On April 26, 2019, the students who returned from their spring vacation visit to the Legnani School in Italy had a reporting session where they gave a presentation about their experiences and surveys.
The eleven students who visited Legnani made presentations about their two-week stay in Italy. They spoke about the classes they participated in, the on-site research project they conducted, and about their cultural exchanges.
During their time in Italy, our students conducted a research project based on their assigned tasks.
Before leaving Japan, our students made questionnaires and surveys about various topics such as tourism, religion, languages, and future occupations which they conducted firstly in Japan and then again while they were in Legnani.
The students shared their discoveries about the differences in Italian and Japanese cultures during their presentations. They also spoke about what touched them the most about this learning experience.
Our participants hope to share what they learned from this program and deepen mutual learning.
[Feedback from students] (partial excerpts)
・ I am not very good at English and I was scared and hesitant to talk to foreigners, but I learned that the most important thing is the feelings and attitude we convey to other people. If a positive image is transmitted, the language barrier will not prevent you from deepening relationships. I also realized that I need English skills to become more involved outside of Japan.
・ I learned more and more Italian every day while I stayed in Legnani, and I was very happy to talk to my family, friends, and all the Italians I meet during my stay. Using Italian and English was nice, but I could also communicate in many other ways too, such as by smiling, using my facial expressions, gestures, and music.
・ I think it is very important to learn and understand Italian and other cultures before traveling. I hope to learn more about other cultures in the future.
・ I focused on exchanges in English, but my partner and I also taught Italian and Japanese to each other, and I could deepen my understanding of English by actually using it in real life.
