Junten Junior High School / Senior High School

From July 20th to August 5th, 16 male and 7 female students (total 23 students) went to Brisbane, Australia. (PDF file report)
The students arrived on Saturday and they were allocated with their homestay families as soon as they arrived. The next day, that is Sunday, the students spend all day with their host-families.  They were all nervous but they checked the house rules of the families so that they can be a part of their families. For 15 days, the students had to use English, which was a little hard for them. 

On weekdays, students went to the local school “Cavendish Road State High School” and they studied Math and Science. One Buddy was assigned to each Junten student. The Buddies helped around the Junten students with their school activities and lives. 

At Cavendish Road State High School, students move classrooms according to the subject. The school has a huge property and the buildings were a little confusing, so it was hard for Junten students to find their ways to the classrooms. This was where Buddies were very helpful. They would wait Junten students to finish their classes, then take them to the appropriate classrooms. This was a great opportunity for Junten students to use English. 

	生徒が作成したポスター

This year, it seems Buddies were more friendly than the previous years. They tried to speak with Junten students so that the Junten students could get rid of fear of communicating in English Each student had chosen the classes they wanted to take, so each student had different schedules. Some students asked questions in English without hesitation, some students collaborated in science classes with Buddies. The experience was so great for the Junten students. 

For three days in the 2nd week, the Junten students went to Griffith University. They studied Criminal Science and did an aspirin synthetic experiment. Textbooks and guidances were all in English. The classes were all in English!  The experiment was done by a pair. There were teaching assistants who helped the experiments. It sure was a challenging content but Junten students had a rare opportunity to use scientific devices, tools or methods that they had never used before. 

In 17 days, there were two days that the students enjoyed sightseeing, but the rest of their time, they spend using English and studying. Junten faculty members went there with the students, but we spend little time with them. Therefore, the Junten students had to be independent, spent time with the local students, Buddies and host-families. There must have been some challenges.  Saying good bye to their host-families was a very emotional moment for the students but they built a new friendship that will continue on even after they returned to Japan. 

筆：髙野幸子