Tokai Ireland 2016

The Tokai Study Abroad Summer Programme for 2016 has come to an end. All the boys are now safely back with their families in Japan. This year has been a very eventful learning journey for them all. The boys have been fantastic. In each of the three locations that I visited, Edinburgh, Marlborough and Malahide, I was told that this year’s group was the most outgoing and friendly group that had come from Tokai in all the years we have been running these trips. There was a really fun atmosphere in the air led by some particularly energetic and big-spirited individuals. Their courage allowed the whole group to be lifted to new heights.

The Irish group had the misfortune of Tomoki Shimizu’s knee injury and early return to Japan. This was very unlucky and disappointing for him but he was well treated in hospital and thanks to the care of Horiguchi Sensei and Learning Journeys leader Michael Branagan he was not lonely and wanted for nothing. We hope he will return to Ireland next year. My daughter, Ami enjoyed teaching him English and playing battleships with him on our sofa.

Highlights of the trip to Ireland were again the Sailing and Horse Riding courses which the boys very much enjoyed. Watching the boys fall into the cold Irish water is always fun and they seem to like it too! The students get a great deal of confidence from this course and the same is true for the horse riding. You can see them grow in independence day by day.

We also got very good feedback from the ICE teachers about the Tokai boys’ conduct in their English lessons and on the excursions. Their homestay families also spoke very favourably of them and the boys have told us that they were all well looked after. The warm hugs at the bus stop really confirm what we know – that there is nothing like a warm Irish welcome. The group seemed to really bond well with the other groups and at the airport the students were able to tell me at least 10 different nationalities of people with whom they had made friends. That’s one of the most important goals of the programme – to build bridges with the rest of the world and for students to understand that they can use their English to communicate and to make friends.

We can see this very clearly at Japan Corner. That’s when the boys have a chance to show off Japanese things such as origami, happi, kendama, furoshiki and so on. People always love seeing their own names written in kanji and learning how to use chopsticks and folding fans. This year, the event was a triumph. The other teenagers, young kids and adults are fascinated by this display of cool Japanese culture.

This year’s group should be very proud of themselves. They have been excellent ambassadors for their families, for Tokai, and for Japan. I hope that their experiences will have a positive effect on their further English studies and that they will continue to broaden their minds through study abroad and developing friendships with people around the world and with foreigners living in Japan. I also hope that they will keep in touch with us and with the people they met in Ireland, building up their network of contacts and friendships. Some of them may even want to join the Tokai programme next year.

This year we celebrate that 500 Tokai boys have studied abroad during the past 13 summers. That is something that the Tokai teachers who have made this possible should be very proud of. Without their energy and dedication none of this would have happened. Particular thanks go to Mr. Tatsuya Ito who has been an inspiration to the whole programme. He makes close friendships everywhere he goes and that makes him the best role model of all for the boys. We hope that those students who have enjoyed themselves will share their adventures with their families and ‘kohai’ back in Japan. This will ensure that the programme goes from strength to strength.

Finally, a great big thank you to all the parents and grandparents back in Japan who have supported this project. I can assure you it is a wonderful gift to your sons and grandsons.

It’s a Learning Journey!