From 6 to 19 March, seven Kyoto University students took part in a Spring School program hosted by Chulalongkorn University (CU), Thailand, which was organized as part of the KU Short-Term Student Exchange-Nippon Discovery (SEND) Program. During their two-week stay, participants attended classes on Thai language and culture, and joined CU students in a reciprocal learning program about Japanese language and culture (including joint presentations). They also went on field trips to the Ayutthaya Historical Park and Wat Phra Sri Rattana Satsadaram (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), gaining a deeper understanding of the history and culture of Thailand.
The two-week program not only helped participants from Kyoto expand their knowledge of Thai culture, but also allowed them to gain a fresh perspective on their own country by communicating to their local counterparts about Japan's language and culture. It is our hope that the program participants will build on their first-hand experiences and new-found understanding of Thai culture and continue to develop friendships with CU students based on mutual trust.
Comments from a participating student
Koki Niwa
Group Leader for the Chulalongkorn University Spring School
Third-year student, Faculty of Letters, Kyoto University
(Report presented at a debriefing held on Thursday 24 March 2016)
In the Spring School program, we took intensive classes on introductory Thai language. The numerous expressions we learned in class were all essential to everyday life in Thailand, and we came across many opportunities to put them to use. Outside the classroom, CU students helped us with pronunciations and taught us useful expressions through our day-to-day interactions, further enriching our learning.
The program also included field trips to the Ayutthaya Historical Park and Wat Phra Sri Rattana Satsadaram (Temple of the Emerald Buddha). CU students accompanied us as tour guides on those occasions. They helped us appreciate the significance of each site and made the trips much more informative than it would have been if we had gone on our own.
In addition to learning the local language and touring historical sites, we worked with CU students to make presentations on Thai and Japanese cultures. We formed groups with our Thai counterparts and frequently got together to work on the project. Our group decided to work on the topic of "Thai and Japanese Tastes in Drama". As we discussed the differences between Thai and Japanese TV dramas, the conversation turned to issues about various aspects of Thai society, including issues related to wage disparity and immigrants, and the attitudes of local students and other residents toward those problems. Hearing those realities made me well-aware and concerned about social issues in Thailand.
Despite its short duration, the Spring School was a great opportunity to talk with many Thai students and to experience local life, making it, for me, a highly enlightening two weeks.
As a student studying sociology, I feel that I benefitted enormously from experiencing Thailand the way I did through this program; I now have a keen awareness of, and a strong academic interest in, the issues facing the Southeast Asian Kingdom.
Joint presentation by KU and CU students
At the Ayutthaya Historical Park
Hands-on learning about Thai cuisine
After the closing ceremony, in front of the former building of CU Faculty of Arts
About the Short-Term SEND (Student Exchange-Nippon Discovery) Program
Kyoto University's SEND Program aims to train students to bridge Japan and ASEAN countries. In exchange for the opportunity to travel abroad to learn a foreign language and culture, participants assist in teaching the Japanese language and introduce Japanese culture to local people. Through these activities, the Program hopes to cultivate an interest in Japan among students in the host countries while preparing the participants from Japan to play active roles on the world stage, as well as fostering trust between students from both countries as the next generation of leaders.
During the 2015-2016 academic year, the Short-Term SEND Program was operated as part of the "Rediscovering Japan through Collaboration in the Open ASEAN+6 -- International Human Resource Development Centering on the SEND Program" with support from the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO).
