Jet Journal 2007 - Miyazaki 60 Article

The JET Journal 2007
1
The Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme

2
Foreword
The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme enters its 21st
year of working towards foreign language
education and local-level internationalisation in Japan.
In its first year, the JET Programme welcomed to Japan 848 participants from four countries: the United
States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. From these humble beginnings the Programme has
continually grown and has hosted over 46,000 participants from 54 countries to date.
This JET Journal is a collection of essays, poems and photographs from JET participants who share their
experiences on the Programme with us. These participants are living amid various thoughts and feelings while
in this never-before-experienced environment and culture of Japan. Their submissions provide a unique and
lively perspective on the everyday aspects of Japanese life and speak of the hopes and anxieties that they bring
with them to Japan, and of how while negotiating the bewildering landscape they also learn about themselves.
This year submissions were accepted not only from current and former JET participants but were expanded to
include Japanese teachers and students, indeed all those touched the Programme. We hope this change allows
the Journal to broaden the scope of grassroots internationalisation and understanding between JETs and those
around them.
Finally, I would like to personally thank each individual who submitted to the JET Journal, and wish you a
truly wonderful year.
Michihiro Kayama
Chairman of the Board of Directors, CLAIR

3
Message From the Editors
We would like to say a warm and sincere thank you to all those who took the time and effort to contribute to
the JET Journal.
We think of journals as travel diaries, and this JET Journal is just that: a record of JETs and those around
them on a journey, traveling from far around the world, all across Japan and deep within themselves. The
essays, stories and images they share allow a glimpse of the many different faces of Japan and of JET. To see
the impact the JET Programme has made on both the hosts and the participants one need look no further than
these pages, and any reader is sure to agree that the efforts of the JET Programme are well worth it.
This year we open a new chapter with the 2007 edition of the JET Journal. The JET Programme’s
continuing efforts to advance English language education and local-level internationalisation have led to a small
but significant change: we have expanded the Journal to allow for submissions not only from current and
former JET Programme participants, but also from any person who has made a personal connection through the
efforts of JETs.
For us, although it is unfortunate that we are unable to include all submissions, it was a pleasure reading and
seeing each of them and again we thank all contributors.
We hope you join us in our travels in internationalisation, and, above all, that you enjoy the trip!
Co-Editor / Cover Co-Editor
David Gotsill Koki Kimoto
Programme Coordinator Assistant Manager
CLAIR Tokyo CLAIR Tokyo

Essay Contest Winners194
Honourary Mention
Meet the Author
In July of 2003, I set off from Phoenix, Arizona for the small town of Yamanokuchi in
Miyazaki Prefecture. This quaint rural community, of just over 7,000, welcomed me
immediately as a member of their extended family. I will always be grateful for their
friendship and the memories we have shared.
This essay is dedicated to the people of Miyazaki who were willing to take a chance
and put their faith in a group of young people with a vision of giving back.
Particularly, I would like to thank Mr. Matsuno of Matsuno Supermarkets who
believed in me and the dream of “Miyazaki 60”. Along with the inspiration of Cary
Reid, the brilliant mind of Fukumi Yuda, and the unwavering support of the Miyazaki
JETs, we were able to “pay it forward.”
We hope that the next generation of JETs will be inspired by our story to find their
own way to create scholarship programs in their prefectures. Be a part of helping
your students experience the dream of living abroad just as we have. Good luck!
Pay It Forward
Patrick Bellew
Former ALT, Miyazaki Prefecture
“Pay It Forward” – yeah, you remember ... that movie
a few years back with the little kid from “The 6th
Sense.” In case you missed it, the movie is about a
young boy who has to think of something to change
the world as an assignment for his social studies class.
This is quite a daunting task for anyone, let alone a
12-year old boy. He develops a theory of paying a
favor not back, but forward. This way you can
continue to spread good deeds to three new people,
who will in turn do the same. Like most others who
saw the movie in the theaters, I thought to myself,
“Wow, what a simple, yet novel concept.” What a
wonderful world we would have if we all lived our
lives by this doctrine. Unfortunately, even a
powerful and simple idea like this can get lost in the
rush of our daily lives.
Anyone who has been fortunate enough to be selected
for the JET Program certainly has a list of people to
be thankful to and favors to pay forward. My three
years spent living in Japan gave me the opportunity
to travel, learn a new language, and make friends
from all over the world. But more importantly, it
gave me the chance to challenge myself, become part
of the community, connect with my students, and
truly get to know a culture and a nation in a way that
no ordinary traveler could ever experience. This
unique opportunity is a priceless gift that we have
been given by the people of Japan. The question is:
how do we pay back something that is priceless?
Moreover, how do you pay it forward? It took me
over 2 years to find my answer to these questions;
fortunately, I found the support of a tremendous JET
community to help me take action.

