「Boston University」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Jaime Craven: Ohara Gakuin

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For my CIP, I volunteered as an assistant English teacher at a school in scenic Ohara. On Mondays I took the subway to Kokusaikaikan Station, the northernmost stop on the Karasuma Line, and then rode a bus into the mountains where the school was located. The full trip was about one hour there and one hour back, relative to Doshisha.

My teacher recommended Ohara Gakuin as my CIP because of my previous teaching experience in both America and Japan. However, this was my first time in a school so small. From first through eighth grade, the total head count was just seventy students!

Every week I joined a different group of students – usually two per visit – and helped out with whatever exercises the teacher had planned for the day. My role, which I initially thought would be mostly demonstrating pronunciation, was more participatory than expected. We played games to strengthen vocabulary, and conducted mini interviews to practice grammar. Because of the small class sizes, it was easy to make sure that everyone got a chance to participate. Occasionally, instead of a lesson, the students would rehearse plays, or prepare for the various school festivals sprinkled through the fall semester. Even when returning to a familiar class, no two visits to Ohara Gakuin were the same.

It was fascinating to watch as the students intuited their own language skills over time. Even their mistakes showed instinctive pattern recognition: swapping out “took a bath” for “have a bath,” for example. They worked hard to make themselves understood in class, even if the exact rules or vocabulary for the situation escaped them. In every lesson, the teachers encouraged them to think creatively about the topic at hand, going beyond what was laid out in the textbook.

As an English teacher, I tried to use as little Japanese as possible, as was expected of me. Of course, in doing so, there is always a danger that the students will be too daunted to even respond, let alone retain new information. I also worried about playing into the stereotype of a foreigner who doesn’t speak a word of Japanese. In the end, I compromised by speaking only in English, but also making sure that they knew I was listening when they spoke Japanese. Nodding along and laughing at their jokes went a long way in showing that I understood. This, in turn, made them feel more comfortable when constructing their own English sentences, knowing they could switch back to their mother tongue at any time if they needed a quick break.

In every class, the students proved themselves to be unflappably confident and attentive, and I was fortunate enough to meet as many as possible during my time there. This CIP activity comes highly recommended for any KCJS student interested in education!

 

Anna Kelly: Volunteering at a Museum

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For my community involvement project I have been volunteering at the museum and archives at the Kyoto Institute of Technology. The museum specializes in different fields of design, and has a wide collection of antique posters, radios, art books, and more. The most recent exhibitions on display were about foreign advertisements related to food, and the Dadaist artist, May Ray, respectively.

The role that I play at the museum changes every week depending on what kind of tasks there are that need to be done. In my time there I have helped take photos to document antiques, set up and take down exhibitions, frame posters to go into new exhibitions, and enter data from old art books. Although it is probably the most tedious of my tasks, I find looking through the art books the most interesting. Some of the books were published as far back as the Meiji Period, so I have had the opportunity to learn something about old kanji that is generally not used anymore. For example, I never would have guessed that 学 used to be 學, 芸 used to be 藝, 十 can be 拾 in official documents, or that the number twenty (廿) has its own kanji!

Because I worked at a museum instead of joining a club or circle at Doshisha or Kyoto University, I didn’t have many opportunities to meet others my age through my CIP. However, I do feel that I am lucky to have had the opportunity to have a somewhat job-like experience in Japan, and although they may have not been college students, the people I met were great and taught me a lot.

 

Here is the museum’s website, if you are interested:

https://www.kit.ac.jp/en/research/museum-and-archives/

Ruiqi Wang: Manga Lesson

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As my CIP for this semester, I chose Manga kyoshitsu. At first, I just want to experience something different from last semester and learn something about Japan. As we all know that manga and animation are really famous and professional in Japan and I am actually a manga fan and doing some little mangas by myself as well, I decide to do this for my CIP in Kyoto manga kyoshitsu with Okamoto sensei and Himura sensei. I go there every Saturday afternoon and spend 3 hours there drawing things. Basically you can draw anything you like at first and sensei will tell you which kind of exercise you need specifically. For me, I like to draw illustrations with characters but I can’t do very well in drawing human body, so sensei just gave me a photo book with human bodies and taught me how to draw human body from beginning systematically. Sensei will also gave me many advices when I am drawing. For example, the way to transform real pictures into manga characters and the composition of pictures, as well as some small tips which are really helpful.

