NEWS

On Monday, February 5, 2018, Global Education Center Final Presentation Ceremony for Fall 2017 intakes was held in lecture room 13, at the School of General Education, Matsumoto Campus, Shinshu University.

Presentations were carried out by international exchange students who had completed their half- or full-year study abroad programs, short-term Japan Study Intensive Program students who had completed their half-year programs, and international students who had completed their half-year Intensive Japanese Language Course and planned to continue on to our undergraduate courses or to graduate school at Shinshu University. Presenters made use of the Japanese language skills they had acquired during their time at the University to give speeches on subjects that interested them, their hometowns, their academic specialties and other topics.

This ceremony featured 18 students from 10 countries, including Belgium, Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, China, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Nepal and Egypt.

Presentations were limited, and each presenter gave their speech a unique, individual touch as they pushed their skills to the limits. The speeches gave voice to each presenter's thoughts and feelings.

Beginner-level students offered impressive descriptions of basic, surface-level differences between Japan and their home countries, while advanced students delivered outstanding speeches incorporating vivid descriptions of their study abroad experiences and self-growth using fluent Japanese that captivated the audience. In addition, a few students presented difficult issues such as problems related to International relations and conflicts between different ethnic groups. The reason why these topics were chosen was because our international exchange students came from different parts of the world. The students' presentations were testaments to the challenges they had overcome and efforts they had made, and to the great strides they had made in Japanese language skills as well as in terms of personal growth.

Japanese students, tutors, Japanese language instructors and other members of the teaching staff, local citizens took active part by posing various questions to the presenting students. There were emotional moments, such as when the speeches prompted listeners to explode into uproarious laughter, or when students or questioners in the room could not continue because of their emotions.

Almost all students will return to their home country after completing their study programs at Shinshu University, and this important final presentation ceremony served to showcase the accomplishments they had achieved during their time in Japan. Also, this is great opportunities for Japanese students and other local citizens to understand the ideas and thoughts of our international students. The next Global Education Center Final Presentation Ceremony is scheduled in half a year later (Monday, August 6, 2018), and we are hoping that many people will attend that ceremony as well.