「Volunteering」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Calvin Krogh: Kyoto City Zoo Volunteers

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My CIP was spent at the Kyoto Municipal Zoo, in Oyazaki Park. As I mentioned in my earlier post, I have wanted to work with animals ever since I was a young child. Whenever anyone asks me what I want to do with my life, I say “A large exotic mammal veterinarian at a Japanese zoo,” which is simply an amalgamation of all my interests. I have been working for four years at a small animal clinic, but never have had the chance to work at a zoo, so I was very excited at the opportunity to volunteer in Kyoto and get that much closer to my ultimate career.

My time was spent almost entirely in the goat pen of the Children’s Petting Zoo, where I explained facts to visitors and did my best to answer their questions. I also was there to assuage the fears of kids unsure about petting the animals. Much of my interaction consisted of speaking in a friendly tone and saying “The goat is nice. Would you like to try and pet him?” I was also briefly assigned to the petting room where we helped visitors hold rabbits and guinea pigs, but this required more Japanese than I could quickly explain to a young child so the goat pen ended up being a better fit.

My co-volunteers were probably the most unique part of my CIP. The vast majority were female, usually older middle-aged ladies who spent every weekend at the zoo, giving up mornings and afternoons. Before I had decided on a CIP, I had looked forward to building camaraderie with Japanese peers, and in this way the make-up of the volunteers was somewhat of a disappointment. I was an outsider in age, gender, and nationality. This did not manifest itself in any sort of coldness. Quite the opposite, the other volunteers were always very kind and patient and eager to answer my questions, and quick to start a conversation when there was a lull in visitors. Not only this, but at the start and end of every session, we would discuss any questions or problems we had during the day. The meetings made the group feel more like a company, which in some ways it was since “Kyoto City Zoo Volunteers” is an established organization. It was comforting when I needed help to know I would have somewhere to voice my concerns. While I was working with these other volunteers, the majority of my Japanese interactions happened ‘in field’ so to speak, with visitors.

Looking back on my time at the zoo now, it is hard to remember exactly what I expected out of this CIP, particularly since I had not seen a zoo before, except as a visitor. I think I thought I would be working in more than just the children’s zoo, perhaps with more variety of tasks. But at the same time, staying only in one area gave me much needed time to practice the explanations and phrases I picked up over time. Over the weeks and months I became familiar with the routines and explanations, and even learned all of the goats’ names by heart. Being immersed in an activity and environment that had felt so foreign and awkward at the start was by far the most rewarding part of my CIP experience. I could feel my confidence grow week to week, and by the end I was happy to engage visitors whole heartedly, where before I would timidly watch from the edge of the pen.  When I had begun, I was unsure exactly if and how to initiate discussion and this is where my job of showing kids how to pet the goats came in handy. I learned to let the customers come to me, and then greet them with a hearty “Welcome, good morning!” pat one of my favorite residents of the pen, and let things unfold naturally. For some visitors, I was just as interesting as the animals, and I ended up giving a ten second biography of how I ended up in a goat pen in Kyoto at least a few dozen times.

I am very happy I got the chance to volunteer at the Kyoto Zoo. It gave me a chance to feel how Japanese work together, and just get used to a zoo as a work environment. I did end up finding Japanese friends outside of my CIP, so the difficulty of forming friendships outside of work was less of a problem. I would say, though, that if I were to do things over again, or were staying the entire year, I might like to try a circle or club so I could get more time with Japanese my own age, if just for the chance at more Japanese practice.. I am happy, though that I felt at ease and comfortable in the routines of the program by the end of the semester, because it gave me tangible evidence that my Japanese, or at least my social skills, were improving. I am also glad that I am at least a bit closer to realizing my career as a ‘large exotic mammal veterinarian at a Japanese zoo,’ even if I’m going to need a bit more Japanese under my belt

Sandy Chang: Assistant English Teacher

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Frustrating, awkward, and culturally shocking. At least that`s how my community project started. Or I guess, that`s what I had to go through to truly understand the `Japanese experience`.

Frustrating. Starting my community project, I thought everything was going to be straightforward. I was to come in on Wednesdays from 1:00 – 3:00 to the classes Mr. Ueno assigned to me. But after the first day of volunteering, Mr. Ueno informed me that the following Monday was a holiday and the students were also taking the Monday after that off because of a Sports Festival. I realized that Mondays were a convenient day to have tests and holidays. Therefore, I was frustrated that I couldn`t come to help at the Middle school more. I tried to come on another day of the week but couldn`t because I had KCJS classes. Even more, I ended up changing which classes I helped with. The teachers were confused as to which classes I was helping with on that particular Monday, as well as not knowing when a class was moved to the morning instead of having it in the afternoon.

