「Volunteering」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Lauren Makishima: Volunteering at Nico Toma

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I think the biggest difference I’ve noticed between volunteering in America and volunteering in Japan is definitely the sense of responsibility that each volunteer has towards the group.  I think that sometimes, in America, especially within the college community, people just choose to join volunteer groups at random, coming and going at will.  However, at Nico Toma, it seems that most of the volunteers at Nico Toma have had personal experiences related to the Kyoto University pediatrics ward.  In any case, it is clear that, while the atmosphere may be very cheerful and light, they are all very devoted to this particular group.  Though this may just be a result of the nature of the volunteer group, I feel that Japanese volunteers are much more dedicated to their tasks.

I’ve also noticed that the volunteers at Nico Toma are very particular about small details.  Each detail of the project at hand is discussed by the group, down to the color and thickness of the pipe cleaners used to make the handles for the tiny bags that will hold candy to be distributed at the children’s art exhibition.  While in America, these details might be overlooked and considered irrelevant, I found it refreshing and fun to work on simple things so thoroughly, since our hard work made the final products something that we could all be proud of.  Furthermore, I found it interesting that this level of attention to detail was a given in any project, be it pricing used goods for the bazaar, or coloring next month’s calendar, or hanging up seasonal decorations in the children’s ward.

Overall, while I may not have necessarily been accepted as a fully fledged member of the group, I did enjoy my time at Nico Toma as much for the insight into Japanese culture as for the empathy for and awareness of these children’s situations that I feel I’ve gained, even if only a little.  At the risk of sounding cheesy, I hope that I was able to help these children even if it was in a small, indirect way.  Thank you, Nico Toma!

Joseph Lachman: Voluteering at the Aiai House (Social Welfare Corporation)

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An important part of the KCJS program is the Community Involvement Project, CIP, which encourages students to engage in an extracurricular activity where they will be much more submersed in Japanese culture outside of the classroom. Examples of potential CIP activities include Japanese archery, tea ceremony, martial arts, sports, farming, international exchange circles, and various kinds of volunteer work among other possibilities. It was difficult at first I think for many students to find a fulfilling activity before expanding our networks in the Kyoto area. While it is significantly more difficult to find an activity in the spring due to many Japanese universities being on break, the fall semester overlaps well with the Japanese school year, making it simpler to find activities which will fill the CIP requirement. However, I think the value of the CIP depends primarily on individual students’ efforts, and the fact that universities are mostly on break during this time can lead to students finding even more valuable CIP groups.

For the first semester, I was unsure at first what kinds of activities would be available for me, and chose tennis as a safe option, as the group meets regularly, and with my skill level I would be able to adapt relatively quickly. In retrospect I would say there was nothing wrong with this decision, but I feel that overall it held little value for me as a cultural experience compared to other possible activities. After a few weeks I began to find other ways of integrating myself into the community, such as Taiko lessons, English instruction, and volunteering with disabled youth and kindergarteners. I enjoy tennis, but it has limited value as a way of learning about Japanese culture compared to these other activities.

Currently, my primary extracurricular activity is volunteer work at the Aiai House, a social welfare corporation where staff members take care of youth with disabilities, which span a large variety of physical and mental handicaps. I was fortunate enough to be introduced to the staff here by the woman at whose house I teach English once a week. I can say without a doubt this has been the most worthwhile experience of my year abroad.

The Aiai House is divided into two floors. The residents on the 2nd floor are for the most part less disabled than those on the 1st floor, and in fact the 2nd floor residents work with the staff to operate a bakery once a week to raise money for the Aiai House. While their capabilities are limited, each one of the residents has a job in this process. The activities at the Aiai House keep them physically and mentally stimulated while providing them with a means of bringing in a small amount of money for their families. The staff members regularly conduct these kinds of activities that go above and beyond their duties in helping to keep the residents healthy and stimulated, kindness reflected even more so in the fact that they give this time for relatively small compensation.  I have also felt this kindness ever since I started volunteering, as staff members have even invited me for dinner at their homes on occasion, and always go out of their way to involve me in conversations. One of the staff even offered to have me stay with her family during the New Year’s period when she heard that I would not be allowed to stay with my home stay family. Over time I have also become a recognized member of the staff in the eyes of the residents, and I feel grateful to have earned this level of trust with them. In some ways, I am also glad that the novelty of my being a foreigner has subsided, meaning I can experience more natural interactions not as heavily influenced by my foreignness.

