Multicultural Community Advancement Officer Training Program

2013 Project

Approaches that we implemented last year will be further improved and three "Hatarakurasu Gunma (working and living in Gunma Prefecture)" projects will be conducted.

※The "Hatarakurasu Gunma" project is to support permanent residents and students who came from different cultures and societies so that they can be human resources who work and live in Gunma.

"Hatarakurasu Gunma" project for students
(Consultant Course, Planner Course)

Part-time students participate in the "Project for Establishing an International Exchange Program" sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology that was planned in 2012 and adopted this year, as a regional practicing coordinator.

A workshop for foreign and Japanese students was held for activities to activate the community (making an environment and sightseeing model course set in Oze).

Part-time students participated in the Oze field work as a regional practicing coordinator.

Based on the Oze fieldwork, community information is organized and a booklet is made.

"Hatarakurasu Gunma" project for permanent residents
(Consultant Course, Planner Course)

Part-time students participate in the "Japanese education project for foreigners as residents in Japan" sponsored by the Agency for Cultural Affairs that was planned in 2012 and adopted this year, as a coordinator or lecturer using their particular specialty.

In the Japanese teacher training program, teaching material on "life planning" required for retiring in comfort, and a method to teach this in easy-to-understand Japanese was discussed.

"Japanese classes for living in Japan comfortably" was held in Isesaki City.

"Hatarakurasu Gunma" survey by questionnaire
(Analyst Course)

A survey by questionnaire was conducted on the living and working environment for foreigners in Gunma Prefecture.

Prior to the survey by questionnaire, an interview survey was conducted in Isesaki City.

Concept mapping is conducted to make a hypothesis.

2012 Project

Bicycle group

Bicycle safety riding lessons for foreign children and students residing in Japan in "easy-to-understand Japanese"

Bicycle safety riding lessons, which teach traffic rules for bicycles in Japan, was given to the foreign children and students residing in Japan who have little opportunity to receive training and edification for bicycling, in cooperation with Gunma Prefectural Police so that they can safely ride their bicycles and will not have their bicycles stolen.

Time and date

①December 5th 2012 (Wed.) 9:00 am to 11:30 am
②February 2nd 2013 (Sat.) 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Place

①Colégio Pitágoras Brasil-Ota
②Native language retention class "VAMOS PAPEAR"

Teaching methods effective for foreign children and students residing in Japan who cannot sufficiently understand Japanese were discussed and "easy-to-understand Japanese" was adopted for the bicycle lessons. Part-time students studied "easy-to-understand Japanese" and created the contents of the bicycle safety riding lessons under the guidance of teachers at the Center for International Education and Research, GUNMA UNIVERSITY.
In the bicycle safety riding lessons, the children and students' understanding of major violations of the rules concerning bicycles was assured and the correct rules were explained in "easy-to-understand Japanese". After the inspection method for bicycles was explained and practiced, the children and students actually inspected their bicycles. Also, the importance of "double-locking", where two locks are used, was explained, and theft prevention registration was taught to avoid damages to their bicycles.
Through actual practice, it was rediscovered that "easy-to-understand Japanese" is an effective communication method for children as well as foreigners who are weak in Japanese. In the future, through association with the related institutes, these lessons will be developed into a 2013 project.

Part-time students who teach children how to inspect bicycles.

Making a key ring where theft prevention registration numbers and bicycle identification numbers are marked.

Activity state MOVIE

※If you want to view the video, Windows Media Player (free) is required.

MINAKAMI group

"Telling folk stories. International lullabies"
～Gathering of international culture exchange output from Minakami Town～

This was conducted for forming a connection with people beyond the culture and society of where they were born and raised, and to create a continuing relationship where the community activation of Minakami Town is discussed and output with people from a wide variety of nationalities who participate in planning and running events, through creating an avenue in which people can feel and share "love and compassion for children.

Time and date

January 20th 2013 (Sun.) 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm

Place

Manten Boshinoyu Dendekoza Mikunikan (1150-1 Sarugakyo-onsen, Minakami Town)

1) Children's heartbeat＝ Multicultural experiences workshop of folk stories and lullabies which are close to "voice in the heart"
The workshop was held using a folk story, "Tejironosaru (white hand monkey)", which was created in Sarugakyo Onsen and lullabies that foreign residents in Minakami Town listened to when they were little. The folk story, "Tejironosaru" was told in the Minakami Town dialect and the native languages of the foreign residents in Minakami Town.

2) Talking and communication zone
To deepen exchanges, the zone was provided where participants can talk about their memories from their childhood and anything about child-raising, while they eat homemade "Oyatsu (snacks)" made by the foreign residents of Minakami Town.

