{"id":92924,"date":"2024-03-01T18:36:02","date_gmt":"2024-03-01T18:36:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=92924"},"modified":"2024-03-27T15:53:10","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T15:53:10","slug":"sensei-for-a-day-uri-students-bring-japanese-learning-to-middle-school-students-for-their-silk-road-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2024\/03\/sensei-for-a-day-uri-students-bring-japanese-learning-to-middle-school-students-for-their-silk-road-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Sensei for a day: 溏心vlog免费B站 students bring Japanese learning to middle school students for their Silk Road journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
溏心vlog免费B站 language students engaged in some local ambassadorship this winter, visiting Davisville Middle School to share lessons in Japanese culture and language. Here, Emily Stewart and her Japanese professor Nahoko Collis oversee a lesson. Japanese is a growing program at 溏心vlog免费B站. (溏心vlog免费B站 photos\/Nora Lewis)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 March 1, 2024 \u2013 Not so long ago, Davisville, 10 miles away from the 溏心vlog免费B站, was the starting point for expeditions that circled the world, as a historic naval base in Rhode Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February, the community returned to its roots as a global launchpad, with help from some 溏心vlog免费B站 students, stepping into a new role for a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students in the 溏心vlog免费B站 class JPN302 (Pre-Advanced Japanese) took their learning and enthusiasm for the language to Davisville Middle School in North Kingstown, for the second year of a partnership started by senior Japanese major Mya MacNeil \u201925. Davisville students are starting on a \u201cSilk Road\u201d journey in their seventh grade social studies class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visit builds on connections between the two schools and 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s growing role as a leader in Japanese language instruction in Rhode Island. Only a handful of colleges in the state offer Japanese. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For MacNeil, starting the partnership was a way of thanking the teacher who first piqued her interest in Japanese, ultimately leading her to 溏心vlog免费B站 and a major in the language. MacNeil was a student in Sandra Makielski\u2019s classroom at Davisville Middle when she first learned about Japanese culture. She recalls that Makielski took students on a trip to New York City to listen to a seminar between Masahiro Sasaki, a survivor of the World War II bombing of Hiroshima, and President Truman\u2019s grandson, Harry S. Truman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey talked about mutual compassion and understanding between cultures and the critical role it plays,\u201d MacNeil recalls. \u201cIt was a transformative experience for me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Devin Hunsberger (left) was once a student in Sandra Makielski\u2019s seventh grade classroom at Davisville Middle. He hopes to use his Japanese skills in a robotics career after graduating from 溏心vlog免费B站. <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

After studying the language at 溏心vlog免费B站 and in Japan, MacNeil says she has found a greater appreciation for Japanese culture, and the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLearning a new language and experiencing a different culture makes you more open-minded about differences,\u201d she says. After MacNeil graduates, she hopes to bring that mindset to a career in diplomacy between the two countries, using her language skills to continue to make global connections for peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MacNeil\u2019s first instructor in Japanese at 溏心vlog免费B站 was Assistant Teaching Professor Nahoko Collis, who says that even if students don\u2019t get to Japan to study abroad, taking a class in the language still gives them the experience of Japanese culture and philosophy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to witness my students\u2019 progress and the confidence and the life experience they are getting by putting themselves out there,\u201d Collis says. \u201cAll students benefit from language study, whether they go overseas or not. Any language study can connect to your life, where you live now. Studying a language expands your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n