Languages long exchange program

By Ms Michele Sharp, Head of Languages and the 2024/25 long exchange students

During the summer break, four of our Japanese language students were hosted by two of our Japanese sister schools as part of the Year 11 languages long exchange program. Students who undertake this program study at one of our sister schools for a period of six weeks and live with a host family to experience everyday life in Japan.

Arabella Johnson and Theo Gould attended Konko Gakuen in Okayama, and Aayush Bhatia and Alexander Stockbridge studied at the Kure National College of Technology in Hiroshima. The long exchange program is an opportunity languages students can apply for in Year 11, and it is a reciprocal program, meaning those who participate must be willing to host returning students when they are in Year 12. This extends the benefit of the program for our students and offers a cost-effective opportunity to study abroad. The aims of the program are to:

• Gain first-hand insight into other cultures to develop tolerance, understanding and respect for different ways of life and different values.
• Improve foreign language skills through practical use of the language in a native speaking country.
• Widen perspectives and social experience.
• Gain experience as a host to an overseas visitor both at home and at school.

We are thankful to the schools we have relationships with and the host families our students stayed with for their care of our students, and we look forward to welcoming their partner students this year. Below are some student reflections on their experiences.

Arabella Johnson
Konko Gakuen, Okayama

Over the summer holidays, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Japan for six weeks on the long exchange program. I improved my listening, speaking and reading skills, met many wonderful people and experienced the Japanese culture.

Our exchange began at Konko Gakuen, where my fellow Radford student, Theo Gould and I attended classes for the next six weeks, with a short break for the New Year. We were immediately welcomed by Higashiyama-sensei, who introduced us to our host families. The warmth and generosity of my host family instantly eased my uncertainty about being in a foreign country for such a long time. While staying with my host family, I had the privilege of experiencing how a regular Japanese family eats. My host mother showed me how to cook some of the meals and let me help in the kitchen too. This made me feel very welcome. My host family treated me as if I were part of their family, allowing me to enjoy Japan to the fullest without missing my family back home too much.

Back at school, people treated me with patience and made an effort to include me. Teachers would regularly interrupt class to ask me about the way something was done in Australia, or the meaning of an English word. This kept class engaging and allowed me to practise my speaking skills.

After school on Thursday, I participated in the tea ceremony club (sadōbu). Here I learned about the traditional tea ceremony and got to drink ceremonially prepared matcha. Alongside the matcha, we ate traditional Japanese sweets (wagashi). These complemented the bitterness of the matcha and showcased seasonal Japanese flavours, such as maple. Many of the girls there practised speaking English with me, which was a nice break from speaking Japanese all the time. The teacher who ran the club was very kind to me and welcomed me as if I had been there for years.

During the holidays, I got to experience typical Japanese Christmas and New Year’s (Oshōgatsu) celebrations, which were very different from how it is done in Australia. On Christmas eve, we ate strawberry sponge cake in celebration of Christmas. Christmas is also considered to be a couple’s holiday in Japan, so we saw a lot of couples when we went out. New Year’s is a big event in Japan. At midnight on New Year’s Eve, we went to the temple and rang a bell twice by hitting it with a log. The next day, we were up early to watch the first sunrise of the year (hatsuhinode). Later that night, we visited the shrine for the first time that year as well. This was done in the hope of having a lucky and prosperous year.

For anybody considering this long exchange, the only advice I can give you is to go for it. Any doubts will be settled within a week as you’ll be too distracted having the time of your life to think about anything else.

Alexander Stockbridge
Kure National College of Technology, Hiroshima

Following the Year 10 study tour to Japan, I was keener than ever to participate in the long exchange. I initially applied to go on exchange to Konko Gakuen, which is the sister school I had previously visited. However, I was offered a position at Kure Kosen, in Hiroshima. At first, I was hesitant to accept this offer, but it was by far the best thing I could have done.

I spent six weeks there, three of which were spent in a dorm in Kure Kosen. The remaining three weeks were spent with my host family that I stayed with during the previous trip. The dorm experience was better than I could have imagined and I made so many friends.

The classes I attended at Kure Kosen were very interesting, including a class where I learned to make concrete. I partook in a civil engineering class, which meant most classes focused on related topics. Every Thursday there was an ‘incubation work’ class, when all students worked on a topic of their choosing. I joined the tea ceremony group. After school, I participated in multiple club activities, including badminton and tennis, where I met so many new people. They made me feel very welcome.

As I was a dormitory student—I ate at the school cafeteria, which served delicious meals, and I was able to socialise with all my friends there in the morning, at lunch and at dinner. We were even served a special Christmas lunch consisting of delicious chicken, pasta, as well as custard and jelly for dessert.

