definitely achieved.

Because I go to Ohara on Fridays, I end up spectating some special events as well. I got the opportunity to watch Ohara’s 文化祭, in English it translates into cultural festival. It was extremely to watch all their plays and performances; even the 1st and 2nd graders did great in their animal musical. It was just a really fun event where the entire school worked together to create a show for everyone to enjoy. Even the teachers performed in some of the dances and singing. I even watched the 生徒会選挙, which is their student council election. I really enjoyed my time at Ohara. I ended up learning a lot more about Japanese culture than I thought, so it was a really great experience.

Katie Roth: Basketball Club

投稿日時: 2017-11-23 投稿者: KCJS29

For my CIP I attended FREE basketball club in Kyoto. The group was a mix of Kyoto, Tokyo, and Doshisha students, and girls and guys (though they didn’t mix sexes during scrimmaging), so I was able to meet various people from the area (or distant area since some live further away like Osaka). We meet at one court and alternated who scrimmaged, while the other team sat out. At my home institution I play varsity level basketball, so I wanted to stay in shape and continue practicing even though I was aboard. Unfortunately they didn’t meet as regularly as I’d like, generally two practices a week, but I recognize that it is a club and not a University team; still if you’re looking for something more rigorous, I’d suggest looking elsewhere.

I was definitely nervous for my first practice. I was almost lost until I saw a girl with basketball gear on, and was to follow her to the gym (I was too nervous to ask for directions; my level of Japanese was that low). The basketball representative I got in contact with introduced to me the girls team, and I did a brief introduction, but they didn’t seem very interested in me at the time, which is understandable because I’m a foreigner and because I’m not very good at Japanese. The actual activity of basketball was fine. I was bigger and stronger than all of them, but they were quick and hustled the entire time. I definitely had to be less physical though and had to tone down my excitement. It’s hard to explain but the girls weren’t as “in it” as the guys were. The guys gave more high-fives, claps on the back or shoulder, hardier exclamations of joy, and generally more aggressive. The girls didn’t have that same energy. I had to adjust, especially when it came to bullet passes. The girls also didn’t have the same fundamentals and basketball IQ I’m used to seeing from girls our age. They didn’t quite understand spacing, when to screen, how to play help defense, how to rotate defense, etc. And most of these girls played in high school too. Having been here a while, I recognize that basketball isn’t as big in their culture as it is in the US, so the talent and interest is also different. But like I said, they had great speed, stamina, and hustle, which is just as important.

It honestly took almost two months for the girls to be more comfortable with my presence. The guys from the get go were cool with me, just because of my skill, but I wasn’t able to interact with them because of the alternating scrimmage system. We still don’t talk much off the court, my interests just didn’t align with most of these girls’ interests, but we communicated a lot more on the court. There were more “good jobs,” “nice pass,” “good shot,” “gomen,” “screen,” “good game,” being said, and that was an important step in my mind. While I don’t think I would have been best friends with any of these girls, I think my level of Japanese did hinder my experience, so study because it will save you a bunch of hardships (and watch Slam Dunk or Kuroko no Basket)!

At the end of the day I can’t judge an entire population based on my interaction/experience with this basketball club, but I still think I learned a lot about Japanese people and culture. There was some bad and there was some good from this experience, so overall I’m glad I did it.

Circle (Sports), KCJS 29 (Fall 2017), Sewanee: The University of the South

Gerlin Leu: Koto

投稿日時: 2017-11-23 投稿者: KCJS29

After many years of weekly piano lessons and many years of resting, I felt both nostalgic and renewed to start learning koto. Koto is an 13-string instrument which similar counterparts in Chinese traditional music. I remember days in my childhood when I worshiped the beautiful performances of fingers brushing over strings, so during every practice, I enter a dream-like blissful state. As much as I love the instrument, the charm of the weekly practices is also because of the wonderful people I get to share this experience with.

