Networking Conference of Japanese Language Teachers with Poland

   The Centers for International Exchanges and for Foreign Language Education jointly held a networking conference for Japanese language teachers on 18-20 February 2019. The Centers have annually invited Japanese language teachers from overseas higher education institutions for the purpose of strengthening exchanges on language education. In this year we invited three people from Poland, Dr Aleksandra Szczechla, associate professor of Japanese literature at Uniwersytat jagielloński in Kraków; Ms Shoko Nakayama, lecturer of Japanese at Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika in Toruń; and Ms Grażyna Kramm, lecturer of Japanese at Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza in Poznań.
   The conference was started by a welcome message by Professor Akira Deguchi, director of the Center for International Exchanges and a small talk by Lecturer Ryo Sasaki on relationship between Shimane University and universities in Poland who emphasised that they have few institutional agreements even though bright Polish students continuously study in Shimane. Then, three guests and associate professors Hiromi Nakasono and Dr Tomoaki Sato, teaching Japanese in Shimane University together discussed on their institutional role and teaching method. They further went out to the city of Matsue to find materials to make teaching materials.
   In this year 2019, it is 100 years since diplomatic relations between Japan and Poland was established. It was honourable to invite them from Poland to Shimane to give momentum to more students and researchers exchanging between two countries.