Japanese exchange program brings 42 students to Bloomington North
For two weeks in April, 42 students from Yamate Gakuin High School in Yokohama, Japan, along with three chaperones spent time in Bloomington, shadowing at Bloomington High School North. Since 1969, the Japanese school has been conducting homestay programs in Canada and the United States for high school students. Every year, in mid-April, each first-year homeroom goes on a two-week homestay trip to a city in the U.S. or Canada; other groups this year have traveled to other cities in Indiana including Fort Wayne and Wabash.
While in Bloomington, the students experienced American culture and attended various events and field trips, one to Indianapolis and another exploring the campus of Indiana University, both funded by Yamate Gakuin. While in Indianapolis, the group visited the Motor Speedway Museum, toured Lucas Oil Stadium and experienced behind the scenes of each venue. One of the teacher chaperones from North, Troy Cockrum, said, “The students really liked the race car simulators, some were in the gift shop for a long time. We were hoping we would get to see some of Takuma Sato’s stuff at the Speedway, a past winner, but his gear is all kept in Japan. They seemed to enjoy eating at the restaurant even though they were overwhelmed by the menu and the portion sizes.”
He went on the field trip with the group to Indianapolis along with fellow North colleague Dani Ansaldo, who was also part of the campus trip. At Indiana University, they visited the historic Lilly Library as well as getting to see what the Hoosiers basketball and football arenas offer, Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall and Memorial Stadium.
North students ‘buddy’ up with Japanese students
At North, the host students took the Japanese students around with them to class to see their daily routine, and went on other trips outside of school with their “buddy” — to the mall and bowling, for example. The hosting families prepared for weeks before the foreign students arrived, and many of these American students will be going to Japan in July for the other half of the program when their summer break will have just started.
The students from Yamate Gakuin also experienced events at North, including the HadesTown production by the theater class as well as the Northstock Music Festival. Most notably, the exchange students organized and hosted a Japanese Culture Night in the school’s Media Center.
Atsuho Amakasu, a Yamate student, said, “One difference is there aren’t as many classes as there are at North. You also get to choose more of a variety of classes here. It’s been nice because Japan has a lot of tall buildings, more than here, so you can see nature and the skyline is clear.”
Another student, Sota Kitagawa, pointed out, “At the school we go to, the teacher moves from class to class and the students stay in their homeroom. Another difference is the portions of the food are bigger here. I don’t have to buy as many burgers at McDonald’s, for example.”
Exchanging cultural perspectives
On the evening of the Culture Night in the North gymnasium, the travelers from Japan set up different booths for the majority of the event, giving a glimpse into different parts of their culture including origami, calligraphy, traditional clothing, and games. There was also a judo demonstration in which a North student, senior Cas Crevello, did a Judo match with a Yamate student, Sota Kitagawa, who has a black belt, and won two of three matches. At the end, they performed a choreographed song and dance performance as the finale.
North sophomore Nathan Witkemper, who hosted a Japanese student for two weeks, said, “At first he was timid and kind of kept to himself, but once he opened himself up more and got used to everything, it made for a very memorable time for me.”
The students from Japan also got to experience what Japanese class in America would be like, as the classes taught by Michiko Owaki bonded in different activities by playing games, sharing experiences, similarities, and hobbies.
Michiko Owaki, the only Japanese teacher at North, organized the entire program from start to finish and said, “Seeing the Japanese students and American students communicate with each other and having fun together despite all the language barriers, I felt such a sense of joy and pride, and feel hopeful for the future of language classes at schools. Even if AI translation is really becoming ubiquitous, AI translation cannot beat real in-person communication and genuine desire to understand each other through your own words.”
Nash Henry is The Herald-Times high school correspondent at Bloomington North.
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