Over time I have noticed my attitude and perspective with regard to the group changing and maturing. I sometimes almost forget their disabilities, in the sense that I see them simply as other friends who just communicate differently. Spending time with them has helped me understand their individual personalities and methods of communication, which are far more complex than I had anticipated. Understanding the personalities of people with disabilities also gives deep insight into the fundamental differences between American and Japanese mindsets. For example, one of the people I help take care of on the second floor cannot speak, but is highly insistent on following manners, and will not be satisfied until she is sure every person says “itadakimasu” before eating, and “gochisousamadeshita” after finishing. I feel very lucky to have met this group, and plan to continue my volunteer work with them until I leave Japan later in the summer.

While there are many ways in which my study abroad experience has been enriched by this volunteer work, above all, the relationships I have forged at the Aiai House are the most valuable thing I have come away with in my time here.

Lauren H.: English Teaching Assistant

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It’s a little hard to give you all an update on my CIP since the school has been on break for the last few weeks. Instead, I’d like to talk about my observations of Japanese high school life and the high school system, since I can go into more detail in an English blog post.

I wish I could sit in on (and understand!) some of the non-English language classes, if only to see if their as boring as people tell me they are. I know I already mentioned this in my last blog post, but it really shocked me when I asked my high schoolers what their favorite subjects were, and they looked at me like this was an inconceivable notion. They truly don’t seem to enjoy any of their classes, and the kind of system that shuts people down like that is pretty concerning.

Though, of course, I’ve heard equally bad things about the American public education system, so I should really stop judging the Japanese system. Growing up, one of my childhood friends was too smart for the classes he was in, and his boredom and frustration caused him to just give up on doing schoolwork altogether, until he had terrible grades when really he should have had amazing ones. But the thing is, people like that, in the U.S., can get a second chance. He eventually wound up at community college, got a 4.0 there for two years, and transferred into UC Berkeley. Frankly, he saved a ton of money on tuition for the first two years, and now he’ll get a degree from a world class university. Not too shabby.

People here don’t seem to have those kinds of chances. There’s not a lot of room for alternative paths. It makes me think about the Ghibli movie, Whisper of the Heart, where the main character, Shizuku, decides not to focus on schoolwork and to pursue her dreams instead. She’s lucky enough to have parents who encourage that kind of thinking, but even so they warn her that she will have no one to blame but herself if not getting the right test scores ruins her life from then on. And her sister gets angry because she believes that you only get options in life if you play by the rules—only by getting into a top notch high school will the main character have multiple doors open to her.

On another note, one other thing that really took me aback was the discovery that the class with whom I’ve interacted the most, a group of middle school girls whose English teacher is actually an American guy from Wisconsin, is considered the advanced/special English track class. That surprised me for two reasons. First, honestly, they didn’t seem that much better than some of the younger students in the normal track. They knew more vocabulary, but they practiced talking about nearly the same things as the younger kids. Maybe that’s not something to be blamed on them, but on the course syllabus and the rigidity of the way the Japanese education system teaches English. Second, the girls had always struck me as extremely cheerful and outgoing, almost to the point of obnoxiousness (like I said, discipline in the middle school section is pretty lax) but it turns out that they, as a class, are kind of outcasts at school. During a break between classes, most students flooded the hallways, chatting with friends at lockers or visiting friends in other classrooms. But these girls all stayed in their one little classroom, talking to each other. When I asked one of them why they did not also go out into the hallways, she told me that they don’t really have other friends. Very sad!

Sarah Rontal: English Teaching Assistant

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For my CIP this semester I have been working as an English Assistant at Kamigyo Middle School, just a ten-minute walk from Doshisha’s campus. Since our semester does not quite fit with Japanese middle school semesters, it has been about one month since I last volunteered there. Since then I have stayed involved with Japanese communities on a smaller scale: going to events with my host family, meeting with my language partner, and making new Japanese friends through other KCJS-ers. Though my CIP has been less active this semester than last, I feel that I’ve been a more active Kyoto-an this semester than last.

My job at Kamigyo Middle School mainly involves doing practice interviews with students, though I have also been asked to help out with homework. During the time I was volunteering the school year was coming to an end, so I believe the students had important tests that they were preparing for.

The way we practiced interviews was as follows: I would tell the student to come in and tell me their name, they would read the passage, I would ask them to read the passage aloud, and then they would answer questions. Though most of the readings and questions were quite useful, covering important basic topics, there were a few that I found responsible for carrying stereotypes—those that generalized facts or compared cultures in a light that made the Japanese reader clearly side with the Japanese custom.

