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Thinking about Peace:
"Hiroshima Japanese Class and International Exchange"
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by Suzue Mitsuhara
Representative, Hiroshima Japanese Class
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Hiroshima Japanese Class was established as a grass-roots activity run by volunteers in November 1987.
It was the first volunteer Japanese language class in Hiroshima City.
After a six-month preparation period, the school started proper lessons from April 1988, and since that time, for over thirty years, we have aimed to support the Japanese language studies of foreign residents in Hiroshima, as well as creating a place to interact with Hiroshima's Japanese residents, providing information to foreign residents, and providing a place where they can feel comfortable.
When we first started, the students at the school were Japanese returnees from China and their families, the foreign spouses of Japanese residents, international students and their families, the spouses of Korean residents, and others.
Every Saturday morning, we held classes at Hiroshima Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and at night we rented a room in Mazda's Fureiai Kaikan building.
Later, we moved our classes to different venues including the Central Community Center, followed by Crystal Plaza, and then Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation.
At the same time, we also provided support for various international exchange events including the Asian Games and the international exchange festival "PeaceLove", as well as support for visits by delegations from around the world and UNITAR Hiroshima (United Nations Institute for Training and Research) activities.
In this way, we have been involved in various different activities.
In our classes, the students start by learning greetings and the hiragana letters, and go on to study Japanese grammar and conversation.
It was also necessary to provide our students with daily lifestyle support for living in Japan, such as shopping, separating garbage, and what to do at a hospital or bank.
As Japan's economy has grown, there has been an increase in the number of foreign workers and trainees coming to Japan, and there was a greater demand for Japanese language schools.
At the same time, with the bursting of the economic bubble and the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, the Japanese economy started to slow down.
This led to restructuring of foreign workers and many left Japan.
This had a great impact on our school as well, but we have continued our activities to the present.
In addition to our previous students, we currently have businessmen and their families, trainees and technical students, English teachers, and foreigners who are staying for a short time in Japan for tourist or cultural activities.
In this way, our students are in Japan for various reasons.
Our classroom activities are not just the study of the Japanese language, but also include seasonal events such as cherry-blossom viewing and festivals, local walks to places like Hiroshima Castle, Shukkeien gardens, and Futabanosato, experience making their own okonomiyaki savory pancakes, and other Japanese cultural experiences (calligraphy, origami, tea ceremony, flower arrangement and wearing kimonos).
Through these various activities we aim to promote interaction with the students.
To ensure that our students are safe in their daily lives in Japan, with support from the fire brigade and police, we also hold disaster prevention drills to ensure that they can protect themselves in the case of an earthquake or other natural disasters, and safety workshops to ensure they do not get involved in an accident or incident.
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On June 29, 2019, we conducted a hands-on study tour at Hiroshima Comprehensive
Disaster Prevention Center.
The students learned about what to do when an earthquake hits and how to
extinguish a fire, and they experienced fleeing through smoke. The students were very
pleased at how useful the experience was.
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There are students who could not speak any Japanese when they first arrived in Japan and came to our school looking very anxious.
When I see these students smile as they gradually become able to converse in Japanese, and when they express their gratitude, saying how happy they were that our school helped them out when they were struggling, I truly feel that it was worthwhile steadily continuing with our activities.
Students who returned to their home countries continue interacting with our volunteers through email and social media, and sometimes come back to Japan and have a fun time meeting up again.
Each foreigner has many family members, relatives and friends back in his or her home country.
If the students go back to their country and tell their family and friends about their life in Japan, they too will understand Japan a little better, and come to like it, and I believe that this is a small step that leads to world peace.
From April 2019, a new residence status related to specific skills was introduced, and as a result, we have many skilled trainees coming to our school.
Our school is operated based on the goodwill of our volunteers, and it is difficult to secure a stable venue, cover operating costs and recruit volunteers.
There are also many other challenges, such as issues regarding the children of foreign residents, who require learning support.
I feel that our volunteer-based efforts are reaching their limit.
From now on, we will need to work together with government to create a city that is a comfortable living environment for both Japanese and non-Japanese residents.
The number of foreigners coming to Hiroshima will continue to increase.
I aim to continue to run this Japanese language classes that people enjoy and that live up to Hiroshima's title of "International City of Peace".
The international situation is changing in diverse ways.
Under those circumstances, our volunteers will continue our exchange activities with the people of the world as "small-town diplomats", and I hope that by doing so we can play even a small role in the realization of world peace.
We look forward to your continued understanding and support for our local Japanese language volunteer-based school.
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[Hiroshima Japanese Class]
February 2016: Awarded the Activity Encouragement Prize by Hiroshima UNESCO
February 2019: Awarded the International Exchange Encouragement Award by Hiroshima Peace
Creation Fund
April 2019: Awarded the Hiroshima City Government Award of Merit by the City of Hiroshima
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