Not only the way of drawing, but I also learnt how to interact with Japanese people. It’s totally fine to use casual speaking style with Japanese students in university, but since students in manga kyoshitsu are not all collage students and usually you cannot tell their ages, it’s better to use desu masu form to them. Because senseis are at our age as well, there was no wall between us. Of course we have to use Keigo to senseis but the atmosphere was really relaxing. Since I read manga as well, other Japanese students didn’t consider me as a foreigner, which makes me feel comfortable in this class. (The other reason that they didn’t consider me as foreigner may be that I am a Chinese which you can’t really tell whether I am a foreigner or not from my appearance. ) There was an elder sensei who is teaching traditional painting at the same place will always serve tea for us and students will bring snacks to share with everyone during break. I think this is a very special Japanese culture that happening everywhere in Japan, the tea time.

I really appreciate this opportunity to really join in a Japanese community like this kind of small class for manga. In this class, I had a chance to interact with young Japanese and here a lot of interesting things of Japanese young culture.

Bohan Li: Shamisen

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Before I came to KCJS I hadn’t really decided what to participate in. Not all the programs would provide with such good chances for students to be involved in Japanese society. And I really hoped that I could take advantage of it. It took me a long time to think about what goal would I want to achieve at the end of semester. Is it a deep understanding of Japanese society? Or it could be getting to know about the working environment in Japanese since I have the idea to work in Japan after graduation? After careful consideration and getting advices from my teacher, I finally decided to practice Shamisen as my CIP program.

My initial consideration was that as a traditional and Japan-only instrument, Shamisen could be a good tool for me to learn about traditional Japanese music and arts. In China we actually have the similar instrument but nowadays most people don’t know more about it. However, after been imported to japan and assimilated to Japanese culture, Shamisen plays important part of Japanese「邦楽」. I would like to learn more about the spread and development of Shamisen through time.

At the beginning I thought it should be a group class that one teacher sits in the front and students follows teachers instruction and practicing. But then I found out that instead of a Shamisen class, it is more like an amateur’s club. Usually they have typical groups that practice same songs and meet regularly once a week. I was really nervous when I first meet with them. Partly because most of the members are elder people, I was worried that they would not be happy if a foreigner suddenly joined their private group. However, I was welcomed and even taken care of by them. They were curious about my past experience related to Japan, and would also like to tell me their personal relation to China, such as travel experience or business with Chinese partner. I was surprised because this is very different from things I learned from the Japanese minorities class that Japanese people would be offended if someone intend to enter their private group. Even I only joined them for few classes, I feel like I have already become a part of their party. Also, practicing Shamisen is a hart task for me since I had almost zero knowledge about string instrument. And because the Shamisen pick is actually really heavy, I had a hard time learning the basic rules like how to sit, rest my wrist and hold the ばち(picks) in the correct way. It was painful at the beginning, but when I firstly played a whole song, I felt that all the efforts were worthwhile.

I really want to thank my teacher Iwazaki Chieko sensei. She brought me into their club and also the area of traditional Japanese music. From her I learned not just about Shamisen as a instrument, but also how traditional Japanese aesthetics are changing and integrated with modern society. The insistence of Japanese artists and awareness of modern culture make Japan the special place that can retain its culture so well when other countries are somehow ignoring and losing their traditions.

 

Yun Zhang: Kyoto Manga Class

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For this semester, I joined the 京都まんが教室 for my CIP. Although the course fee is a little bit expensive, I’d say it’s totally worth it, mainly because it is where you could have a real cultural communication with people who really understand you.

