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JAPANESE LANGAUGE EDUCATION UPDATE 9

AUGUST, 2014: BREEZE ISSUE #82
A FREE MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF JAPAN & TEACHERS OF JAPANESE

JAPANESE LANGUAGE EDUCATION UPDATE #9: JF
INVITATIONAL GROUP TOUR REPORTby Amanda Rollins, Japanese Language Program Coordinator

THE JAPAN FOUNDATION INVITATIONAL GROUP-TOUR PROGRAM FOR U.S. EDUCATORS2014
June 27 - July 5, 2014
Last month, the Japan Foundation invited 14 American education administrators to Japan for a nine day
tour of Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka in the hopes that tour participants bring back a strong affinity for thecountry. Candidates for the tour were selected from schools and districts which have recently started, orplan to start, a Japanese language program. By taking these administrators on a fun and educational tourof Japan, the Japan Foundation hopes to establish administrative support for these fledgling programsfrom the very beginning.
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The 14 tour participants are principals and world language program supervisors from all over the States.
They had never met each other before the 1-day predeparture orientation in Los Angeles, and almost noneof them had ever been to Japan. Several had nevereven been abroad. Thanks to this program, they
established friendships and solidarity among
themselves as well as a more global perspective oneducation.
During the tour, the group sat down with staff from theMinistry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science andTechnology for a briefing about public schools inJapan and a detailed question and answer session
which covered topics like curriculum design andstudents with disabilities. At the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, they discussed the strong economic relationship and friendship between Japan and the States.
Participants visited Senboku Municipal High School in Sakai City and met the energetic principal, Mr.
Kuwahara, who graciously gave everyone a tour of the buildings where participants observed chemistry,math, and English classes. They also got the chance to sit down with several teachers to discuss teacher
training and evaluation, entrance exams, and discipline in Japan.
A highlight of the trip was the visit to Osaka Municipal Tarui Elementary School where participants weretreated to a lesson on Japanese traditional games like kendama and ayatori . In return, participants eachgave a short show-and-tell presentation to the fourth-graders about their own schools in America.
Throughout the trip, participants spoke warmly about thefriendliness and generosity of the Japanese people they met. The
relationships between teachers and students also impressed
them, along with the fact that elementary school students aregiven the responsibility of cleaning the school and serving school
lunches.
Overall, the tour was a big success! Through this program, theadministrators developed an awareness of the value of teaching
Japanese in American schools. One participant wrote, “This went
far beyond my expectations. I really am so thankful for being
selected for this opportunity and I will now be able to accelerate
the kinds of support and resources that can expand Japaneselanguage culture across my school community.”
The Japan Foundation is looking forward to continued
collaboration with them to promote Japanese language education
throughout the United States.

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This month’s Advocacy Tip: Have you considered starting an AP Japanese course at your school? Taking
the AP Japanese Language and Culture Exam motivates students to study hard in order to get college
credit. Find out how you can start an AP Japanese course at AP Central’s AP Japanese Language andCulture Exam Home Page. Don’t forget to join the Community for teachers!

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