The koto classroom’s homely layout reflects in the family like welcome of the teacher and students. Well, I say students, but many are retired people who spend all afternoon and evening practicing and hanging out. Besides koto, there are samisen and shakuhachi. Every time I arrive at the classroom, we would wait for the current repertoire to end before we eat snacks, usually omiyage from all over Japan, and drink tea while chatting about current life happenings. Through our conversations, I have learned many trivia about Japanese household supplies and food names. My Japanese language skills have also improved vastly. Everyone in the classroom speaks in a heavy Kansai-ben. While I can barely distinguish the exact words, I have grown to be able to observe the various tones and guess (mostly correctly!) the meaning. However, I have also learned that over text, when I lose the visual hints, I can no longer as successfully figure out Kansai-ben.

As I continue onto Sri Lanka for the second half of my year abroad, the fond times with the Koto Classroom will definitely stay with me. Sensei is a very welcoming and enthusiastic person. It is through the many awkward and confused yet rewarding and heartwarming moments that I have also become a more go with the flow person. This has been certainly crucial during my semester in Japan to be able to happily adapt and to eagerly welcome new events.

Grace Bologna: Model United Nations

投稿日時: 2017-11-23 投稿者: KCJS29

For my fall semester community involvement project, I was extremely fortunate to continue an activity I deeply enjoy at my home school. I joined the Kyoto branch of Japan’s Model UN competition cycle. The branch includes Doshisha University, Kyoto University, and Ritsumeikan University, housing about forty college students. Through the organizations, I was able to gain a first-hand look at the inner workings of MUN in Japan as well as improve my own skills as an international delegate.

I come from an institution that takes the activity quite seriously. I spent nearly twenty hours a week on Model UN activities at the peak of competition season and a failure to win an award at competitions can end your career on the team. Our hard work shows—UChicago has been ranked number one in North America from 2011-2016. A slip due to negligence and changing competition style dropped us to 5^th place in 2017, although reapplication has put us back at #1 for the start of the 2018 cycle. Needless to say, I was ready to dive into a similar level of competition in Japan.

What I found was quite different. The first shock was the level of collaboration between students from different institutions. Within the Kyoto branch, Ritsumeikan, Kyo-dai and Doshisha students share research and training sessions. The branch also hosts small simulations of topics large competitions will discuss. That is to say, the Kyoto branch may host a simulation of a committee on refugees when a national conference will offer the same topic a month later. From an American competition perspective, this would be near-suicidal. If a student from a different institution found my plans for committee before the actual competition, I’d be forced to scrap all of those plans and start anew. Such an issue seemed barely on the periphery of the Kyoto branch.

Yet there were many hidden benefits from the relaxed style of competition. The most glaring difference between the American and Japanese competitions spheres was the presence of women. American Model UN has a distinct male focus, with a ratio of about three men to every one woman. In Japan, the ratio was near equal if not more heavily tilted towards women. I was very interested in what tactics made female participation easier or more enticing on the Japanese side. Two of my friends (both women) told me they had never thought of it. Nothing in their experience on the team made it harder for them to compete than their male counterparts. I believe this may directly linked to the inherent lack of team competition. Japanese college students compete as individuals at nationwide conferences. This means you could be paired up with a student from another school, or in my case, even another country. Since there’s no team honor to defend, participants can focus solely on their own growth and knowledge. I believe America could take a lesson.

I would advise any future American participants in Japanese Model UN to keep an open mind. If you have competed in America, the laxness of Japanese competition will surely feel inadequate. However, enjoy the increased range of participation loosening competition allows participants. Develop yourself as a delegate, and take your time learning new vocabulary and building new friendships. You may not return to your American team with new skills, but you will certainly return with a greater understanding of the internationality of MUN.

Tyler Logan: Kimono Making Lessons

投稿日時: 2017-11-23 投稿者: KCJS29

While living in Kyoto this year, I had the opportunity to get involved with life in Kyoto outside of my classes at Doshisha by taking lessons on how to sew kimonos. Because I’m an art student with an interest in clothing and textiles, when I came to Japan I knew I wanted to study kimono making. For that reason, I’ve had a great time so far taking my lessons. Over this semester, both my sewing and Japanese skills have gradually improved. I look forward to continuing my lessons next semester as well.

