|
By Carey King
When teacher Masaki Ishida left Jackson County for his native
Japan last week, Cullowhee Valley School didn't tell him goodbye.
Instead, teachers and students bid him a sad sayonara.
After a year of hosting Ishida while he taught Japanese language
and culture at the school, Cullowhee Valley knew how to express
itself in Ishida's native tongue. To say arigato, or thank you,
children organized farewell celebrations in their classrooms,
and the PTA hosted an afternoon reception.
"These kids have acquired so many language skills,"
said Anne Loughlin, the teacher who established the exchange.
"It's a big loss to have him leave."
Japanese
teacher Masaki Ishida, who spent the past year at Cullowhee Valley
School, stands in the kitchen of his hosts, Brad and Danell Moses.
Ishida, who taught the Moses' daughters, Sabine and Jade, at CVS,
returned to Japan this past weekend.
Ishida first came to Cullowhee a year ago through
the International Internship Program, a Tokyo-based organization
that places Japanese citizens in American schools. After working
as a chemical engineer for 10 years, 34-year-old Ishida wanted
the opportunity to hone his English skills and experience American
culture.
Since Cullowhee Valley emphasizes the importance of global education,
it was a good match for Ishida. The school annually stages an
International Day celebration and adopted a sister school in Japan
several years ago.
Loughlin, who was born in Ireland and has taught around the world,
is familiar with Japanese culture, as she spent two weeks there
with a group of Western North Carolina teachers in a teacher exchange
three years ago.
In Ishida's weekly classes, "We learned a new word each week,"
said fourth-grader Courtney Clapper.
"Konnichiwa is 'hello.'"
Teachers
and administrators at Cullowhee Valley School included Ishida
"on every trip that went out of the school," said teacher
Anne Loughlin. Here, Ishida and others from the school visit the
N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher on North Carolina's Outer Banks.
"We also got to make lots of origami. Most
I can do but some are really hard, especially the swan,"
said Clapper.
"Sometimes we watched Japanese movies in English," added
fourth-grader Adam Philyaw.
"And we learned to count to ten," said classmate Connor
Davis.
Eighth-grader Daniel Riddell especially enjoyed learning words
beyond simple Japanese greetings. "We learned how to say
'chicken wing.' That's tawasaki," he said.
On the other side of the exchange, Ishida's understanding of the
United States grew by leaps and bounds.
Allowed only to select the country he wanted to visit, Ishida's
assignment to North Carolina came as a surprise.
"I asked, where is North Carolina? Is it east? Is it west?
I couldn't recognize where it host him. Loughlin sent out a memo
with every student, and more families volunteered than she could
accept. Thus, over the course of the year, Ishida had the opportunity
to experience America through the eyes of three local families.
First, he stayed with Jeff and Penny Grimes, whose children Joshua,
Jeremy and Jason were students at the school. Next he was hosted
by Lib Jicha, who teaches at Cullowhee Valley, her husband Jon,
and children Dylan and Amy. The last family to welcome Ishida
was Brad and Danell Moses, whose daughters Sabine and Jade are
eighth- and second-graders at the school.
"Masaki just blended with what we normally do," said
Lib Jicha. "He's flexible. He didn't need the kind of entertainment
that Americans need. (He doesn't like) loud and big groups."
"The biggest difference was that he doesn't watch a lot of
TV. That's Jade's and my favorite thing to do," Sabine Moses
said.
Instead, Ishida entertained himself on the computer and through
athletics. He played tennis, went lure fishing with Jon Jicha,
and practiced golf, which in the U.S. costs one-third the price
of playing in Japan. He also attended Dylan Jicha's hockey games.
"He's a good athlete. He was a whiz at the student-faculty
game. The students loved it," said Loughlin.
Another cultural difference Ishida and the host families discovered
was food. Considering that a typical Japanese breakfast consists
of fish, pickles, miso soup and rice, Ishida had some adjustments
to make.
"First, I ate grits. I asked, 'What is this? Glue?'"
Ishida said.
Eventually, Ishida learned to like Special K cereal, which is
made from rice. And, he added, "Fried okra tastes good."
During the exchange, Ishida and his hosts also found their understandings
of space and cleanliness to be different.
"The biggest adjustment for Masaki was dogs," said Jicha.
"It's very much against Japanese culture to allow dogs in
the house," Loughlin added.
During Ishida's stay in the States, however, the families' dogs
loved to play with him. "All animals love Mr. Ishida,"
Moses said.
Additionally, while the Japanese always remove their shoes before
entering a home, Jicha said her family is not in the same habit.
"Whether or not we take off our shoes depends on how dirty
they are," she said.
Ishida said it was a big change to have to wear shoes all day.
"(In America) I wear slippers in the house," he said.
The host families especially enjoyed showing Ishida parts of America
beyond WNC. He vacationed with them in Florida and South Carolina,
and also traveled with Cullowhee Valley students on field trips
to Raleigh, the Outer Banks and Space Camp in Alabama.
"We made every effort to include him on every trip that went
out of the school," Loughlin said.
"I thought that was especially important, since we are in
a rural area," added Jicha.
When Ishida returns to Japan, he has many career options open
to him. He could return to work at the chemical company or take
over his family's canteloupe and muskmelon business.
"If possible, I will teach in Japan,' he said. "I like
children. It is interesting watching them learn new things."
Teachers and students at Cullowhee Valley affirm Ishida's impact
on at the school.
"Kids really liked him. They loved to say hello to him as
we walked into school in the mornings. Sometimes they'd say hello
in Japanese," said Jicha.
Eighth-grader LeNay Shular said she found Ishida's class "useful
and resourceful" and hopes students will have the opportunity
for more cultural exchange in the future. Shular said she was
especially appreciative of the Japanese program since the elementary
school Spanish program no longer exists.
"We used to get Spanish in the younger grades," she
said. "Now, there is more Spanish in the environment, but
we don't have those classes anymore."
Loughlin said that Cullowhee Valley probably won't get another
international teacher this year. "It's not part of the (state's)
educational plan," she said.
But, she says, Cullowhee Valley's faculty and administrators are
intent on continuing to provide international experiences for
its students. Four teachers, including Loughlin, sit on the school's
Global Education Committee, charged with integrating non-English-speaking
students into the community and "helping all students acquire
the skills and attitudes that will enable them to live and work
effectively in a globally interdependent world."
"We can't sit around and wait for the state to take action,
because there's no money," Loughlin said. "It's particularly
important with the increasing wave of immigrants. Our kids are
going to need Spanish skills. And our non-English-speaking students
can't make progress until their parents learn English."
The committee hopes to start a language program and an ESL class
after school, possibly funded with grant money.
Meanwhile, teachers and students plan to keep in touch with Ishida
through e-mail. Loughlin is also excited by the possibilities
the Internet offers for global interconnectedness.
She expects Ishida will read this story online and hopes he will
use The Sylva Herald Web site to stay in touch with events in
Cullowhee.
"On all my global travels, I always check The Sylva Herald
online to see what's going on in Jackson County," Loughlin
said.
|
