Name: Akihiro Murayama   

Year: 1996   

      

                                                                                                                

     I started to learn English when I was 11 years old, that was before I entered the Junior High School. I used to go to cram school,  where I learned English. For many people, a cram school is the place to study, but for me it was the place to enjoy English. I think if I did not meet my first English teacher, Mr. Kawai, I would not be here, for he taught me how to enjoy English. He never gave us lectures. We only played some English games in which I learned quite a few words. So when I was in  JHS and HS, I did not feel that I was studying English, but I felt that I was playing games. When I was in 10th grade I went to the States for one month. There I learned how they lived, and how they spoke English. It could not be said that we did understand each other well. Since they spoke too fast for me using difficult words and my pronunciation was so terrible at that time, they could not understand me. But I realized that we were communicating. I realized that it is not so important to speak correctly with perfect pronunciation. But I thought it is better to speak correctly to communicate smoothly. So I decided to enter an English conversation school in Japan. I enjoyed learning English so hard. There I made friends with some American friends and I often ate out with them.

     Just after coming back to Japan, I checked some universities in a book to find a suitable one for me to study English. And I found the one. I got a goal and that encouraged me to go toward it. Before I came to university, I expected that there were a lot of English teachers and that they would teach us almost man to man style till we speak English very well. But reality is not as I expected. But it is better than my expectation for I realized that it is much more important to learn how to enjoy learning English. Our goals may be far away and it might take us a long time to get there. To get through the long way, we need to know how to enjoy it. If we do not know it, we may feel that the way is longer than it really is. So in that sense I am very satisfied with this freshmen year.

     I was really surprised that there were quite a few women in my class. I first felt very uncomfortable, but now I made friends with all of them and I feel so comfortable. I learned how to treat a lady in class. What I was surprised at the most was my teacher's class. In my past school days, almost no teacher taught us the way he does. I have regarded  English as a game to play, and so does he. What we have done in his class was fun to do, and it really helped us to learn that English is fun to speak. Who has ever taught me the way he does?

     I started to learn English more from my ears than I ever did. I like to listen to English music and I have kept listening to music tapes since JHS, but I never had conversation materials as we did in LL class. Such tapes are very useful to learn English, though some of them bored me to death. And I often check the meanings in the dictionary because my writing teacher, Mr. Aoyagi, is very careful about meaning and usage. That kind of attitude is necessary in a sense as well. So I struggle with my dictionary for his report.

     Through this freshman year, I liked three things. The first one is  shadowing. It really helped me remember what we did in class and I recommend it to everyone. The second one is making a story using vocabulary. This also helped me to remember a lot of words. The last one is the environment in my class. No one was willing to use Japanese. I was in the environment where I can enjoy speaking English so much. This encouraged me to speak English a lot. Between a corridor and my teacher’s room, there is an invisible border for me.

     For my next three years at university, I want to improve my  listening comprehension and increase the amount of vocabulary which I can use in a conversation. So I will practice listening more than this year till I get a high score on TOEFL. I think I will study abroad, but I have not decided yet. I have been wanting to be an interpreter since my HS days.

     I talked about it with Mr. Aoyagi and he recommended that I should study not only English, but also a lot of things so that I can take part in an active part in any kind of world. I was very interested in biology and I still keep studying it. But it is just not enough. I think I should have an extensive knowledge. So I may stay in Japan. Or if my English progresses so quickly and if I can understand almost everything in English, I will go abroad to have more knowledge. I will take TOEFL tests so that it would not be too late if I changed my mind or if my English progressed so quickly. And one more reason, to test myself. I want to know where I am now, because to know it would help me to learn more. If I am in a low or high, it does not matter. A test cannot evaluate me but I think it would help to encourage me to learn.

     Looking over this year, I first think that one year has passed so quickly. If it is possible for me to go back to the first day at university, I would think seriously what this year would mean to me. As I mentioned, time passes so quickly, we only have 4 years here and I have finished one. What I want to say is to use time wisely. I think I should have used time more wisely and usefully. It was the first time for me to have two months vacation in the summer. I was at a loss what to do during that long vacation. Please find what you want to do and do not spend meaningless time.     About classes, it is just not wise to be late for class. Be on time. English students will take LL test 4 times and sometimes you may feel tired,but just keep studying. Enjoy your classes.