In the old days, all kimono were sewn by hand, so when I started taking my lessons, I also had to learn how to sew by hand. I had made clothes with a sewing machine for art classes before, but I had never made anything just by sewing by hand. However, my Sensei was able to sew with his hands as fast as a machine. I haven’t become that fast, but with practice I have become more skilled in working with the thread and fabric with my hands. The skills I’ve acquired through my CIP will definitely help me with taking my artistic work in new directions when I return to America.

During our lessons, I was also able to practice speaking Japanese with my Sensei. From cutting, to measuring, to folding, to ironing, to sewing, I always had to keep close to my teacher to know what to do next with the cloth. I didn’t know a lot of Japanese words related to clothes when we started, and my teacher’s accent is a little thick, but gradually I became able to both understand and converse with my teacher about his craft. I’ve discovered so much about the minute details and hidden facets of Japanese sewing, and I couldn’t have gotten these insights without the ability to talk with my teacher in Japanese. I’m definitely glad I was able to take these lessons.

Andrew Fischer: Suisōgakudan Seseragi (Concert Band)

投稿日時: 2017-11-22 投稿者: KCJS29

The group that I chose to join to fulfill my Community Involvement Project is 吹奏楽団せせらぎ (suisōgakudan seseragi). Seseragi is a community concert band that practices once a week on Friday from 7:30 to 9:00 in the evening. Seseragi‘s members range in age from around twenty to sixty or seventy. I am one of three tuba players in the group, although because most of the members are 社会人 (shakaijin), not everyone comes each week. We usually have a lengthy warmup and then practice two to four pieces of music each rehearsal.

I found that I am able to make conversation with my fellow tuba and euphonium players by talking about topics such as instruments, experiences with music, and differences between Japan and the United States regarding playing in a band or practicing one’s instrument at home. Because playing tuba has been such an important part of my life since I was eleven years old, I have many experiences to talk about, so I have conversed with the other musicians, especially at dinner after rehearsal, about a multitude of experiences and interesting notions.

I have learned that when people share an interest or passion, especially when that passion does not require spoken words, they can make a connection to others simply through sharing that passion, whether through playing music together or simply laughing. While my experience as a member of Seseragi so far has allowed me to use my Japanese language skills to a great extent, I find that coming to understand Japanese society and sharing my interest in music with my fellow members has been the most fulfilling and interesting part of my Community Involvement Project. I plan to continue as a member until I leave Japan next year.

Alexander Hall: Kyoto University Basketball Circle

投稿日時: 2017-04-03 投稿者: KCJS28

This semester, I continued my CIP from last quarter, which was Free Club, a basketball circle at Kyoto University. I spent the semester getting closer to my friends from the previous semester, while also getting to know people that I hadn’t known quite as well. Through the semester, I met alumni (which are called OB in Japanese – short for Old Boys), older members which only came occasionally, and, when the school year changed, new members who were coming in from high school. As such, I got to sort of experience all of the differences in the relationships between Japanese university students based off of age.

The thing I focused on most was levels of politeness in speech, which is what I struggle most with in Japanese, behind only kanji. Perhaps what I found most surprising was not the differences in speech style per se (as in sentence endings, etc.), but the differences in content. For the most part, members of the same year did not really filter things out when talking to each other. They made fun of each other, made stupid or dirty jokes with each other, and overall talked like most guys do in the United States on basketball courts. If members were separated by a year, the older members would not filter very much, but the younger members would be careful to tone down when making fun of the older members. What I found most interesting, however, was the differences in speaking between members separated by two or more years. Of course, the younger members were very polite, making sure not to appear rude. I expected the older members to not filter at all – however, they were extraordinarily nice to younger members. A fourth year, who would crack jokes with third years who made mistakes, would often give advice to first years when they did the same thing,

My advice for future students would be to pay attention to these sorts of things. Everyone knows about です・ます and 敬語, but in reality, we all make mistakes with these and are often forgiven. However, we are not really taught which sort of content is appropriate, even though this is just as important. Therefore, I would suggest to future student to use my experience as a rough outline for university circles, but also to pay close attention to interactions between differently aged members in order to navigate these things.