Essay Contest Winners 195
Internationalization
“Why did you choose Japan?” It is a question that
every JET must answer an innumerable amount of
times. Personally, I chose Japan because it seemed
like the furthest thing from American culture that I
could imagine. Having the chance to study abroad
in Australia as a junior in college was great; however,
in many ways it seemed like California with a big
accent. I learned to surf, saw a kangaroo for the
first time, and gained an appreciation for a different
culture but, it didn’t challenge me to break out of my
comfort zone. I wanted to be dropped into a
completely different world and learn how to survive.
What better place than a country that prides itself on
the uniqueness of its culture and language?
One of the aspects that initially attracted me to the
JET Program was its emphasis on “grassroots
internationalization”. Unlike private English
schools, which focus mainly on profit, the main
purpose of JET is to promote a mutual exchange and
respect of cultures on the community level. Senator
William Fulbright founded his renowned Fulbright
Program with similar goals in mind. He once wrote
that by promoting study abroad and an exchange of
culture, we could "bring a little more knowledge, a
little more reason, and a little more compassion into
world affairs and thereby increase the chance that
nations will learn at last to live in peace and
friendship". I can’t help but wonder how different
the world would be if the political leaders of every
nation had a chance to experience what I have on the
JET Program. Even the most powerful politicians
were elementary school students at one point. The
influence of teachers they had and foreign friends
they made as children most certainly impact the type
of decisions they make as adults.
New Friends
In spring of 2004, I met a group of Japanese students
that would forever impact my life and way of
thinking. My friends and I had been driving around

that afternoon for what seemed like hours. Looking
for a park to get a pickup game of basketball was no
easy task in Japan. We stumbled upon a university
perched on the hillside. “Surely there will be a team
practicing on the weekend,” we thought.
Like in a vivid dream, I can still remember the
moment we first peered into the dimly lit gymnasium
of Miyazaki International College (MIC). From a
distance, the faint sound of bouncing basketballs
assured us that we were in the right place. Kenta
Imanishi, a senior and captain of the MIC basketball
team, was the first person we met. With limited
Japanese, we struggled to introduce ourselves and ask
politely for a pickup game. To our surprise, we
were met with almost flawless English from our
newfound friend. “No problem, come on in,” said
Kenta. With the help of Kenta and the MIC Dean,
we were able to schedule regular practices and games
with the university students. We came to realize
that these were no typical Japanese college students.
As a requirement of their degree, each of them had
spent time living abroad and studying, some for as
long as 2 years. “What great role models for the
younger generation of Miyazaki,” I thought. If only
my students could see how speaking English and
having the experience of study abroad can change
you. It forced me to think about my role as an ALT
and what I could do to help give my students the
same opportunity.
Responsibility
What does it mean to “be a JET”? For some, it
means a chance to explore the world and figure out
what they were meant to do with their lives. For
others, it means a chance to repay their student loans
in a relatively short amount of time. “Being a JET”
means many things to different people, but it is
important for all of us to realize that it is as much an
opportunity as it is a responsibility. That
responsibility extends far beyond the classroom and
the workplace. This is a duty that we share, not
simply as English teachers, but as diplomats
representing our countries. Many JETs perform
community service, assist with school club activities,
or volunteer to teach community English classes.
It was late November 2005 when I realized how I
could fulfill my duty to pay it forward. What started
with a phone call from my good friend, Cary Reid,
would develop into a powerful movement of change
in our JET community. Together we developed the
idea for a monumental event that would bring
nationwide attention to our prefecture and give the
JETs of Miyazaki a unifying purpose.
First Steps
I think it was Sunday morning that I first asked
someone what day it was. I had just awoken to the
alarm of my cell phone. I lay there for a moment in
that dark room, but couldn’t quite move my body to
turn it off, let alone open my eyes wide enough to see
the alarm. It is difficult to describe, but somehow
the days since Friday had begun to blur together.
The only time I could grasp was the start and finish
of my next shift. “It’s Sunday morning.
3:45am . . . and you’re up in 15 minutes,” said the
voice over the distant cheers of the crowd. Yes, it
was 3:45 in the morning, and it was time to play
some ball. My team had officially been playing one
continuous basketball game for almost 44 hours.
Each of us was battling exhaustion, injuries, and our
own will power, but we were enjoying every minute
of it.
Months later, the August 2006 CLAIR News bulletin
would publish a summary of our event:
Miyazaki Prefecture JETs Set Guinness World
Record
A group of Miyazaki Prefecture JETs, cooperating
with local university students, broke a Guinness
World Record by playing a 60 hour basketball
game. The game, dubbed “Miyazaki 60”, began at
8 am on June 16th, and finished at 8 pm on June
18th. The JET organizers aimed to promote
grass-roots internationalization, and also hope to
use the proceeds to establish a scholarship fund to
send high school students to study abroad. CLAIR
would like to congratulate the JETs involved, and

