FHS Hosts Japanese Students
November 29, 2016
On Tuesday, November 29th, Franklin High School hosted 38 high school students from Fuji City, Japan. FHS was just one of the places the students will visit throughout their stay in the Boston, MA.
During their visit, the Japanese students were paired up with a language National Honor Society student from Franklin. The Japanese students essentially shadowed the FHS students for the first three periods of the day, and then accompanied them to lunch where they were able to see what an American high school lunch was like. An FHS Chorus class also performed a song in Japanese led by teacher Mr. Sansoni for the group.
As a bit of background, the education system in Japan and America are vastly different. While high schools in the United States are largely driven by student input and are more interactive and hands on, Japanese high schools are lecture based and more formal. With that said, the event was an opportunity for the Japanese students to experience what an American high school is like.
Although there was a definite language barrier between the Japanese students and FHS students, the group broke through the barrier and ended up having a great time, while also being able to understand each other. Many student pairs used Google translate to communicate.
One of the Japanese students, Ayaka Sano, was thrilled to be visiting the school, and was happy with her experience. “I had fun during my visit. The day was very different from Japanese schooling,” said Ayaka.
As for Franklin students, it was clear that they got a lot out of the experience and had a fun day as well.
“Having a Japanese student with me for the day was really exciting because it allowed me to see a completely different culture. I learned a lot about life in Japan and found it amazing how I could become friends with someone that didn’t even speak the same language as me. I am so glad Franklin hosted the students for the day, we all enjoyed our time with them so much” says FHS Senior Kendyl Ryan.
The group closed the day out by taking a large group photo, taking pictures with their buddies individually, and saying final goodbyes before the Japanese students boarded their bus back to Boston. They are set to visit MIT (MA Institute of Technology) this Wednesday, 11/30 as a part of their visit.
Many are hopeful that FHS will continue to host exchange students due to the rewarding experience that came out of Tuesday’s visit. It was evident that the exchange visit was not only fulfilling for FHS students, but also for the Japanese students as well.