The most precious thing I experienced from this CIP is the feeling of getting into a real Japanese circle where I belong. Different from the general anime or manga club I’ve joined in the US, this class is more like a doujin-based fan circle. Since most of the students in the manga class are young ladies around the same age, we mostly watch same types of anime and have interests in same kinds of stuff(e.g. shipping). Thus, there are never too many topics to chat about, from which I get to pick up a lot of unique language that is only used within the Japanese anime-fan circle. However, since it is kind of an advanced course, the format of “teaching” almost doesn’t exist. Basically, you just draw whatever you like in every class, and the instructors will give some personal advice and instructions on your drawings. Since I don’t have any essential knowledge of drawing anime characters or manga before, the level is way too high for me. (Other students are all doujin artists.)

Therefore, here is my advice for those who might be interested: If you love anime/Japanese pop culture, and want to experience the feeling of really being one of the Japanese anime fans, don’t hesitate to participate in the manga class. However, if all you want is to learn how to draw manga and do not have any essential knowledge, I would suggest taking a more formal course that focuses on teaching basic skills of drawing manga.

Nicholas Niculescu: My Time at Klexon

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My CIP was participating in an English speaking circle called Klexon. This circle takes place every Tuesday from 7 to 9 pm. This CIP is a unique one, unlike some other CIP’s, like a martial art or private lessons, it allowed me to interact with many different Japanese people from many different walks of life. I had the opportunity to talk to both college students and people working today. The sessions had a general structure. The first hour would consist of 10 minute talks with 6 people, and the second hour had us in a group of 4 to 6 doing group working together. It was during this hour I was able to speak Japanese with my partners.

While practicing my Japanese is was excellent, what I really had a chance to do is look at different Japanese people and learn about their experiences learning English. It is interesting from my perspective, I am normally in the opposite situation every day in Japan so to see from the opposite perspective was an interesting one. I learned a number of different things. First I learned very intricate things about learning new languages and trying to learn new words. When my Japanese conversation partners attempted lo learn a new expression, they would generally ask if the expression can be used by itself. I always said it had to be said in context.

There were a couple of interesting observations during my time at Klexon. Everyone thought I was a English teacher before I explained to them that I was a student, and oppositely I thought everyone was a university student if they were not wearing a suit. It was a funny thing every time the mistake occurred. A more serious observation is that many people are studying for the purposes of their job. I would rarely hear reasons like “oh I just want to use it for traveling”.

The final observation that I saw was that everyone was very courageous. I know how it feels to attempt to speak a foreign language to a native speaker and how nervous it can be. Yet every single partner I talked with did their best to practice their English.  I know a little about English teaching in Japan, and I know it is primarily taught from a text book, however, in these sessions I see people who know that is not enough and they attempt to learn English the best way they can, by practicing.

Alexa Machnik: Japanese Book Restoration at ARC

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Over two semesters at KCJS, I have been training with a paper restoration team at the Ritsumeikan University Art Research Center (ARC). At ARC, I work mainly with damaged Japanese bound books dating to the Edo period. In most cases I encounter books containing full-page illustrations devoured by worms and beetles. Therefore, when beginning a new project, the severity of the damage is first evaluated and then, based on the amount of surface loss, a suitable treatment is decided on. The standard methods used to mend these areas of loss are known as infilling (tsukuroi) and back-lining (urauchi). Both methods serve different purposes, but are similar in the way that washi paper, sympathetic in thickness and tone of the damaged paper, is adhered with starch paste (nori) to treat the loss.

While incredibly valuable, the technical skills I have acquired only describe a single side of my experience at ARC. Twice a week, as I continue to practice my techniques, I also engage in a facet of the Japanese work community. As expected, this has led to quite a few interesting cultural and language exchanges. First of all, the restoration team consists of a total of three people, all middle-aged women. Everyone is on a different working schedule, so when I go to ARC I am usually working alongside Nakamura-san, the head of the restoration team.