Awkward. Because I was only able to come a few days, I was not able to get to know the students well. It was also because we were both shy to talk to each other because of the language barrier and because there were over 60 students, too much to know one another. Therefore, when I arrived early I did not know how to occupy myself. The students would stare at me shyly. I would try starring at the wall as if it was the most interesting wall in the world. When I stepped into the classroom, the students were in their cliques, so I felt intrusive if I joined their conversations. They also did not remember who I was or my name at times. I felt very much like an outsider, and it was very hard for me to become an insider especially with the language barrier and the age gap.

Culturally shocking. When I came to Japan, I expected to be disappointed that all I had read in mangas and seen in anime were going to be proved wrong. They were nothing but stereotypical representations of Japanese culture. Instead, I found myself surprised that the Japanese students were similar to what I had read and seen. The uniforms were the same, the personalities were the same, and even the rituals (such as the awing when someone from a different class came to visit) were the same. I also found it hilarious when, once, I turned back from talking to Mr. Ueno, the boys were changing their clothes to go to PE in front of me. They didn`t seem to mind my dropped jaw as they happily skipped out of the room. Furthermore, the Japanese language itself made me upset when I realized the students were speaking to me in des/mas form. It further isolated and labeled me as a ‘soto’ stranger.

Despite these overabundant emotions, overall I had a wonderful time. I gained much experience and started to become a part of a Japanese community, something I could not have experienced in America. It was very interesting to observe Mr. Ueno and Mrs. Ogaya teach English. Mr. Ueno was nice and informal with his students. He liked showing movies and examples of American culture to his students. Mrs. Ogaya was fast, efficient, and playful with her students. In her classroom, we played bingo and sang jingle bells to keep up with English. When both teachers taught grammar, they related structures to Japanese grammar. This confirmed my reasoning to learn Japanese; teaching English can be more efficient if you know the language of your students. Oppositely, the classes were mostly taught in Japanese, which I found counter-active to the students’ learning process. Students mostly spoke Japanese and had little time to practice speaking English.

As time passed, I also learned how to deal with the problems I had at the beginning of the community project. I explained to Mr. Ueno that I would like to know when I would be helping out and he sent me schedules of when and with which classes I would help with. To avoid awkwardness, I tried to come exactly on time to classes (which isn’t exactly a solution, but oh well). When I was early, I would shop around the area before going in. One time though, I was late to class and was very apologetic. During passing time, I would go to the bathroom (sigh, quite sad I know) or try to make conversation with some students in the classroom (yay). Although des/mas form made me upset, it made me even happier when the kids used plain form with me. As suggested by one of the other helpers at the middle school, I signaled to them that it was okay to use plain form with me by using plain form with them too. This was hard for me since I am so used to speaking formally. The ending of my community project felt like it was just the beginning. I had finally gotten into the uchi, communicating well and joking with the students. Mrs. Ogaya was sad to see me go. This experience has motivated me even more to become a teacher.

Cecilia Dolph: Assistant English Teacher

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In class, Fukai-sensei asked if we thought we had become a member of the group we were participating in for our CIP. I couldn’t think of an answer, so I thought about it the next time I went to Ohara to teach and I came up with a lot of reasons why I think I have become a member of the teaching staff at Ohara. It happened so slowly and in such small, subtle ways that I hadn’t noticed.

The first day of my CIP I received my own desk in the teacher’s room where all the teachers have a desk to do work between classes or during off periods. When I go back to my desk between classes, all the other teachers are there taking a break as well so I’m presented with many opportunities to have conversations with them. Some of the time we talk about the school or the students or the days classes, but most of the time it’s relaxing conversation about an event someone went to over the weekend or a TV show someone watched the night before or an article in the newspaper or a picture someone took on a trip. Through complicated examples and a long discussion, I learned the breakdown of the meaning of the word for the structure of a specific kind of Chinese poetry, which all started with a conversation about a comic in the newspaper. I really feel like a part of the group when I can have comfortable conversations like these with a group of people I don’t know very well and who are all much older and wiser than I am. In front of the students I’m only supposed to speak English, so these conversations with the teachers give me the chance to practice my Japanese, especially honorific forms.

