OPU Students 海外留学レポート
Study Abroad Report from the OPU students

プロフィール（Profile）

PHOTO（あなたの写真、留学先の風景など）

氏名（Name）Kanta Yamaoka/山岡幹太
所属（School）工学域 電気電子系学類
学年（Grade）1 回生
留学先（Name of overseas institution）
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
留学期間 (study abroad period)
2020/2/23~2020/3/2
記入日（Date）2020/3/5

留学レポート Study Abroad Report
Why do you need to study abroad no matter who you are or what you want to do or be in the future? The ultimate
answer is because studying abroad broadens our horizons. In other words, you can see the world in a bigger
picture by experiencing life in different countries and having conversations with people from different
backgrounds. Truth be told, this answer is gained after I came back to Japan. Then, why I applied to thisprogram? In this essay, I will explain the reason and what I learned, experienced and gained from this program.
To begin with, let me introduce myself here. I was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture and moved to I wate Prefecture,
Fukuoka Prefecture, and finally to here, Osaka. As you know, I live in and grow up in Japan, where 98% of thepopulation is people who called “Japanese” and most of them have similar opinions, or they are implicitly forced
to have the same opinions in pursuit of social conformity. This kind of social agreement has contributed to ourculture positively, and this is what makes our culture distinct from others. However, this is not always good,since the whole world is changing at a rapid speed and we have to face different situations and different opinions
or methods from people with different backgrounds. Regarding all of the aspects of Japan: inefficient education,
decreasing population, conservative government, it is clear that Japan cannot stay competitive anymore.
Meanwhile, China, Korea, and other Asian countries have steadily increased their power, especially in theengineering field. In my opinion, those countries are trying to incorporate new perspectives from abroad andencourage students to study abroad. All things considered, if I want to stay competitive, it is important to expose
myself to places where various people gather such as the US. This is why I applied to this program. (Technically,
this program is too short that I cannot call it “studying abroad”, but it was important in that I could rethink
about why study abroad matters. )Next, I will tell you about redneck culture and one of the lessons that I gained from this culture. Redneck, thisterm is not necessarily politically correct but Erik, my friend, likes to use the term and he told me a lot about thisredneck culture. Historically, they were cowboys/girls and engaged in farming. Their necks are red because of
the Western United State's intense sunlight. They have pickup tracks. They have distinct western accents. Iliked the way how those people talk and behave. They don’t care about small things and they have big hearts,and they are generous. Hulk Hogan (if you don’t know, please Google it) is the epitome of redneck, according
to Erik. Also, they like guns. They regard guns as their symbol of the frontier mind. Erik has many guns and I
saw some of his guns. Usually, according to him, he goes to deserts and brings some old computers or garbage.
Then, he shoots them. As far as I know, shooting is one of the most popular sports in western America, likebaseball; guns are so important in terms of identity as Americans. Before I go to the US, I was opposite for theright to have guns because I thought guns can easily kill people. However, now I realized that guns are a part ofAmerican culture and denying it without good reasons is nonsense. It is like a Japanese whale hunting. Westernpeople might think this is cruel or inhumane, but we Japanese historically have had whales, and we know that
this is a part of Japanese culture. I know things like these are not easy because people have different backgrounds
and opinions, but before denying them or look down them, please accept and respect these cultures, and if you
talk with people who are familiar with those cultures, you can understand different cultures more deeply - thisis one of the most important lessons that I learned throughout the program.
Also, this program made me interested in Native Americans, people who originally lived in American
Continental but now live in the reservation and suffered from the exploitation of the colonization in the US andMexico. They are often called "Indians" but this term is politically incorrect and some Native Americans hate it
while others do not really. I knew Native Americans before I went to the US by this program. When I was a child,I read a book about them: "The Education of Little Tree" but my knowledge was not enough at that time. As apart of this program, we went to Grand Canyon, and before we went there, we watched an IMAX about thehistory and the beauty of Grand Canyon. We learned that Native Americans lived there from time immemorial,and European colonization of America from the early 16th century changed almost everything and they lost theirmotherland. Also, we visited The Heard Museum, located in Phenix, AZ. This museum is about NativeAmericans' cultures: It showed us Native Americans' artworks, crafts, and photographs. Through these media,
the museum explained to us why Native Americans' life has been so severe, where they are and what they are
doing right now. Many Native Americans were killed due to viruses that Western Caucasians brought to America
because Native Americans were geographically isolated from other areas and not exposed to these viruses before
the outbreaks happened. However, what was most painful about Native Americans' history is that they have been
forced to discard their identities. The US government in the past created special programs to make Native
American children behave like Caucasian and Christian Americans - this is often called "assimilation of Native
Americans ". Native Americans were forced to give up their languages, religions, even their names. They weregiven different names by their schools that sounded like ordinary Americans and were constantly undersurveillance by teachers. They were young but were often subject to violence. Nowadays, the population ofNative Americans has been greatly decreased. Some of them are making their living by running casinos in their
special district, reservation. I could see some of the real examples of that during the program. We stayed inPrescott, and we saw casinos in Yavapai. The first time I saw them out of the window of our car from the hotel
to ERAU, I did not know why there were casinos because usually they are prohibited by the US law, but now I
understand: Those casinos are inside Native Americans' reservations where they enjoy autonomy to some extent,
and they have no other industry that can feed their family because of the harsh environment of Western America
and because of Native Americans’ painful history. There is no superior or inferior cultures or religions, and if
you - this is also one of the most significant lessons that I gained from this program.
Last but not least, American foods are quite diverse. They have almost all kinds of food though they are often
Americanized. We had Chinese food at Panda Express, Thai foods in Flagstaff, Italian in Red Lobster, Mexican
food at the party when we first arrived at ERAU, cowboys/girls meals at Blazin' M Ranch, where we could
experience the life of cowboys/girls. This is one of the good things about the US.
Overall, I could learn about the history, cultures, and issues of Western Americans and how we should think
about diversity through ERAU Winter School. Throughout the program, Mr. Matsui, Mr. Tsutsui, Trevis, other
OPU staff members, ERAU staff members and buddies, teachers and other students, and local people madegreat efforts to make sure that we could learn and experience a lot. Now I can say with confidence that I could
improve myself a great deal through this program in terms of personality, knowledge about international affairs
and English. I am deeply grateful for the kindness of those who have been involved with this program. Thankyou, again.

You can watch the 360 video that I created as a part of this program:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-19NBaEF7M