is very proud of their efforts, which embody the
spirit of the JET Programme. 24 players, including
7 ALTs, participated in the game. Over 90
volunteers were involved in the planning and
fundraising for the event, which was touted by
local and national media.
CLAIR News; Vol XX, Issue 1. August 2006
We began the “Miyazaki 60” project by assembling a
group of JET participants and Japanese college
students. Almost all of our committee members had
benefited from the unique opportunity to live abroad
and experience a different culture. We felt proud to
be able to challenge this record with our close friends
from Miyazaki International College. These
students serve as a unique symbol of
internationalization within Miyazaki. The success
of the MIC students provides a constant reminder to
the younger generation of the value in cultural
exchange.
As English teachers we are constantly telling our
students that the best way to learn a foreign language
is to study abroad. We want them to travel, meet
foreigners, and immerse themselves like we have in a
foreign culture. However, for many of our students,
particularly in predominately rural prefectures, this
opportunity does not exist because of financial
constraints. We would like to take the responsibility
of not only telling our students to study abroad, but
also providing the financial support to make that
dream a reality.
In creating the world record Miyazaki 60 Basketball
Marathon and establishing a groundbreaking
scholarship program, the JET participants of
Miyazaki found a way to not only repay a favor to the
nation of Japan, but also to “pay it forward” to our
students, whose lives will be changed forever. And
that is what the JET Program is all about: changing
the world.
Author Ken Kersey once wrote, “You can count how
many seeds are in the apple, but you can’t count how
many apples are in the seed.” The Miyazaki JET
community is optimistic that their efforts have
planted a seed of change in the JET Program. It is
our greatest hope that one day, JET communities in
every prefecture throughout Japan will have
established their own scholarship program to help
send Japanese students abroad.
If you are reading this essay, it has been published.
This means that more people, like you, who can make
a difference, know our story. It also means that one
more student from Miyazaki is closer to having an
enriching cultural exchange experience through the
Miyazaki 60 scholarship fund.
To all those reading this essay and considering
spending a year or two on the JET Program, get ready
for a life changing experience. But more importantly,
BE ready for your chance to pay it forward.

202
Copyright 2007
Council of Local Authorities for International Relations
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means electronic, mechanical, or otherwise
without prior permission from the Council of Local Authorities
for International Relations (CLAIR).
The JET Journal offers a forum for exchange of opinions
regarding the JET experience for present and past participants.
The opinions expressed within are solely those of the authors
and do not reflect those of CLAIR or any organisation affiliated
with the JET Programme.

Produced by the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR)
Shin Kasumigaseki Building 19th Floor, 3-3-2 Kasumigaseki Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 100-0013
100-0013 3-3-2 19
TEL:03-3591-5486
FAX:03-3591-5350
www.jetprogramme.org

Jet Journal 2007 - Miyazaki 60 Article

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