Laixian Wan: Doshisha Tennis team

投稿日時: 2017-04-01 投稿者: KCJS28

For my CIP I attended Doshisha Univerisity Tennis Team where most of the members are either from Doshisha University itself, or Doshisha International High School which lies right next to Doshisha University Tanabe campus. Because I am a member of tennis club back at my home institution, I really want to use my CIP as an opportunity to both maintain my skills and engage with Japanese student in college and get an insight of how they practice. Unfortunately due to the fact that how far Tanabe campus is, I cannot really practice as regularly as all team members. Despite that, however, being able to join the team is definitely one of my greatest experience in Kyoto.

I was very nervous when I contacted the team first. No pervious student had never tried to join Doshisha University’s team, which is one of the best, or maybe the best college tennis team in all Kansai area. As an exchange student who has no experience regularly practicing in a formal team, I actually never thought I would be accepted. Surprising the director replied right away and scheduled the meeting, and I was placed at the International High school team first. After several practices, I was lucky enough to practice with regular members. Unlike tennis meeting back at my home institution, which focus more on using tennis as a tool to develop friendships, while practices with Doshisha University’s team members was much tougher and focus on tennis itself more, and at first I hardly found any chance to communicate with other members. What helped me out most is the courage to overcome the fear of language barrier. As the time went on, I pushed myself to move out of my comfort zone and talked as much as I can, and I soon found out that, outside the court, team members were actually all very talkative and eager to share their understanding about tennis and life at Doshisha even though they looked super serious on the court. In order to really become a member of the team, I shared an enormous amount of information about my interesting experiences in Japan, how I practice back in Boston, and whatever I can think of. In return, they became my best teachers and told me everything about Doshisha, interesting places around the campus and what did they outside tennis courts. Meetings with Doshisha International High school team were more relaxed. Compare to practice in Doshisha University, We did easier and more interesting practices, and I had more times to chat with high school students to know about the common life of Japanese high school students, but not college students. I was also lucky enough to have the opportunity to let them show me around and see the beautiful landscape of countryside around Tanabe campus. I could not believe that we even played Onigokko at a shrine together!

Overall, this has been one of the most memorable parts of my time here at Kyoto. I never expected that my interest in tennis would lead me to so many precious relationships with coaches and team members at Doshisha University and International High School team. Without the CIP I would not have been able to make as many friends and know as much about students’ life in Doshisha as I have here. I definitely think my participation in Doshisha University tennis team was a remarkable choice and I succeed in emerging into the team and leveling up my tennis skills while getting some insight on Doshisha’s students and culture.

Laurie Wang: Doshisha Figure Skating Club

投稿日時: 2017-04-01 投稿者: KCJS28

While last semester I was involved with Kyoto University’s Science Communication Group as a second community involvement project, I was notified that the group’s activities would be discontinued the coming spring. For this reason, I decided to look for another CIP, ultimately settling to join the Doshisha Figure Skating club. Practices ran once a week from 6:30-8:30 in the mornings at Kyoto Aquarena and there would be occasional competitions in the Kansai region that the exceptionally skilled members in the club could partake in. Skill levels ranged from beginners to quite advanced skaters who even competed at last year’s national championships.

To be honest, I initially wanted to join the club because I’m a rather avid spectator of the sport, and I also knew that figure skating spectator-ship in Japan was huge compared to in America. Given the small size of Japan and the prevalence of elite skaters in the Kansai region, it wasn’t uncommon for some members to be one or two degrees of connection away from the best of the best skaters in Japan (I even got meet one such skater who happened to be practicing at Aquarena one day, and another one at a skate shop). For that reason, I felt that attending ice sports events in Japan was much more exciting than in America, simply because the community felt more tight knit.