When I first began training at ARC, the most challenging barrier I faced was communication. I was afraid to hold conversations and I struggled to understand the directions that I was being told, even when heavily aided by Google translate. This semester, however, it is undeniable that living in Kyoto has improved my ear for both standard Japanese and “Kansai-ben”, the local dialect, and has opened up new opportunities to be more interactive within ARC. For instance, being able to better communicate with the team has helped me understand in greater depth the reasoning behind a certain restoration principle. In result, I now take part in the evaluation process when beginning a new project. For students who may face a similar situation, my advice would be not to feel afraid to ask questions or start a conversation! In my case, the team became excited to teach me more when they saw, through the questions I was asking, my interest and curiosity in art restoration.

Sitting for long periods of time meticulously trimming washi paper and preparing starch paste in a large wooden vat becomes taxing on the shoulders and eyes, but I have discovered that I can refocus my attention through conversation. Oftentimes I become so accustomed to speaking casually in conversation that when it comes to expressing gratitude, I carelessly neglect social etiquette and forget to attach the formal “gozaimasu” to my informal “arigatou”. I am corrected instantly, and my honest mistake reinforces the importance of maintaining a formal student-teacher relationship when dealing with work-related matters. However, I was told that if “arigatou gozaimasu” is too long, I could always opt for the Kansai-equivalent, “ookini”. Apparently, if used towards a Kansai-native, “ookini” carries the same formal weight as “gozaimasu”. I have yet to try it out.

As the semester is reaching its end, I still feel that there is a lot I could improve in terms of restoration. At least once or twice per week, I make a careless mistake in my work, leading Nakamura-san to address me by “onesan”, which translates to “older sister”. Since I am the youngest of the group, I was initially confused as to why I was being called “onesan”. However, seeing that I am only called this when I overlook a mistake, perhaps it is an indirect message that I should to be more careful next time. Nevertheless, I feel respected in my position, and while I rarely receive any direct compliments from Nakamura-san, I can sense through her patience that she is silently supporting me in both my language and restoration endeavors.

With that said, I would like to thank KCJS for giving students the opportunity to step out into the Kyoto community through CIP, as well as ARC for taking care of me throughout this year. This experience is one I will continue to carry with me as I continue my studies in Japanese and art restoration.

Ookini!

Jimmy Scheckowitz: Cooking Classes; Shamisen Lessons

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In order to fulfill my Community Involvement Project requirements, I am fortunate to have been given the privilege to participate in two activities that I had been interested in since before coming to Kyoto: taking cooking classes and learning to play the shamisen.

Once a month, I have participated in cooking classes with the Kyoto Cooking Circle at Wings Kyoto, a community center located near the Karasuma-Oike subway station. For a small price of ¥1000 per class, I have not only had the opportunity to learn homestyle Japanese recipes, such as kiritanpo, a style of nabe native to Akita prefecture, but I have also been able to converse with a wide variety of Japanese people, from Doshisha students to the elderly. As such, Kyoto Cooking Circle has provided me with a great chance to fulfill my goal of learning new Japanese recipes, while also giving me the opportunity to utilize and improve my Japanese outside the classroom.

With cooking classes at Kyoto Cooking Circle only being offered once a month, for each week when these classes have not been in session, I have instead taken private shamisen lessons in Ibaraki, a city in Osaka prefecture. Under the tutelage of my teacher Chimura-sensei, I have quickly learned a number of songs, such as “Sakura Sakura,” “Tanko Bushi,” and “Tsugaru Jongara Bushi.” Furthermore, similar to my experience with the Kyoto Cooking Circle, I have also been able to speak regularly with Chimura-sensei, which has helped me in becoming more comfortable in Japanese conversation. As such, taking shamisen lessons have also allowed me to fulfill one of my goals, while being able to practice my Japanese in the process.

