SA students jet to Japan to build cultural bridges
Jetting off to Japan to become assistant language teachers, four students are ready to embrace a new experience.
Four young Pretorians, hailing from across the city, have this weekend jetted towards Japan for the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) programme.
The group of 34 new assistant language teachers form part of the JET programme milestone of reaching the 1 000 mark of South Africans who have joined the programme since its inception.
The programme aims to promote grassroots internationalisation at the local level, and more than 80 000 young adults from 82 countries have already joined.
In fact, the programme manager at the Japanese Embassy in Pretoria, Ryan Keet, was in the very first group of JET participants who left South Africa to teach English in Japan in 1997.
He remains enthusiastic, and his advice to the departing students was, laughingly, “Make sure you are on time and do not miss your flight” (based on the fact that he almost did himself).
In his address to the students, His Excellency Ambassador Fumio Shimizu said: “Continue to be a bridge between Japan and South Africa, not just during your stay but even afterwards. Play the role of ambassador. Leave South Africa with pride as a South African.”
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He stressed that much can be learned from the cultural exchanges these students will experience during their time in Japan.
The embassy is particularly proud that this year they have reached the 1 000 student mark. And many alumni were present to send this group off, most of them experiencing a touch of nostalgia.
Kelebogile Moruane, chairperson of the Japan Exchange and Teaching Alumni Association of South Africa (JETAA), and representative of the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, encouraged the group to enjoy their time in Japan. “Hold on to your South African DNA, be proud of it, and make us proud of you,” he said.
In talking to Rekord, Armand von Benecke and Marco Freire said they became aware of the initiative through friends who have been to Japan.
Both said their friends spoke of both the programme and country with respect and admiration. Their two other Pretoria counterparts, Nadia Strydom and Zukiswa Mamba, joined in and said they were fully embracing the concept of learning and experiencing Japanese culture.
Keep an eye out for news of their progress in Japan – Rekord will be bringing our readers news about them in the coming months.
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