WAIT FOR ME! 

　　　　　香川県 三本松高等学校 ２年   渡辺　光

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

As a member of the International Class of Sanbonmatsu High School. I have had many chances to attend international exchange programs. Through them, I have learned the value of English as an international language. Expressing our ideas in a foreign language, is a challenge that gives us confidence and shows us a new world. 

Before I entered this class, I never knew that there was a job called Nihongokyoshi. I was filled with admiration for foreign countries and English, and looked down on anything Japanese. One day,to my surprise, I saw a TV program showing Australian children studying Japanese. I was amazed to find there were many people who studied Japanese as a foreign language and for the first time. I felt proud, and started to become more interested in my own country. 

At Sanko, we are very lucky to have a teacher from Australia called Natalie. She is not only our teacher, but also our friend. What she has taught us, is not only English, but about 'Natalie' herself, her life and her dreams. I also want to be a teacher, who can teach the fun of learning foreign languages to children around the world. 

Recently, I had the chance to listen to a lecture about the job of a Nihongokyoushi from a member of JICA. She told us, "Students who study Japanese think Japan is a wonderful place and if you go overseas as a Japanese teacher, you have to think of yourself as an ambassador of your country." On hearing this, I was filled with pride for the country that I have been brought up in and that has given me my language and culture. It was then that I decided that I want to be a Nihongokyoushi. Being a native speaker of Japanese I thought I could teach Japanese easily. However when I went to Australia on a homestay program, and couldn't answer the questions that my host family asked me about Japan, I realized that "To know is one thing and to teach is another". I have a lot to learn about my own country. 

My experience in Australia changed me and my classmates in many ways. We are more interested in the world around us and have started taking steps towards our future. We have a big plan. I have many friends who want to be teachers at home or abroad. As teachers, our network of friendship will create the chance for our students to meet each other students from around the world. When I link my own dreams with the dreams of my friends, who knows what kind of chemical reaction will occur? 

Today, again, I look up at the blue sky out of the classroom window and I imagine the world and the people that I am yet to meet. We have only one sky: no countries and no borders. I believe that under this beautiful sky my future students are waiting for me, and I am very excited about meeting them. 

WAIT FOR ME!!