Name: Karin Miyake

Year: 1997

 

     I clearly remember the time I began learning English. I was 12 years old, and had just entered JHS. I was very glad to get a new English textbook because I had been looking forward to studying English since I was an elementary school child. I can remember the excitement at that time clearly even now. My English teacher spoke very fluent English. I was surprised to know that even Japanese could speak such a fluent English. Furthermore, her class was always very enjoyable. She taught us English that was easy to understand. I was always looking forward to her class. I was deeply impressed by her, and I had come to like English more and more. English became my favorite subject. I wanted to speak English like her so I studied hard. I think from my experience that whether we have come to like English or dislike   it depends on the teacher of JHS in some degree because most of us touch English for the first time in JHS. If the teacher teaches us English in an enjoyable way, like singing songs or having a conversation with partners, we will come to like it. If the teacher teaches in a boring way, like just reading a textbook or stressing the grammar, we can not have interest in English.

     I entered the HS that gave priority to English. We had an English conversation class by foreign teachers. We watched foreign movies, listened to English songs, or made a speech in English. The teachers used only English, so this class was a good training not only speaking, but also hearing.

     I had been studying English with great enjoyment through JHS and HS, and I had been thinking that I wanted to get a job that is related to English. So I chose to study English in this university. But I did not realize I had been studying English for an examination only before I entered this university.

     I was shocked in OC class. I felt a big difference between the returnees and me. Furthermore, writing class was very difficult for me. I could not write what I wanted to express in a suitable English. I had learned to solve the questions through JHS and HS, but not been us writing my own thinking. I felt a sense of failure in English for the first time.

     There’s difficulty, but I can feel progress little by little. For example, I am a repeater now in the freshman LL class. Now I can really understand the materials more easily than when I was a freshman. It was much harder and I got very tired the first year. This year is more interesting and I can do it, although it is almost the same.

     Going abroad also became a good experience for me. I went to America when I was a freshman. I stayed at an American woman’s home for one month. I talked with her about what happened every day. It was very difficult for me to make myself understood in English, but she listened to my poor English gently and corrected the mistakes. I was greatly shocked that even the very young children spoke English so fast that I could not understand completely. But my host mother spoke slowly for me, so I could understand what she was saying. I always had to speak only English, so it was very useful for my English study.

     There are many foreign students in Nanzan, we should take advantage of such a favorable environment. OC and LL classes are also very useful. We have no classes to speak or hear English when we become a junior, so these classes are the only good opportunity for me to speak and hear English. I did not realize the importance of these classes when I was a freshman. I think we need to work hard in these classes and speak as much as possible. I keenly feel it.