There are so many small things that make me feel like a member, like being able to get up during a break and make myself coffee or tea or hot chocolate in the kitchen whenever I feel like I need some, or the students and teachers calling me Cecilia-sensei, or being invited to the end-of-the-year party exclusively for Ohara teachers. Every week after school gets out, I’m driven to the train station by one of the teachers and we have casual conversations about Ohara or Kyoto or America. I think being able to relax and not feel nervous while I’m helping teach classes or talking to any of the teachers is a good sign that I feel like a part of the staff at Ohara.

Even though everyone at Ohara has helped me out in so many ways, like letting me get a feel for what it’s like teaching and showing me how a Japanese school works, I suppose coming to the school and letting the students hear English the way it’s supposed to be spoken and letting them hear a proper English accent is a small way of giving back to the school. I might read through a conversation in one of the textbooks and notice something that doesn’t sound quite right. Being able to fix that and teach what sounds right to the students is beneficial for the kids. Because the students don’t get the chance to meet and talk to a foreigner very often, being able to go to the school and play with the kids is a great opportunity for them, so I’m happy I’m able to provide that opportunity and see the students be excited to learn English.

Japanese and American schools operate in very different ways. The way the day is broken up into periods and the subjects students learn are very similar, but there have been some large differences that I’ve noticed while volunteering at Ohara. For my elementary and middle school in America, all the students went to the cafeteria at lunch time and picked up their own tray of food to bring back to their classroom to eat. At Ohara, the students go to the kitchen to pick up their lunch, but it comes as a tray of rice and several pots filled with the day’s lunch that need to be divided up and put into bowls. The students work together to make sure everyone gets a bowl of each item on their lunch tray, along with a carton of milk and a straw, with the work being done by the students and the teachers overseeing, making sure that everything goes smoothly. I usually eat lunch with the 1st graders, and it’s great to see kids so young learn about teamwork and responsibility without even realizing it.

A similar situation was when the students were preparing for their culture festival. The students did all the preparations for the gym, like rolling out mats, setting up chairs and bringing in instruments, with the teachers only supervising to make sure there weren’t any problems. Thinking back to the time when I had chorus concerts or plays in elementary or middle school, there were no students involved in doing any sort set up; everything was done by the teachers and janitors. Also, Japanese schools incorporate a cleaning time where all the students get involved in cleaning their classroom and the hallways by themselves. In America, the janitors do the cleaning of the entire school. I think it’s great that the students have to do this sort of thing themselves because they learn the importance of organization and teamwork and cleaning, valuable life skills, starting from when they’re very young.

I’ve learned a lot from my CIP at Ohara. In the future I plan on applying to the JET program to be an assistant English teacher, so the practice I’m doing by working with the English teachers at Ohara and occasionally teaching a class solo is very valuable. I’ve been learning how English is taught as a second language in Japanese schools, which I can work off of when I go to a different school to teach in the future. Not only have I learned valuable information and skills from the teachers at Ohara, I’ve also learned a lot from the students I’ve been working with. Being able to help them with homework or watch them learn English or just playing with them after school has helped me understand what they like and the ways they like to learn.

Since I’m studying abroad for a full year, I have the opportunity to continue this CIP next semester. I’m really looking forward to working with the teachers and students at Ohara and learning more from them. I have a lot of fun each week when I go to volunteer, so I’m happy I get to see more of the people I’ve met since I’ve started my CIP at Ohara.

フィリップ・クアリング：ＮＰＯ京都コリアン生活センター

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昔話など：京都のボランティアの経験

日本に来たときに、ＣＩＰで何をするかまだ分かりませんでした。アメリカでは,医者になりたいので化学などを勉強していましたが、ＫＣＪＳではぜんぜん理系の授業がなかったから、病院でボランティアをするとかとか実験室で研究の助手がしたかったをはたらきたかったのですが、外国人にはどちらもちょっとむずかしかったです。

当初ＣＩＰとして太鼓をしようと思っていましたが、それをするのは毎週じゃなかったし、趣味だけでしたかったので、たいこにしなかったんです。私は「どうしようかなあ」と思いました。。。その時、文化の先生にコリアンセンターについて聞きました。去年はKCJSの学生が三人この場所に行ったとおっしゃいました。私はどんなセンターかわからなっかたけど,「楽しくて、いいところだ」と言っていただきました。メールをした後で、在日韓国人のお年寄りのためのセンターだとわかりました。