Through both my cooking classes and shamisen lessons, I have also learned about a number of aspects and customs pertaining to Japanese culture that I would have not found out about elsewhere. Most strikingly, from my first cooking class, I learned that Japanese children are given more self-responsibility and freedom than those in America. For example, one of Kyoto Cooking Circle’s teachers allows her two boys, who are approximately eight to ten years old, to contribute to the class’ cooking by using sharp knives to chop up vegetables. Having grown up in America and seen numerous parents prevent their children from doing anything even remotely dangerous, I was almost shocked to see the two Japanese kids contributing and acting on their own. As such, I first encountered the level of freedom and independence Japanese children are given at my first cooking class. In terms of my shamisen lessons, I have noticed that there are many differences between individual music lessons in the United States and Japan. From my experience, I’ve found that guitar lessons in the United States would be focused on correctly playing every note of every song I learn. However, Chimura-sensei has explained to me that rather than playing a song perfectly, it is more important to put soul into my shamisen playing. Essentially, Chimura-sensei has emphasized that having a nice sound or tone in my playing is more important than playing every song I learn perfectly. As such, I have noticed that perhaps Japanese music lessons are more focused on playing songs with heart and soul, without having to be perfect, while in the United States, perfection was the goal.

As a whole, my experiences with Kyoto Cooking Circle and Chimura-sensei’s shamisen lessons have been extremely rewarding. In the process of having two Community Involvement Project activities, I have only only fulfilled my goals of learning to cook Japanese food and to play the shamisen, but I also have improved my Japanese and made a number of Japanese friends. As such, I highly recommend learning to cook or to play the shamisen as a CIP to anyone interested in either activity!

Quynh Anh Ellen Do: Volunteering at Daycare

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For my CIP project, I decided to volunteer at a children’s daycare. Once a week I would go to the daycare and play with the children for a couple of hours. An interesting point to note is that when I was initially asking to volunteer at the daycare, the staff personnel also requested bank account information. This is because in Japan it is not unusual for volunteers to receive「お礼」money, which I could never imagine receiving in the United States.

As someone with an introverted personality, I initially found it difficult to interact with the children at first, but like with any child they were interested in learning about their new 「先生」and after learning I was from America would often request me to say things in English, which were often met with laughter or additional requests. Another difficult point was that understanding the children. Compared to the staff personnel, the children had a high tendency to speak in Kansai dialect. While I was able to quickly pick up the word meanings, the children also tended to speak faster than the adults, and to someone whose listening skills are not their strongest point to begin with, understanding the children could sometimes be hard. However, since the children also tended to speak in short sentences and simple vocabulary it was not impossible to talk with them.

Additionally, the more time passed the more friendly the children became with me. It was interesting to see the subtle differences between Japanese and American culture at the daycare; things like how fast they become friendly toward others and the children’s increased willingness to listen to adults and others. But it was also heartening to see that regardless of culture, children are still rambunctious, outgoing, and at times more forward than their adult counterparts. I am also grateful to my fellow volunteers and the staff personnel for helping me out and taking care of me during my time at the daycare.

Shuyun Zhang: Pottery Class

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I go to Pottery Class near Kiyomizudera on every Saturday from 10am to 2pm. The name of the pottery class is Zuikougam(瑞光窯). I am glad that I take the pottery class and I’ve learnt more about Japanese culture.

 

Except for me, all other students are middle-aged or seniors. I do not know is it because the young Japanese are not into traditional art anymore or they do not have time for the 4-hour lesson. Anyways, all the students are very friendly and helpful. I feel very much welcomed by them. But regardless of their age and gender, they are really into ceramics and they take notes so carefully when there is a seminar. Japanese people really like to take notes and organize things neatly. They also like to bring some presents such as wagashi or sweets they bought to class and share with the other classmates. I like that.

 

The communication part is not that easy as there are many verbs and terms that I’ve never heard before, but thankfully, this is a skill that you can learn from imitating. I’ve learnt how to use the “rokuro” to make cups and bowls, how to paint on the plates and how to put glaze on the things I made. So far I’ve been to 6 classes and I’ve made 4 plates, 6 bowls and 2 cups, thanks to the sensei’s help. I noticed the other students’ work are related to Japanese traditional art as well and I can tell they are really passionate about it. For instance, someone made a whole set for雛祭りand someone made several plates that have the painting ofアジサイon them.

 

I really like my pottery class and I hope if there is any chance, I could continues it in America.