UNAIR NEWS – From September 5 to 18, 2024, the Japanese Language and Literature Program of Universitas Airlangga’s (UNAIR) Faculty of Humanities (FIB) hosted five female students from Shizuoka University of Art and Culture (SUAC), Japan. Ishigaki Yuri, Sato Koharu, Miyazawa Yuina, Yasutake Hinata, and Yamaguchi Himeka—came to UNAIR to participate in an internship focused on teaching Japanese language. Their visit was supervised by Sano Yukiko, a professor of Japanese Linguistics from the Department of Intercultural Studies at SUAC.

The faculty leadership, including Nunuk Endah Srimulyani, PhD, and Rizki Andini PhD, warmly welcomed the students and expressed hope for their successful internship experience during their time at FIB UNAIR.

The partnership between UNAIR’s Japanese Language and Literature Program and SUAC began in June 2013. That year, 10 SUAC students participated in a summer course at UNAIR. From 2014 to 2019, 2-3 students from UNAIR participated annually in a student exchange program at SUAC.

SUAC students also took part in FIB’s summer course and Darmasiswa Scholarship Program to study Indonesian at UNAIR’s Language Center. However, the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily halted in-person exchanges, replacing them with online collaboration. This year marks the return of SUAC students to UNAIR for an internship in Japanese language teaching.

Activities during the internship

During the internship, the five students were involved in various classroom and extracurricular activities. They observed Japanese language classes conducted by UNAIR lecturers and took part in teaching and learning alongside students from UNAIR’s Japanese Language and Literature Program. Their involvement included courses such as Japanese Communication, Japanese Grammar, Intermediate and Advanced Kanji in Context, Intermediate and Advanced Japanese Writing, Japanese Teaching Methods, and serving as teaching assistants for the Japanese Calligraphy (Shodo) course. They also conducted teaching practice in the Pre-Intermediate and Advanced Japanese Communication courses.

In addition to classroom activities, the interns participated in cultural activities with students from the Japanese Language and Literature Program. These included learning traditional batik techniques, playing gamelan music with the FIB Pakar Sajen, and joining Nakayoshi, an event for new students in the program. In their free time, they explored Surabaya, visiting sites like the Al-Akbar Mosque, the Submarine Monument, and shopping malls. On Sunday, September 15, 2024, they joined students, faculty supervisors, and two Japanese volunteers from the Ashinaga Foundation for a city tour to Malang.

Enthusiasm for internship

The SUAC students displayed great enthusiasm throughout the internship. Yasutake Hinata, one of the interns, commented, “Time flew by so fast; it’s hard to believe the program is almost over.” She shared that this was an unforgettable experience.

Students from UNAIR’s Japanese Language and Literature Program also enjoyed the teaching practice sessions led by the SUAC interns, finding their approach to be engaging and enjoyable.

Although Professor Sano Yukiko only spent two days at UNAIR, she hopes that the strong relationship between SUAC and FIB UNAIR will continue to grow in the future.

Author: Putri Elsy