私は日本語の話し方より聞き方のほうがいいとおもうけど、お年寄りのにほんごはわかりにくいので、辛抱は大切なことだとおもいます。。でも、交流が好きです。日本に韓国からいらして違う経験があるからお年寄りの昔話はとても面白いと思います。毎週の水曜日、いった時はいつも楽しみにしています！

マイケル・タヤグ：喫茶店のボランティア

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僕はバザーカフェという同志社大学の近くにある喫茶店でボランティアをしています。バザーカフェはマイノリティーの人が働いてお金をもらえる場を提供しています。それで、民族のマイノリティーの人や発達障害（はったつしょうがい＝developmental disorder）がある人がバザーカフェで働いています。

僕は毎週の木曜日と金曜日に三、四時間ボランティアしています。普通、キチンでお皿を洗ったり、食べ物を作るのを手伝ったり、掃除をしたりしています。時々他の活動もあって、僕は同僚とバザーカフェのホームページを日本語から英語に翻訳しましたし、バザーカフェのフェスティバルのメニューの食べ物を選ぶ手伝いもしました。

同僚と働きながら話す事によって、日本語と日本文化と日本に住んでいるマイノリティーの人の生活について色々習います。バザーカフェでボランティアをするのは本当に楽しくて面白いです。

みなさん、機会があったら、ぜひ１１月２３日のバザーカフェのフェスティバルに来てみて下さい。その日が無理だったら、他の日に僕と一緒にバザーカフェで昼ご飯を食べませんか。

島本アンソニー：ホームレスのボランティア

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私のCIPはホームレス支援のボランティアです。河原町のカトリック教会の会員とボランティアをしています。毎週の月曜日に午後九時から十一時半まで教会で会いますそしてみんなグルに分かります。グループで京都の道を歩いてホームレスの人がいると、ホームレスの人と話したりお茶をあげたり拭くと毛布もあげたりします。教会の会員はホームレスの人に福利のプログラムについて教えてあげます。いんしょうEP家としてアメリカより日本のホームレスの人のほうが親切です。ほーむれすのひとはいつも頭を下げながらこんばんはと言います。これまでホームレス支援のボランティアはとてもおもしろい経験です。

ユンビー・リー：上京歴史探訪館でのボランティア

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最初よつくら先生がCIPについて説明してくださったとき、ログの紙と一緒に厚いブックレットをくれました。それは最初にCIPについて連絡するために使わなければならない形式をよく説明している本でした。何週間か、私はそんなブックレットはどうしているかあまり分かりませんでした。私たちはもう大学生なので,他の人に丁寧に書くべきや話すべきことをよく分かっていると思ったからです。アメリカとかメキシコにいたときにも新しいクラブに入りたかったら従わなければならない方法があるので,私がしている方法とあまり違わないと思いました。しかし,今KCJSが始まってからもう7週経ったけど何も出来なかった私の意見は最初と変れりました。そのブクレットは本当に日本の文化を象徴する本だったと思います。
最初、自分の興味と趣味をどんなサークルとクラブで探すか分からなかったので、外国人の観点から日本の文化をよく象徴する茶道部に連絡しました。連絡するためにもブックレットの指示に従わなければならなくて、メールをおくる前にも内容が十分に丁寧かどうか先生にチェックしてもらわなければなりませんでした。チェックの後でメールを送ったけど、茶道部に参加することは簡単ではありませんでした。参加資格は部長の許可をもらわなければならなかったから、 連絡するだけだったのに私が思ったより時間がかかりました。最終的には 許可をもらいましたけど、それはもう２週経った後でした。どうして初めから部長のメールにれんらく出来なかったか分からないですけど、そんなに簡単だったらブ ックレットも先生の助けもいらなかったかもしれないので、たぶんそれは本当に日本的な方法と経験ではないかと思っています。
しかし、何週間か待った後ついに参加できる日が来たけどほかの問題が私を待っていました。私がメールでよく説明できたかどうか分からないけど、初めて行ったとき茶道部の部長は私に、茶道部に入ることは出来ないといいました。びっくりして、どうしてか聞きました。部長は、一回参加することは良いですけど、二年とか四年間入られなかったらだめだと言いました。もう一度、どうしてそんなことをメールで説明しなかったのかはまだ分かりません。メールでは「いいえ、出来ません」って言うことを日本人は書かないのでしょうか？もちろん、私が連絡したときに自分の目的をよく説明しなかったかもしれないけど、そうだったらなぜ私が着いた時にクラブには入れないと言ったか分かりません。残念ながらブックレットにはこんな場合にどうするかは書いてありません。
KCJSが始まってからもう５週経ったけど、CIPをするところははまだありませんでした。しょうがないので、先生の提案で町家探訪館のボランティアに決めました。しかし、それも私が自分で町家探訪館に連絡することはだめでしたのでほかの先生が連絡して許可をもらうまでに待たなければいけませんでした。それも一週間ぐらいかかりました。それで、今まで７週間日本式の連絡方法とブックレットを従って何も出来ませんでしたけど、来週本当に参加できる日を待っています。もちろん、もっと活動的に探さなかったので私にも問題があると思いますけど、こんなに長いしょりにちょっとがっかりしました。しかし、来週からは何でもするつもりですので本当に楽しみにしています。時々どうしてか分からないこともあったけど、それは全部日本の文化と方法の部分だと思って、こんな経験を通して日本について勉強していると思いたいです。