Unfortunately, because I only got to volunteer a few times, I didn’t get to know the kids as well as I would have liked (I would have loved to go twice a week!). However, I have learned a few things I hadn’t thought of that would be useful when teaching English to Japanese middle school students. First of all, it helps to be up to date on the current popular movies, anime, etc. – media is one of the easier things for the students to talk about in English and I remember missing out on a conversation with one student because I didn’t know anything about the movie she was excited about. I also found that – despite the idea I’d heard that English teachers should never speak Japanese so as to maintain their English-only image – Japanese was helpful if not necessary for teaching English. If I hadn’t known Japanese I wouldn’t have been able to help with Japanese-to-English translation homework or been able to explain the meaning behind small grammar corrections.

I am glad to have gotten the opportunity to work at Kamigyo Middle School, and I hope I get to go volunteer a few more times before I leave Kyoto!

Chelsea Quezergue：Volunteering at Nico Nico Tomato

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My recent weeks at NikoToma have gone more smoothly than the weeks preceding them I think.  Perhaps that can be attributed to me getting over the initial disappointment I harbored about not being able to play with children.  I was under the impression that we [the volunteers] would be doing activities with children every week, but I quickly learned that wasn’t the case.  However, as one of my teachers commented, it is volunteer work after all, and more often than not, volunteers have to do rather less-than-pleasant tasks, so「仕方がない」.  If we did not do those small, tedious tasks—using toothpicks to pick up microscopic cutouts of animals and painstakingly glue them to bite-sized paper handbags; making sure to find a “balance” when arranging goody bags, lest the aesthetics of the candy be ruined, even though the kids are just going rip it open in crazed excitement —who would?

At this point, I know it seems like I’m actually belittling the program with sarcasm, but I’m not.  I’ve grown to genuinely appreciate (if not enjoy) the things we do at NikoToma, whatever they may be, because I know we are providing the volunteer group with help that it needs.  Besides that, it just so happens that all of (or almost all of) the students in KCJS from Boston University participate in this CIP, and this has instilled a certain amount of pride in me about being a part of it.  And that’s enough to make me happy about going.

Tracy Le: Bazaar Cafe

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Volunteering at Bazaar Cafe has been one of my favorite things to do here in Kyoto. Every Friday I go to the cafe and help out in the kitchen or as a waitress.

It has truly been an eye-opening experience for me in many ways. For the precise reason that most of the staff at the cafe are volunteers and they come from different countries in the world that Bazaar Cafe is a strange and refreshing experience. On one hand, the working environment is very Japanese – the manager is Japanese, the customers are Japanese – you have to be polite, efficient and attentive; but on the other hand, everyone in the kitchen is speaking a mixture of Japanese and English and other languages and offering unique cultural tidbits at every turn of conversation. The staff have been some of the warmest people I’ve met in Japan. It’s fascinating to hear them speak about why in Japan, or what they think of Japan; their experiences, from common or bizarre, give a glimpse into the Japan from the perspectives of minority peoples, and lets us see the lives of people we would usually not encounter everyday. That, underneath the idea of homogeneity so heralded of Japan’s society, there are many unique lives quietly transforming social boundaries and ideas.

Even on the customer’s side, many are Doshisha’s students and professors and/or regulars and friends of the manager. They, too, have been engaging and interesting people. Some have come talked to me out of genuine interest in foreign students and workers in Japan. It’s a comforting experience.

All in all, I’ve had an amazing time at the quaint little cafe by Doshisha. I try and go there at least once a week, twice if I have time, and I really recommend it as the food’s great and it has a good ambiance for studying or chatting.

Martha Levytsky: Klexon

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I have recently begun participating in Klexon, an English learning circle with members ranging from college students to working men and women. The meetings take place most Tuesdays for 2 hours. They just held a Hanami Party on March 31st, which I participated in. I have been really enjoying my time at Klexon and definitely did not expect it to be as friendly and relaxed as it is. Through the circle, I not only met interesting Japanese college students from around the area, but English speakers from Australia and Sweden. The format of the meetings are structured and everyone is handed topic suggestions, but we all end up talking about a large variety of things from movies to languages. During the first hour, the English speakers remain in their seats while the Japanese members spend at least 5 minutes just introducing and chatting with us before switching to the next English speaker. Afterwards we all sit in a larger groups and have general discussions together.

The Japanese members’ English speaking skills are quite varied. Some can speak quite well and are therefore a bit more open and talkative, while others may have just begun their studies and are not yet confident. As I speak to them, I definitely see what I looked like both in September and now, which only makes the meetings a lot more relaxed for me as I try my best to speak slowly and keep the subjects light.

