Name: Akiko Miwa

Year: 1997

 

 

     If I hadn't had my experiences of living abroad for four years, I would not have chosen to study English after graduating from HS. Many things I've absorbed during those years lead me to like English, and made me want to make the best use of it in my future.

     I was nine years old when I was taken to Canada with my family. The reason for us to live there was that my father, who works at Toyota motors, was transferred there by the company. At first, I hardly could speak English, and so before my first day of going to the public school, my mind was full of anxiety and worry. How can I become friends with Canadians without being able to speak their language? However, when I think back, all those uneasy feelings were unnecessary. Actually, they completely disappeared on my first day of school. All students and teachers welcomed me with cheer and kindness, that every night, I couldn't wait to go to school the next morning.

     Maybe it was because my younger sister and I were the first Japanese to enter that school and were attracting their attention, that they were being so honorable to us. But we knew it was more than their curiosities, it was their character, to welcome strangers without prejudice. Gestures and expressions were enough for us young children to get together and to enjoy, to communicate and to understand. I was surrounded by a whole bunch of friends everyday, whether during the class, break, and after school.

     In school, I knew there was a class called ESL (English as second language). I would be separated from the regular class and study alone with a teacher at my level and speed. However, my teacher did not put me in ESL. Instead, she gave me textbooks that students in ESL would use and let me work on it during the class. She assumed it would be better for me to be together with my classmates and get help from them when needed. With great cooperation of my friends and teachers,(and also with my effort),gradually my English improved. It didn't take so many years until English took a big part in my life. In fact, after a few years, I had no trouble participating in regular classes.

     As it was quite natural for me to master English by living in a English speaking country, it was also natural to lose it by my returning to Japan. I came back in grade eight and entered a public JHS. Obviously, I couldn't make use of my English.  Nor had I any chance to speak it in my general life. I could not help myself from feeling that I was losing it because words and phrases wouldn't come up to my head naturally. After one and a half years of JHS, I spent my HS years in Nanzan international HS. There, most students had experiences living abroad and many of them spoke fluent English. We had a lot of English classes compared to regular HSs, with native English speaking teachers. It helped me to keep my English, by going to the school which had an English environment. Yet I doubt my skills and ability in them improved. I wasn't aggressive in taking the opportunities to speak English inside and outside the classes. Especially during the last year of school, I concentrated on grammar and vocabulary, so that I could pass the entrance exams for universities.

     Fortunately, I was able to enter this school which was my first choice. I hoped and supposed that studying and learning English in Nanzan would bring back my English that I had been losing. However, to be honest, it was different to what I had believed. During the first few months in school, although I realized my classmates' great improvements, I couldn't feel that of mine. How depressed I was! The reason for it was quite obvious. In order to improve, they joined up for club activities in which they'd communicate with native English speakers, became friends with exchanged students, or made some kind of efforts that would lead to their progress. On the other hand, I was just waiting for my chances to come, passively. However, by going through Oral communication classes, I began to see that it all depends on myself, and that it was about time for me to change.

     I was taught to think positively, to be aggressive, to have a goal in myself, to search and to take chances, etc. Since then, I think I began to move forward. I use shadowing when I listen to foreign music, movies and talk by foreigners. I now write more frequently to my Canadian friends. Also, I became friends with foreigners in this area.

     Little by little, I can feel that English is coming into my environment. I'm sure there are several more ways that I could  improve my English. As long as I have a positive attitude in learning, I can absorb more and more.