Unconventional Teaching

I was so surprised today by the progress I witnessed in my university students. I have watched an unbelievable transformation this semester. I remember the first class, when I had them up and mingling, how they all huddled in the back corner together, practically whispering. And then, on the odd chance that someone might understand them, they put their head into the text book while they whispered to insure that no one would ever hear them speaking English! You can imagine my amazement at the site today, when I looked up and suddenly realized my students were using body language and many weren't even holding their text books! The room was so noisy during the conversation times that I had to shout out to be heard to lead them into the next thing. "OK!" has become my token, round-em'-in phrase, and today I heard a student mimicking me in this- it made me smile : ) .

The approach to education and classroom management is vastly different in Japan than what I experienced as a student in the U.S. Here, students are taught to memorize information from text books and lectures given by professors. When they study, they simply read a book or section over and over and over. Those of you who know me can see what a stretch it would be for me to teach in such a way- and it just doesn't work for the subject matter of English conversation. So I am, what you might call, an "unconventional" teacher in this culture- playing games, music, encouraging my students to assume false identities of famous persons and engage one another in hypothetical dialogues! At first, it felt like I was teaching people how to be creative, then we worked on learning to enjoy ourselves, and now, finally, comes my end goal- to see the students grow in their own personal confidence and ability to use English in daily conversational situations. One student, who always sits stone-faced, actually smiled twice today!

It is a blessing to see students breaking the mold and experiencing a non-Japanese style of learning- and enjoying it! When I think about the obstacles to Christianity within this culture, such as conformity and anti-individualism, I feel hopeful in seeing these young people living outside of the cultural expectations- and I pray it will help them to live outside of them in other realms one day- like faith. Please join me in praying for them, that this freedom will carry over into other areas of their lives, and that they will find the freedom they need to seek truth and that in doing so, God will make himself known to them.