This being my only experience of school sports in Japan, I didn’t know what to expect going in, especially regarding how seniority was structured in a sport as technically demanding as figure skating. It really didn’t seem as if people paid any mind to school year or age within the group, and we referred to each other pretty casually. Still, from the first day, it seemed that there was a small divide from the advanced skaters and the intermediate/beginner skaters, and it was admittedly hard to approach the stronger skaters because it seemed they were seriously practicing advanced programs and to disturb them would be rude. This impression was turned on its head when those same skaters would mess around off-ice and became perfectly nice and approachable, which was a pleasant surprise. What also surprised me was how much dedication some club members put toward the sport. Some would work part time in Kyoto Aquarena, either as teachers or ice resurfacers, and thus got to spend a lot of time in the ice rink.

I’m grateful I got to experience how it is to be in a sports club here as well as attend many types of ice competitions in a nation as passionate about ice sports as Japan. Still, near the end of the semester, it grew more and more difficult to attend all the practices and activities as work from class and independent research piled up, which I admittedly regret now. While last year I was better able to balance two CIP activities, I now think it would’ve been better if I had thought about the time constraints that can limit participation in sports CIP’s (which have scheduled practice times with many people) versus volunteer work CIP’s (where you can have more flexibility in scheduling through talking to your CIP contact). I encourage others to consider the same when choosing their CIP’s.

Alan Cheng: Calligraphy (Shodō) Lessons

投稿日時: 2017-03-31 投稿者: KCJS28

This semester I continued taking calligraphy lessons with an instructor in my neighborhood, who I was fortunate to have been introduced to by my host mother. Every Tuesday from 7 to 9pm, I practiced writing Japanese characters with an ink and brush along with two other students.

As a college student, how you fit in within the demographics of students who take calligraphy lessons is quite interesting: either you find yourself sticking out as the oldest among a crowd of elementary school students, or you’re conspicuously the youngest among adults over twice your age. (To be fair, as a foreigner, you pretty much stick out wherever you are but that’s beside the point!) The reason for this is that students who pursue calligraphy as an extracurricular activity typically practice in clubs at school, rather than taking outside lessons, and working folks, of course, hardly have time to take these kinds of lessons.

My class was the latter, and the two other students were both in their 50’s or 60’s (I never asked directly) and at least one of them was a grandparent. Since they’ve both been practicing calligraphy for at least 8 years, their writing already looked perfect in my eyes, so at first I wondered why they were still taking classes. However, it didn’t take long for me to come across the answer: these lessons were also important social gatherings. The students and our instructor always chatted about anything and everything while during our lessons, and the atmosphere was always very warm and friendly. I could tell that, while the student-teacher relationships were always upheld (by the way they were speaking), they were truly friends as well.

Incidentally, the teacher, too, had grandchildren, and it seemed that she would give them handwriting exercises to work on–as the classes were held in her home, I recall that occasionally her young grandchildren would come into the classroom to have their handwriting looked over. That my calligraphy teacher was keen to make sure that her grandchildren had good handwriting even at such a young age, I believe, reflects the importance placed on handwriting in modern society, where, for instance, resumes are still traditionally handwritten and applicants with messy handwriting are indeed judged to also have a looser character.

Comparing the cultural emphasis on handwriting in Japan to two other countries that I’m familiar with, there’s a similar attitude in China, but America doesn’t value handwriting as highly. My dad, an immigrant from China, was very proud of his handwriting and calligraphy, but he realized that these skills are not nearly as important in America, so unlike my calligraphy instructor, he didn’t feel the need to comb over my handwriting as a child.

As for advice to incoming KCJS students who are unsure about what to choose for their CIP, I would definitely recommend calligraphy as a CIP activity for those who are interested. One of the hurdles for anyone starting to learn calligraphy that ends up turning many people off the art is embarrassment. It can be embarrassing to struggle writing even simple Japanese characters as beautifully as the samples you’re given, especially since you’ve been writing Japanese for years, not to mention that the instructor will say that your writing is 上手 seemingly without regard to how poor it is. However, it’s important to realize that calligraphy is difficult even to native Japanese folks, and, practicing the traditional art of calligraphy can have wonderful effects for your handwriting in general.

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