What I have noticed in most of my 5 minute conversations is that there is a lot of talk about working. The employed Japanese members tend to say that they are “working men.” In Japanese this would sound just fine, but it’s always a little odd when I ask if they are currently in school, and they reply “no I am a worker,” or a “working man,” in English. Though they say this proudly, in America it would be a bit strange. Generally someone would say “I work at such-and-such a place,” instead of simply, “I am a worker,” because the latter has more negative connotations.  I am not sure what the connotation is in Japan, or why it is said this way. Also, for about 3 meetings now there has been a lot of commotion about someone finally quitting their job and moving on to something better. This must be a coincidence that they all happened to quit around the same time, but it is always followed by “I have found another job!”

There is also an interesting response to questions about hobbies. When I am asked what mine are, I usually respond with a slew of random things that I do to pass the time at home from reading to playing video games. Yet almost every time I ask a Japanese member, they simply say travelling. In America travelling isn’t really a hobby as it isn’t something you can just do every day in your spare time. I never ask about this as I don’t think my English would be understood. I’m not quite sure what to make of this.

Yet all in all these meetings are always polite, with a lot of laughing, and a surprised “Ehh??” or “Oohhh!!!” to most of what each member says about themselves in a group. These definitely keep the energy quite high! There is also never one person left out in a group discussion. Everyone is always very aware of who hasn’t gotten a chance to speak, which makes it a very friendly environment. If one person hasn’t spoken in a while, someone in the group will turn to them and begin a new topic of discussion with that person. One of the Japanese members just got a job at Doshisha and we always happen to run into each other, so it’s great to be able to say hello, though a bit strange to suddenly be supposed to speak English!

All in all Klexon has been a great CIP experience! I really wish I could have done it all year! =)

Juan Carlos Lozano: English Assistant + Wushu + Nico Nico Tomato Volunteer

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So far this semester I’ve participated in more activities than I’ve expected, but I’m more than grateful as one rarely gets the chance to be a part of the Japanese community. The first CIP I chose was volunteering as an English teaching assistant at Kamigyo Middle School. I have considered for quite some time now the option of being a teacher as a career path so this opportunity was definitely one I couldn’t pass up. To my surprise, the first-year middle school students I was set to teach were extremely energetic and pounced at the chance to answer my questions in English. I also received an overwhelming amount of surprised looks when they heard me speak in Japanese, and without fail, I would here 「日本語が上手」. Of course, I responded with the humble phrases I was trained to give in return. I also noticed many of the students’ English conversation skills were pretty focused on set questions such as “Do you like sports?”, “What is your favorite food?”, and “Do you like food?” etc. This made me realize that around this stage of learning English most students’ English has been focused on conversation starter questions or 日常会話.

Also, as the rumor spread that there was an American teaching in one of the classes many of the students on the rest of floor gathered around my teacher and I as I walked through the hallway—it was as if I was a rare species just being discovered. Each student was very shy when speaking to me, but still very excited to learn. In fact, I found their eagerness to learn surprising as I look back at my middle school memories in which students would constantly dodge the teacher’s questions. I also found it very important to encourage (smile and say something like よくできた！) the students whether they answer correctly or not, as it motivates them to try to answer even more English questions. All in all, the students at Kamigyo Middle School have been incredibly endearing and make me excited to volunteer and learn something new every week.

However, since most students are out for the month due to Spring Break, I added the title of CIP to my Wushu (Chinese martial arts) circle. Every Friday I go to Higashiyama to train Wushu with two awesome teachers. One of the sensei claimed the 1995 Wushu World Cup title and is a great teacher! Usually I’m the only participant on Fridays so I’m very lucky to learn one on one. As Wushu is a martial art, respect for each other is definitely emphasized and is expected that students use Keigo with their sensei. Sometimes I feel very relaxed talking to my sensei that I almost forget the formalities altogether. Culturally, I believe respect and 上下 is very important in this type of setting. Also, thanks to my sensei I’ve painfully become more flexible that I ever thought possible!

Finally, I have also started volunteering at Kyoto University’s hospital Nico Toma. Nico Toma has so far been a fun experience that has shown me how much care hospital volunteers put into their work. Although most of the volunteer work has been arts and crafts oriented, every little aspect of our work has gone toward bringing a smile to the kids in the Pediatrics section. However, this week we got to play with one of the kids while we held a bazaar of donated goods and it was extremely fun, although I think I was probably more into the “Breaking the Tower” game then the little boy was. I can’t wait to continue my experience at Nico Toma and hopefully get to meet more kids!

