Emily's reflections on her stay 2

My second week was spent at a nearby junior high school. I went with fellow Newman student, Jaz, and we joined
many different classes during our time there. To start the week, we introduced ourselves in a whole school assembly
and we were both surprised at the large number of students, all sitting politely. In England, perhaps it would not be
so disciplined. Here are some images from the classroom:


Lessons were a mixture of presentations from us in English, about England, schools, and ourselves, and observations
of teaching practice in Japanese schools. This week was the first time I experienced a Japanese school lunch, which
I found to be very different to English school lunches. In England, children can either bring food from home, or choose
to buy something at the school. In Japan, everyone eats together, and they all eat the same food. Another difference
I observed was that, after eating, students will all help to clean for a set period of time. In England, this doesn't happen
and, if we tried to introduce cleaning to English schools, I feel that there may be some complaints. I joined in with cleaning
and found it to be quite fun, especially when I was able to talk to the students while I worked.

I was able to observe classes of different ages and subjects during my time at the school, and was also able to see the range
of after-school clubs and activities which run each week. The number of different clubs surprised me as, in England, school clubs
are not seen as so important, compared to Japan.
 

On my last day, the class I had spent the most time with held a farewell party for me which was a lovely surprise.
I received a card from all the students and the homeroom teacher which I will treasure. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed
my time at this school and wish to go back in the future to visit again.

Week three was spent at a local elementary school. I mostly stayed in one class which allowed me to get to know the pupils
a little more and converse with them more than if I was moving to different classes. I observed many lessons and different subjects,
and was able to give three presentations about England and English schools. Although language was a little more difficult with
younger pupils, my mixture of English, Japanese and actions helped me to complete the week. Again, I ate school lunch and
cleaned with the class, different to English schools, and I also saw some club activities. In England, club activities are even more
rare in primary schools, with only a few running once a week. Another difference I found was that children at the elementary school
did not wear a school uniform. English primary schools require a school uniform from age four. Even though I mainly stayed with
one class, I did have the opportunity to observe a few other classes during their scheduled art lessons. At university, my specialism
is art and I found it to be very insightful to compare English art lessons with Japanese art lessons. I was surprised to find one lesson
where children were printing with paper and ink. This lesson was surprising because I had looked at the same activity at my university
during my first year. To find the same activity halfway across the world was a nice surprise. At the end of the week, there was another
farewell party where we played games, I received some origami flowers as a gift, and we took a class photograph together.
I will miss the school and its pupils but I hope to visit again in the future, if possible.

More on my stay soon!