The GP committee is the place where I can share my ideas with other students and create the form of our thoughts. The GP program gave me many wonderful experiences which I cannot get from classroom activities. The GP program changed me a lot.

When the GP committee was established, I was in the end of the semester as a freshman. I decided to participate in this GP committee immediately because I wanted to do something big as a student of Eibei students. However, I was shy and I couldn’t speak English at all. It was really difficult for me to speak up my ideas in English. I was so depressed and I couldn’t take any actions actively. All I could do was just attend the meetings and help with the preparation for events and lectures. However, I felt bitterly disappointed not to be able to say what I am thinking in English. I really wanted to be able to say own opinion in English. So, I made up my mind to practice speaking English when I became a sophomore. I started speaking English in the classroom proactively, to share my opinions with classmates. In those days, I couldn’t attend GP meeting so much. However, for me, the final purpose of GP activities was to speak up my thoughts in English. It took almost a year to be able to say what I think in English.

When I became a junior, I was able to say my ideas in GP activities. It was still difficult to express my idea in English effectively, but I gradually notice that trying to share ideas was the most important thing even if I spoke really bad English. I also noticed that I need to have courage to say my thoughts in English in front of many people. I felt like speaking English in front of many people. “Why not try to do that?” I thought.

My first challenge was the airline lecture. I did a 5 minute presentation as an introduction for the airline lecture in front of audience. I felt really nervous and I didn’t think I could do it. However, I could do the presentation. This presentation was quite small one, but I gradually had confidence in my English skills and felt that I can do something big as an Eibei student.

The biggest challenge for me was the Hawaii-Nanzan Short Exchange Program. This project was kind of a big challenge because I’ve never been to a foreign country and taken part in a big project like this. However, I felt I can change a lot through this big project somehow. Through this project, I learned and noticed many things and I grew up. We planned many events through this project. This was the first time we plan events from the beginning to the end though professors still helped us a lot. When we were planning events in this project, I thought that putting all ideas together was not so easy but wonderful ideas were made by mixing up all ideas.

I learned a lot from the events which we planned and carried out. One of the most interesting plans we made was the KZOO radio show. Practically, I learned how to compose a program, make the contents of radio show and how to make music and edit them. At the same time, I learned the power of knowing English. We chose Tohoku earthquake as one of the main contents of the radio show and we did some interviews and research for it. Through this we learned how people all over the world helped us through English. Also, we can thank people all over the world for their help and let them know how the present situation is through English. I thought that knowing other languages itself gave us opportunities to tell what we Japanese students feel and think. The biggest event of this project was the Joint Presentation. This was the most difficult event for me. The first difficulty was to make friends with Hawaii students. I had never gone abroad and I had to experience home stay on the first day I met my group member of Hawaii. That was the hardest day in Hawaii though I could make friends with Hawaii students easily. The second difficulty was to make the Joint Presentation itself. It was really hard for me to tell what I thought in English accurately and effectively. I learned how overseas student thought and I felt also the cultural differences between Japan and America. I felt that we always had cultural differences when we communicated with foreign people. However, I also thought that we can know about what Japan is like through these cultural differences. It was really hard to create one big presentation by overcoming the cultural differences, but it made me think about what Japan is like.

The Reflection Presentation was the very event that I accomplished my goal. In some way, this presentation was the most challenging presentation. I did do my best for this presentation because I wanted to tell other people what I learned through this HN-project and share my thoughts with the audience. I could do my presentation in front of an audience without reading an English script. To do a presentation with my own words in English was kind of my dream. When I did it, I was so impressed and felt a sense of accomplishment I’ve never experienced. That was the most memorable moment.

Through GP activities, I learned English gives us the opportunities to learn about the world and express myself and to know how Japan is at the same time. The possibility that we have is expanded by knowing English. However, I also thought that English is just one of the tools which we use to know other’s ideas and tell our thoughts. Only knowing English does not make sense. To improve our thoughts in daily life is the most important. To know the process how to make plans and carry out is also important to tell our thoughts effectively. Based on them, we can use English and express our ideas and thoughts all over the world.

I faced lots of difficulties in GP activities. However, each difficulty improves me little by little and made me strong. I believe that. The GP Project will finish, but this is just the beginning for me. The experiences which I had through GP activities are my treasure. I want to continue to be a person who can have my own ideas and tell them through English.

by Shizuka K.