iroki Hashimoto, a student from Hiroshima University in Japan, is completing his three-week student teaching requirements at Elizabethtown College.
Dr. Nobuaki Takahashi, assistant professor of Japanese, will be supervising Hashimoto as he progresses through his requirements. Using Takahashi as a translator, Hashimoto said, “The student-teacher relationship is much closer, especially here at Etown. I attend Hiroshima University, where the class sizes are in the hundreds and there isn’t much interaction with other students or the professor.” Hashimoto started observing Takahashi’s classes on Monday, March 10, and he is currently working on his lesson plans for the second half of his time at the College.
Japanese language courses are held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Hashimoto provides assistance in the classroom as well as with extracurricular activities, such as weekly Japan Club meetings and Japanese language tables. Takahashi encourages Hashimoto to try anything that he thinks will help the students improve their language skills. The Japan Club held a calligraphy workshop on Tuesday, March 11, which was led by Hashimoto. Hashimoto will also have the opportunity to tutor those students who are in need of extra practice. Takahashi hopes to learn from Hashimoto through his supervising process.
In spring 2013, Dr. Yukiko Hatasa contacted Takahashi. Hatasa is a professor at Hiroshima University, which is well-known for its foreign language education and Japanese language education and pedagogy program.
Hatasa was Takahashi’s thesis and dissertation supervisor for both of his graduate degrees.
Hatasa asked Takahashi if he was interested in accepting a student teacher for three weeks as part of the practicum. Takahashi was very honored to receive the request, and after he further discussed the opportunity with Provost and Senior Vice President Dr. Susan Traverso, Dean of Faculty Dr. E. Fletcher McClellan and Associate Professor of Spanish Dr. Monstserrat Linares-Farras, he agreed to accept a student teacher.
Takahashi is originally from Japan and has experience supervising other individuals specializing in Japanese. In the past, he supervised instructors who were at a graduate level or full-time instructor level at his former institutions. “What is exciting about this opportunity for me is that Mr. Hashimoto is an undergraduate student who studies to be a teacher of Japanese. Obviously, he is a young man with a strong motivation to work in the field of Japanese language education by traveling abroad for student teaching,” Takahashi said.
Takahashi believes that having multiple teachers enables students to interact with many forms of communication. He also thinks that being exposed to a variety of teaching styles is also good for the students. “Although I believe I have a great academic and professional relationship with my students, it is always exciting for the students to have an opportunity to interact with other native speakers,” Takahashi said. Takahashi has noticed through casual conversations that Hashimoto has been building up a good relationship with the Japanese students so far.
In class, Hashimoto does calligraphy, so Takahashi lets him do the introduction and practice characters while he teaches. Hashimoto also participates in pair or group work during class but later will be in charge of teaching the class on his own. Japanese courses incorporate these four skills into their curriculum: speaking, listening, reading and writing, as well as communicative skills, such as nonverbal and linguistic issues and cultural components. Many class activities are focused on speaking and listening, and the reading and writing components are covered by homework assignments.
“My listening skills have improved in English. In Japan, they learn English from the book. Here, I am learning what to say and how to say it more appropriately and in a conversational tone. I’m communicating better and making my message clearer,” Hashimoto said.
Hashimoto only has to complete student teaching at one university. Hiroshima University sends student teachers all over the world. Another institution in the US is Purdue University. Other countries include Australia, England and Indonesia.
After schooling, Hashimoto is not determined to teach in the United States. He is interested in Japan or other Asian countries, Europe or any countries that offer Japanese. “I really want to create the best lesson materials and atmosphere for the three classes I will be teaching at the end of my time here. I have been fluently communicating with Etown students in Japan, but I am more interested in learning to fluently communicate in English with them since there may be a time in my life in which I will have to do so,” Hashimoto said. The modern languages department hopes to continue this as an annual relationship with Hiroshima University, and Takahashi will continue to train one student teacher every spring semester.
