Report on Spring 2016 program
For two weeks between February 4 and 18, 2016, the International Education and Exchange Center (IEEC) hosted a total of 28 students from 10 partner universities at our campus in Nagoya for the inaugural “Nagoya University Short-Term Japanese Language Program (NUSTEP)”. Though time was short, feedback suggests that students nonetheless enjoyed their experience. During NUSTEP, participants studied the Japanese language in the morning and then joined activities to deepen their understanding of Japanese culture and society in the afternoon. Following a placement test on their first day, students were split into two separate Japanese language classes, allowing them to study at an appropriate pace and level.
Each afternoon, students joined specialized lectures, visited laboratories, tried on Kimono and Shodo, visited the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, participated in a career workshop, and enjoyed a social event with our students. On their first weekend, students boarded a bus taking them to the nearby city of Inuyama while on the second weekend they did a homestay.
At the end of the program, participants gave an oral presentation of their post-program thoughts on "Japan". The host families and Japanese students who joined the audience reported how impressed they were with not only the content but also participants’ Japanese language fluency.
To conclude, it seems that perhaps the greatest benefit of NUSTEP for participants was that they could communicate with participants from not only a variety of different countries but also students in Japan as well. The program seems to provide a valuable opportunity for students to make long-term relations. According to one participant, “I became proficient in Japanese even though the program was a short-term.” Another reported, “I want to study at the graduate school of Nagoya University in the future.” This is only the beginning of NUSTEP – we intend to improve the program in the future so that it proves to be of even greater benefit to participants.
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