TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Framework theme event in Kanto Region; Enah English

On October 1, 2017, the TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Framework Kanto Region Team 1 held an event titled, “Enah (pronounced eenah) English,” in Yokohama as part of a TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Framework theme event.

Theme events enable each TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Leader and sub-leader to plan and host an event in which they address their respective communities’ challenges and needs.

Kanto Team 1 Regional Leaders Naho Yamazaki and Ena Nakata became aware that many Japanese alumni hesitate to join alumni programs because they do not have enough confidence in their English language skills. To achieve their goal of getting more students involved in the TOMODACHI programs, Naho and Ena launched the “Enah English” event for Japanese students to improve and practice their English without feeling pressured. The event provided participants with the opportunity to present about their hometowns in English. By introducing their hometowns, a topic with which they are very familiar, the students gained confidence. This activity became a good way for them to practice using their English language skills in a comfortable manner.

Many participants found it difficult to use English at first, but by the end of the event, every single participant had succeeded in conducting a presentation in English. One of the participants, Daigo Machinaka, said, “This program further motivated me to learn English again.” For high school students, the program also gave them a valuable opportunity to learn English in an interactive way, which is quite different from the way English is studied in preparation for college entrance exams.

Kanto Team 1’s Regional Mentor, Steve Sakanashi, praised the two leaders’ excellent work by saying, “The Regional Leaders were very motivated and did the event all by themselves. Creating the event and sharing the knowledge with the next generation was a great learning experience for them as well.”

Naho Yamazaki, one of the Kanto Regional Leaders, told the participants, “TOMODACHI programs provide many great enjoyable experiences to change your life and perspective, so please be more proactive in joining our programs and events. You should have the mindset to keep challenging yourself without being fearful.”

This theme event provided a magnificent learning opportunity for both high school and college student participants alike, but also for the Regional Leaders to experience planning and hosting an event from scratch.