Assignment #8: Japan Today

I chose the article about winter warmers to keep the chill away. In this article, many items, foods and drinks were introduced. There was also a picture of the "kairo". As for drinks, “tamagozake” was introduced as  Japanese method which people use when they have a cold, however, I didn't even know it. I'm ashamed that I didn't know it and it is sad thing that Japanese traditional cultures are declining. So, although this article was about items to keep warm, after reading this I felt that I want to know more about Japane traditional cultures.

Assignment #7: Fall and Winter

I don't like the cold weather, but I like this time of year. I feel really good. I love the cold nights. It's really cold at night, but cold nights always remind me of the days I studied hard to pass the exams for this university and the high school. Then I studied really hard at cram school until late. It was really cold when I was on my way to home at nigh, however, the sky with shining stars was amazing. I could always see Orion. So when I see starlight, I always remember  the days I studied hard and I'm encouraged. This is how I feel during the cold days. I really like it.

Assignment #6: TED

I watched Renny Gleeson's video. In the video, he tells us how to get on with our mobile phones. Recently, people always face the screen of the mobile phone and don't talk with people in front of them, and he shows us various tipes of cheating. I often do the same thing. In his opinion, using phone while talking with people makes frontal clash. I agree with him. It makes people in front me feel boring and sometimes it makes misunderstanding. Face to face communication is the most important thing.

Assignment #5: Aki Ra

This video made me a little sad. I didn't know about it at all. I've learned about the land mine issues and it still exists. But recently I'm really busy and I forgot about the problem. I'm really ashamed now. The most surprising thing is that Aki Ra, who is now trying to clear mines, had actually planted mines during the war, too. From this fact, I thought that if we did bad things, we can change. Now, the safety issue that I would like to change is the North Korea's nuclear weapons issues. I don't think they are doing the good thing. So are other countries in the world, I think. I want North Korea to realize that they are doing bad things, and then fix it.

Success: What Does it Take?

From Richard St. John's story, we can learn that "success isn't a one-way street, but a continuous  journey." He thought that success was one-way street, and he stopped trying hard when he reach success. Then, he failed. He learned that the important thing is not only how he achieves success, but how he sustains it. I was impressed by his story because I had an experience like his. When I was a high school student, I studied hard to pass the entrance exam of KGU, and I passed! My English skills clearly improved then, however, I thought, "I'm good enough", like him. And I stopped studying, and finally, my TOEFL score got worse. Then I realized like him, the important thing is to keep trying hard. Now, I'm studying for TOEFL test. Now I know what is important for success. I'll try hard, and I want to achieve success again.

Assignment #3: Viral Videos

I watched all of the examples of viral videos, and I found some common features among them. First, all of them made me smile. The movies about babies were so cute, and the music video was funny. They were different kind of movies, but they all made me feel good after I watched. Second, they were really catchy. They all were short  movies, and I could understand them even it was the first time that I saw the movies. And languages which are spoken in the videos are not important. I'm Japanese and I couldn't understand Korean at all, but I could enjoy Korean movie too. So I think viral movies have something that attract us except words.

Assignment #2: Images

I chose a photo, named "Messagr for Japan". In this picture, a girl is taking part in an anti-Japan protest in Taipei. Because of Senkaku-problem, a lot of Chinese people hate Japanese now. My friends said that her father had to get off  the taxi in China because he was Japanese. And everyday I hear the news like this on TV, and it's always worse, for example, a bilding of a Japane company was broken, and so on. However, a few days ago I talked about this problem with my friend who is Chinise, and my way of thinking toward it was changed. His grandparents are in China, so he go back to China every year. He've lived in Japan for fifteen years and he is mostly Japanese, but people in China are really kind to him. He said, "People now hurting Japanese are just one part of people in China." And I don't think the girl on this picture had the massage as her will. Probably an adult told her to do so. Therefore, I think Japanese people shouldn't hate all Chinise people.

Assignment #1: Then and Now

This film taught me a lot of things that I didn't know. The most surprising thing I learned from this film is about suicide. By watching news programs on TV, I knew that many people commit suicide after the tsunami. However, I didn't know how high the number is. In this film, a man said, "In Ishinomaki, ten people commit suicide a month. That's one person every three days." I was surprised at the number. I think one person every three days is too many. Even though they survived from the tsunami, they dicided to die. I can't imagine how hard the life after the tsunami was. I think I have to know more how people felt then.

Assignment #9: How's it Going?

I'm satisfied with my I university life at KGU. Before I entered KGU, I wanted to have a good time with my friend, and also study hard. My life is like that now. As I heard before I came here, I have to do a lot of homeworks and SIS is really "kakokusai". I have written four reports, and yesterday I wrote one of them. Although homeworkers are really hard, I can feel the sence of accomplishment. I think the harder they are, the more sence of it I can feel. And it's stronger when I try hard with my friends. The days I have to take exams are coming. I'm going to try hard with my friends.