On the event site, we saw smiling faces of the participants and they all got along with each other to activate Minakami Town together. Recognition of the existence of foreigners who will be involved in, and cooperate with the activation of Minakami Town created interaction with people who is necessary for a "multicultural network" to output rich sightseeing resources in Minakami Town in Japan and overseas. In the future, a cooperative system will be established to output information with foreigners residing in Japan.

Foreign residents who introduce their own country's lullabies

Participants who deepen exchanges while eating various culture's "Oyatsu (snacks)"

Activity state MOVIE

※If you want to view the video, Windows Media Player (free) is required.

Foreign student network group, Foreign student radio group

Gunma University conducted a survey by questionnaire in cooperation with universities in Gunma Prefecture and Maebashi Chamber of Commerce to survey the needs of foreign students and those of companies for foreign students. The questionnaire resulted in revealing that foreign students want to live in Japan even after they graduate from universities while there are few companies which plan to employ foreign students.
Based on the result, the following four projects were conducted.

(Foreign student network group)

■Project 1 Creating a community information magazine produced by foreign students

To create a community information magazine, part-time students studied the daily life of foreign students and observed the school life of foreign students in towns where many foreign students live (Takasaki, Maebashi, and Kiryu) and saw it from their viewpoint. It was discovered that foreign students are vulnerable in traffic, and need community life information, such as exchange events, full time employment and part-time jobs. Therefore, in cooperation with foreign students, the community information paper "Gunma Foreign Student LIFE" was published which introduces the state of "learning and living" of foreign students and stories of former foreign students who are successful at "working and living" in Gunma Prefecture.

Gunma Foreign Student LIFE Booklet, PDF

Activity state MOVIE

※If you want to view the video, Windows Media Player (free) is required.

(Foreign student radio group)

■Project 2 Radio, Web planning

To supplement the shortage of information for foreign students, a radio program was created and broadcasted featuring exchanges, jobs, music, and the understanding of the present status of foreign students.

Program concept

Under the theme of "Working (Hataraku)" and "Living (Kurasu)", information for supporting foreign students is broadcasted.
＊Period ：Jan.8th (Tue.) to March 26th (Tue.) 2013 12 episodes in total
＊Time ：9:30 pm to 9:59 pm (for 30 minutes)
＊Broadcast station：Maebashi City FM Radio station ・M・wave 84.5MHz

	Airdate	Content
1st episode	Jan.8th (Tue.)	Multicultural living and school life in Japan
2nd episode	Jan.15th (Tue.)	Entrance of study abroad Language institute
3rd episode	Jan.22nd (Tue.)	Stories from former male foreign students
4th episode	Jan.29th (Tue.)	Stories from former female foreign students
5th episode	Feb.5th (Tue.)	Internship of foreign students Part 1 ～Before internship begins～
6th episode	Feb.12th (Tue.)	Job hunting for foreign students
7th episode	Feb.19th (Tue.)	Expand possibilities for foreign students
8th episode	Feb.26th (Tue.)	Study abroad
9th episode	March 5th (Tue.)	Internship of foreign students Part 2 ～Review after internship ～
10th episode	March 12th (Tue.)	Exchange between foreign students and companies
11th episode	March 19th (Tue.)	Partnership between foreign students and university
12th episode	March 26th (Tue.)	Maebashi studying-abroad life～Hatarakurasu (working and living)～

Maebashi studying-abroad life homepage linkage

■Project 3 Exchange event

An exchange event was held to create an opportunity for connecting foreign students and the community, companies and Japanese students.

Time and date

Jan.19th 2013 (Sat.) 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Place

International exchange plaza hall (Center of Maebashi In Chuo Street)

We have heard foreign students say that they want to share their hobbies, to have information on jobs, to experience Japanese culture or to do something on their own.
In the future, exchange events will be held on a regular basis and the projects will be developed to establish networks for foreign students or local interested persons.

■Project 4 Internship

To learn the basis of the service industry, "service" and "hospitality", a foreign student from Vietnam had a one-day work experience in an interior furnishings shop in Takasaki City.

Activity state MOVIE

※If you want to view the video, Windows Media Player (free) is required.

Deregulation proposal

At present, because of the falling birth rate and the aging population, a shortage of truck drivers is a severe problem in Gunma Prefecture. The project discussed what kinds of human resources can supplement the labor shortage in the trucking industry, and the results were presented at a small symposium planned by part-time students under the title of "Exploring the possibilities of foreign human resources in the period of the labor shortage caused by the falling birth rate and the aging population" in the 2012 International Multicultural Symbiotic Symposium Part 2.