Photo By Staff Sgt. Janessa Dugan | Ichiro Umehara gives a lecture on American and Japanese communication differences...... read more read more
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CHATAN, Japan - Status of Forces Agreement personnel visited Okinawa residents during an English class Nov. 5 at the Aeon Rycom Mall in Chatan.
The visit provided Marines and Okinawa residents with the opportunity to interact informally through guided introductions, word games and many other conversational activities, as well as learn the cultural communication differences between Japanese and English.
“The Okinawa Prefecture International Exchange and Human Resources Foundation organized this class,” said Ichiro Umehara, a community relations specialist for Camp Courtney. “I’ve been teaching a summer English class on Camp Courtney and due to its success, the foundation organized this class to make room for more students to learn English and interact with native English speakers.”
More than 50 SOFA personnel filed into the classroom in Aeon Hall and introduced themselves to the students.
“We learn from each other when we participate in events like these,” said Lance Cpl. Edgar L. Hernandez, an aviation electronic and cable repair technician with Marine Aircraft Support Squadron-2, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force.
“Sometimes, given the language barrier, people forget that Okinawa residents are very kind and love getting together with us and getting to know about us and learn from us and it’s so rewarding to engage and do the same thing with them. This is a good reminder that we are just people just like they are and we can learn from each other as people.”
After the volunteers and students gave their initial introductions, each group played word games that reinforced their understanding of grammar rules and English vernacular and slang. The students and volunteers were divided into groups to eat lunch together and shop before returning to the classroom to review and discuss what they had learned.
“My favorite part of this event is finding out what these students want to learn and being able to teach them accordingly,” said Hernandez, an Eagle Pass, Texas, native. “Some of their questions are related to parts of American culture we don’t think twice about, since it seems normal to us. They really do take an interest in our culture and that is something we usually overlook. We get to give back to the community that we are a part of here on Okinawa.”
The students and volunteers waved goodbye as they parted ways at the end of the day, many of the volunteers promising to return soon.
“They’re building friendships and long-standing relationships,” said Umehara. “We had a Marine who was a corporal here a long time ago volunteer and he just recently returned to Okinawa and he’s a gunnery sergeant now. I receive a lot of positive feedback from students, thanking us for the opportunity and emphasizing that they appreciate the relationships they now have with the Marines they’ve met.”
Marine Corps Installations Pacific is the strength behind America’s ability to respond quickly to crisis in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. MCIPAC strengthens power projection with our allies and partners; enables the strategic launch and recovery of military capabilities to save lives and to preserve regional peace, stability and security; and enables operating force readiness to guarantee victory.
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 12.10.2015 00:09 |
| Story ID: | 183899 |
| Location: | CHATAN, OKINAWA, JP |
| Hometown: | GINOWAN, OKINAWA, JP |
| Hometown: | EAGLE PASS, TX, US |
| Hometown: | FARMINGTON, MN, US |
| Hometown: | MANCHESTER, NJ, US |
| Hometown: | PADUCAH, KY, US |
| Web Views: | 52 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Bridging the Gap: Status of Forces Agreement personnel teach Okinawa residents English, by SSgt Janessa Dugan, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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