I was sad to leave Kure Kosen, but I still had another three weeks to look forward to. I spent this time reconnecting with old friends as well as visiting places like Universal Studios in Osaka and seeing Mount Fiji. I also got to spend New Years in Shizuoka. I absolutely loved being in Japan—catching trains, seeing traditional places and simply walking around the city.

At first, I was worried about travelling to Japan, because I had never travelled alone before. I was also worried about my ability to speak Japanese. To those considering taking part in a long exchange to Japan, please do not let these things stop you. Travel was easy and the language barrier is really not that bad. At the school, everybody tries their best to communicate and, as long as you also try, it will all work out.

Theo Gould
Konko Gakuen, Okayama

Going to another country for a long time is likely a daunting thing for anyone, and it certainly was for me – at least at first. I was nervous on the plane, nervous in the car on the way to school from the airport, and nervous when I walked in the door. But that’s where it stopped for me.

The students at Konkou Gakuen in Okayama were excited to see me, though I’d never met some of them, and made sure I felt like I had some idea of what was going on, on my first day in a new country. From then on, it felt like I was making a new friend each day. I am so glad that Radford’s sister school is one like Konkou Gakuen,. The teachers and students were all incredible and curious about how they could make our stay as good as possible. My host family were so kind and welcoming. They treated me like another son for the 6 weeks I stayed with them. My host dad took me out for a motorbike ride, I went shopping with my host mum, and I did so many other things with my host brother.

I also experienced a Japanese lifestyle with them, eating daily Japanese meals (which are very different to what our Australian perception is of Japanese food), and doing traditional Japanese things in and around New Year, which is an important part of their culture. I found the Japanese lifestyle to be very different from an Australian one. School on a Saturday is definitely something that would deter even the most academic students, and I won’t go so far as to say that it’s something that needs to be implemented at Radford! On the bright side, it meant one extra day each week to get to know the different students in my class, many of whom became friends I will never forget, and will probably see again. Rest assured, your Japanese will definitely improve. For this opportunity to grow in a language I love learning, and to meet incredible new people, and do incredible new things, I would like to thank Sharp Sensei for organising.

Possibly the biggest thing I got out of this trip is a new sense of awareness about the connection of humanity. That may sound grand, but though Japanese people may not see the same online things as us, eat the same things, celebrate the same things, we are all humans despite our separations. It made it easy to connect when I realised that we are not so different. I will miss this experience that I had, and the people I met and became so close with in my six weeks at Konkou Gakuen. As they say, “don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened”.

Aayush Bhatia
Kure National College of Technology, Hiroshima

Over the Christmas holidays I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to embark on a long exchange trip to Japan. I am incredibly grateful for this amazing experience and not only the wonderful memories I made but also for the countless friendships that have blossomed from both the dormitory stay and the home stay.

It is difficult for me to talk about all the things I did over the 6 weeks, but I will do my best to give an overview of just how incredible of an experience it was.

The school that I studied at was a technical college, so not only did they study subjects such as maths or chemistry, the students also studied things like electrical circuitry, concrete making, and mechanical engineering. I felt extremely welcomed by the students who not only went out of their way to involve me in their classes (no matter how little I understood) but also involved me in the various aspects of dormitory life.

I know it might be a controversial take, but I truly believe that staying in the dormitory is better than a home stay with a family. I spent every weekday after school either participating in one of the many club activities on offer or building closer relationships with the other dorm students. Whether it be making steak in the communal kitchen, playing FIFA together (and winning of course) or simply playing football outside, I enjoyed every day I spent in the dorms and I will forever treasure the memories and friendships that I made.

The home stay experience was extremely different to the dorm stay but it was still just as amazing. My host family were extremely welcoming, and their generosity was unmatched.

Some key moments from my home stay included playing golf with my host father and two of my host brothers; experiencing a true Japanese New Year and eating all the delicious food such as onigiri, and an assortment of meats; and having the opportunity to walk around Hiroshima city by myself and visit the beautiful Shukkeien garden. It really is different living and spending time in a walkable city with countless attractions everywhere you look.

I am incredibly grateful for getting to participate in this exchange and I am extremely thankful to my parents, my host family and the teachers – both here and in Japan – who made it possible.

This exchange truly enriched my understanding and outlook on different cultures and the differing ways of life. Furthermore, my Japanese language skills improved immensely and my confidence when it comes to using the language also increased. There are just so many good things to say about the long exchange program that I just can’t fit into this article.

If you ever have the chance to go on a long exchange you should take it. It is an amazing experience that you won’t regret!