Fengsheng Zhu: Volunteering at NICCO

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I have been volunteering as a translator/translation editor in NICCO (Nippon International Cooperation for Community development), a Kyoto-based NGO that has initiated and operated humanity support programs both within Japan and in poverty-stricken regions of the world. While my work does not directly relate to NICCO’s field work, reading and translating web posts and publications actually became an opportunity for me to follow up closely with NICCO’s activities.

Although it is my first time working with an NGO that is involved in international-wide activities, not to mention that it is a Japan-based NGO, NICCO did not strike me as being much different from the domestic NPO’s I have worked with in the States. All the staff are really nice, and the tightly packed office room adds to the cozy atmosphere. And it feels like that they experience the same problem as their American NPO counterparts- heavy workload that keeps them busy throughout the day. But to say that all staff do in the office is working is lying. The social atmosphere in the office is quite relaxed. Maybe also because I volunteer at the office on Friday afternoons, staff tend to chit-chat while snacking on some omiyage-food later in the afternoon. One interesting thing I noticed in inter-staff communication, is that whenever someone leaves the office briefly through the day (for example, to send a mail in the post office), the rest of the staff will say いってらっしゃい, and お帰り, upon the staff’s return. The use of these expression gives a homey feeling to the atmosphere within the office, and which I can take as a sign showing that every staff is recognized as an integral member of the organization.

Since one of the goals of CIP is for the student to become and be recognized as a functioning member of the group that he/she chooses to join, I will talk briefly about my status in this organization. A KCJS 23 Senpai who volunteered at NICCO last spring commented how she still felt like an outsider due to the limited number of work hours as a volunteer as well as a sense that she did not share the same dedication as the staff. Maybe my state right now is not too much different from hers when she wrote the post, another set of wording more accurately describes my experience.

Given that the product of my volunteer work is closely integrated into NICCO’s work, I do not consider myself an outsider. At the same time, however, I do not feel that I fall under the category of “member”, either. For one reason, I am not a formally employed staff, and likely have been in the office for a time period shorter than everyone else in the office. Another reason is that I have trouble locating a proper definition of a “member” in the NICCO office. If being an employee is a more literal and physical definition of a “member”, then the more figurative definition- what it means to be a “member”- is more fluid. The first criterion that comes to mind feels somewhat similar to the literal definition- dedication to NICCO’s work. And the rest seem quite common for an NGO office setting- whether one fits in the atmosphere and the social scene in the office. For the first item, I do not think that the homey environment in NICCO even requires time to fit in; the second item is more difficult to judge, since people naturally form little social groups, and it is hard to say where a conclusive social group even exists, the criterion itself is rendered obsolete in some sense. The criteria listed so far do not form a distinctive guideline that separates members from non-members, yet all of them seem to qualify as reasonable standard for making such judgment. Maybe there are other criteria that I am yet aware of, but nevertheless give me the feeling that I am not a member of the group. It is also possible that nobody qualifies as an absolute member of the group, due to the various criteria that apply. Regardless of the question of membership, I am still grateful that I have been able to fulfill the “functioning” part of the goal, that my work generates at least some value to the organization’s operation.

I consider my CIP experience a good one, given that NICCO is a welcoming organization. Although translating work might seem mundane and it does not require much communication with the staff around me, I still had fun doing the work. NICCO is a good place to experience the professional office setting in Japan, but probably not as suitable for those who seek a lot of on-work communication with Japanese people.

Kamuela Lau: English Assistant, Kaiseichuu, Klexon

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I have chosen to be an English teaching assistant as my main CIP for this semester. Due to the discrepancy between the American academic calendar and the Japanese academic calendar, I was unable to continue volunteering at Kaisei Junior High School, and thus I joined an English-conversation circle (club) in Kyoto called Klexon.

I went to Kaisei five times. The first time, I felt that the class period was quite long, and by the last time, the it seemed that the class went by extremely fast. The most rewarding aspect of this experience was the conversations I had with the students; although during the class period, I mainly spoke English, before the class (during their lunch break), I spoke and shared my experiences with them in Japanese.

Interestingly, the Japanese students learning English in a classroom setting appear to have similar difficulties as English speakers learning Japanese. For example, verbs like ageru, morau and kureru, which all have a deictic fuction often marked by a preposition in English, are often difficult for students learning Japanese. Likewise, the students in the class appeared to have trouble with the prepositions in English.

I have only gone to Klexon twice, but I have already found it to be a good experience. The Japanese people in the circle are all there to improve their English ability, and thus they are very open with foreigners, and are happy to make new friends. For example, after the first meeting, I was invited to get some food with some of the other members.