ドレイ・マッケンジー：幼稚園の英語アシスタント

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幼稚園での楽しい英語！

毎週火曜日二時から四時まで私は同志社の幼稚園で英語を教えています。私はCIPが大好きです。私はエヴァンさんというショアさんの息子さんと一緒に教えています。エヴァンはおもしろくていい先生だと思います。日本人の助手の先生は、ばんば先生です。私は、2つの異なる授業を教えます。最初のクラスは、4／5才の子供のクラスです。2つ目は5／6才の子供のクラスです。

クラスの初めに出欠を確認するために、エヴァンさんは英語で子供に 「名前は何ですか」と言います。それからエヴァンさんは自分を指して、「私の名前は何ですか」と尋ねます。その後エヴァンさんは私やばんば先生を指して、「彼女の名は何ですか」と尋ねます。子供たちはいつも私の名前を覚えていて、私はいつもびっくりさせられます！

出欠を確認した後、英語の動詞の確認をします。例えば、「スリープ」と「ウェイクアップ」です。それから、英語で形容詞の確認をします。「ホット」と「コールド」または「ファニー」などの形容詞を言います。その後、英語のアルファベットを教えます。最初のクラスは若いから、一日に一文字しかを考えません。 でも、次のクラスには一日二文字の一日を教えます。 大きなアルファベットの文字と小さな文字を８回ずつ書きます。その後、子供たちはその日に習った文字で始まる単語の四種類の絵を描きます。 子供たちに教えることがとても楽しみです！

サンディー・チャン：　中学で英語を教えること

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　私の「CIP」は中学生に英語を教えることです。英語の先生になりたいからその「CIP」を選びました。私は日本人に英語を教えることを習いたいです。日本の中学校の文化も習いたいです。経験が欲しいです。

　かいせい中学校で英語の先生は三人います。上野先生は優しい男の先生です。野球のコーチです。おがや先生が英文化を教えます。学生と冗談を言い合うことが好きです。「JET」プログラムのセイラ先生は欧州とアメリカの文化を教えます。背が高くて精力的な人です。

　私は前月曜日にかいせい中学に行きます。一時から二時まで中学校の三年生を教えます。二時から三時まで二年生を教えます。英語を読んで文法を直します

　私は日本の中学生に会うことと日本の教育を楽しんでいます。

カーター・ライス：上京歴史探訪館のボランティア

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　私はカーター・ライスと申します。ウェルズリー大学の三年生です。専門は東アジア研究です。日本の歴史に興味がありますので、京都で勉強しています。茶道は面白いと思います。高校生の時に、私はお茶クラブの部長でした。クラブで友達と一緒に、お茶によって、いろいろな国の文化を習いました。それいらい、茶道に興味があります。

　CIPのために、上京歴史探訪館でボランティアの仕事をしています。上京歴史探訪館は京都の町家です。町家というのは、京都の古い木ぞうかおくの建物です。町家はめずらしいけど、町家は最近保存されています。京都の中で上京は町家が一番多い所です。上京歴史探訪館は百年毎に立てられました。

　毎週末、上京歴史探訪館で講義とか特別なイベントがあります。私はイベントの日、町家の台所でボランティアをします。イベントの後で、私はお客様にお茶とわがしを出してあげます。日本の歴史はおもしろいと思ったから、上京歴史探訪館のボランティアの仕事が好きです。お茶に興味があるから仕事は楽しいと思います。