Assignment #8: Maturity and Adulthood

I don't feel I am an adult. I feel like I am about fifteen years old. I can't believe that I am eighteen years old now. What is surpurising is that, I can marry! I can't believe. I think university students are not adult. They are childish. Of course there are grown-up students, but I think almost all students are not grown-up. Most of the students pay for the school expenses with their parents' money, and there are also many students who don't have their part-time jobs. Besides the problems about money, I think there are the other problems to consider university students to be adults. Some students often skip classes and don't study well. I think university students should be more responsibly.

Assignment #7: Regret

When I was in the first or second grade in my elementary school, I went to dance school. I love Japanese idle groups named "morning-musume" and "mini-moni" then, and the dance school said that "Let's dance like mini-moni!" That's why I started to go to the dance school haha. When I was in the third grade, I had to move to Hiroshima because of my father's work. Then I've been to the dance school for only one or two years, and I wanted to keep going. But I was afraid to go to the new one. So I ended up dancing. When I was in the junior high school and high school, I did same thing. I was afraid. But I always wanted to start to go to dance school. Now, I'm not what I used to be. I belong to a dance circle! Because of my really short dancing experience, I can't dance well. But I'll try hard and victry to my regret.

Assignment #6: JapanToday.com

I read the article about "Tokyo's 2020 Olympic". It says that Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said that Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games will be a symbol of Japan's recovery from the earthquake and tunami that happened last year, and Japanese Olympic Committee President and 2020 bid leader Tsunekazu Takeda also appealed to stage the Olympics in 2020 in Tokyo. I agree with the ideas that they have. I think we can appeal Japan's recovery and safety. After the earthquake and the accident at a nuclear power plant, foreign people thought that whole Japan was exposed to radiation, and some events that was supposed to held in Japan were called off. Even now, some foreign people think so. So, staging Olympics in Tokyo will be the best chance to appeal the safety of Japan to the world. And I think Japan's recovery will encourage people all over the world, too.

Assignment #5: "No Reservations": A Show about Travel and Food

I watched the video about Vietnam. It all was in English, so it was a little difficult for me.. The day before yesterday, I talked about Vietnam food with my seniors at the cramming school where I am working as a teacher. At first, we just talked on this subject, "which restaurant shall we go?" and one of my them said that "I want to go to a restaurant where we can eat something we seldom eat like..Vietnam food!" But we all didn't know about Vietnam food well. I only knew about spring roll that is eaten in Vietnam. So it was the best timing I watched this video and it was really interesting for me. Until I saw the video, I didn't know even it is spicy! And I doubted that it is delicious, but it looks so! Now, I want to try Vietnam foods and know more about cultures in Vietnam.

Assignment #4: Being Bilingual - What does it mean?

Becoming bilingual... I think it is difficult for me. But I don't think that I can't. There are many bilingual students in SIS. Maybe, they all have been lived in foreign countries. And I have chance to go there next year! I think it is the best chance for me to become bilingual. So, I want to use the chance as much as I can. To do so,  I think I have to make extraordinary efforts. It is not enough just make great efforts in class. It's important to study in my house, for example, doing English Central, reading books written in English, and so on. I think the important thing is not only studying English but also having chance to use it! There are many foreign students in KGU, so I want to make a lot of friends from foreign countries. I think it will lead to improve my English skills! I think if I make extraordinary efforts, I can become bilingual. And I want to be. So, I'll try hard.

Assignment #3: About Success

I think Joachim de Posada wanted to tell us that the most important thing for success is self-discipline. I agree with him. I think self-discipline is really important. When I was in the third grade of high school, I studied really hard for my entrance exam. Since it was my last year of high school, I wanted to hang out with my friend and make a lot of good memories with my friends. But I had to study... I didn't go shopping, eat out with my friends, watch TV very often, and I studied. It was tough time for me,  but now I'm in the university where I wanted to go! I think that time made me what I am now. So I agree with him. Self-discipline is really important for success!

Assignment #2: About You, About Writing

I'm not good at writing.Even in Japanese,I'm not... I don't like summarizing in particular.As to writing in English,I think my problem is that I don't have a very large English vocabulary.And I tend to stop writing when I have something not clear.So writing essays takes me a lot of time.. I think it's not a good thing.George told us that the important thing is just writing!To improve my writing skills,I'll start by keeping writing without fear of failure:)And I'll enlarge my English vocabularies and of course,try hard in this writing class!

Before I entered kwansei gakuin university,I expected to make many Japanese and foreign friends. Now,I have a lot of Japanese friends,and they are so nice!They can switch themselves.I'm really fun when I talk with them,but during the class,they studies very hard.I'll enjoy university life and study hard with them! About foreign students,now I don't have chance to talk with them.I've heard that KGU holds some events like coffee hour,so I want to participate in them and make foreign friends!