Since 2016, SPICE has offered regional online courses to top high school students in Japan. The first regional course was offered to high school students in Tottori Prefecture. Since then, SPICE has increased its regional online course offerings to high school students in Hiroshima Prefecture, Kawasaki City, and Oita Prefecture. These courses present creative and innovative approaches to teaching Japanese high school students about U.S. society and culture and global themes. 

All four courses recently finished their 2019–20 term. The course instructors were most pleased with the achievement of their students and thus had an exceedingly difficult time choosing only two honorees for each course. This article provides a brief overview of each course and the naming of the student honorees.

Stanford e-Hiroshima
Given Hiroshima Prefecture’s historical ties with the United States, Stanford e-Hiroshima had special significance to the students and its Instructor Rylan Sekiguchi. Some of the course topics included Japanese immigration from Hiroshima to the United States, World War II, and the Honolulu-Hiroshima sister city relationship. Sekiguchi announced the honorees as follows:

Student Honoree: Ryoya Matsuyama
School: Hiroshima Prefectural Sera High School
Project Title: Ocean Acidification in Japan and the U.S.

Student Honoree: Karin Umeshita
School: Hiroshima Prefectural Hiroshima High School
Project Title: Survey of the Stanford Research Park as Industry-Academia Collaboration System

Stanford e-Kawasaki
Kawasaki City is a large industrial city in the greater Tokyo area with a population of approximately 1.5 million, making it Japan’s sixth most populous city. It is one of Japan’s most ethnically diverse cities. Many Japanese multinational companies are based in Kawasaki. Thus, Stanford e-Kawasaki’s main themes of entrepreneurship and diversity were familiar to students in concept, yet unfamiliar to their academic experience. Instructor Maiko Tamagawa Bacha announced the student honorees as follows:

Student Honoree: Shiori Makino
School: Tachibana High School
Project Title: Mindsets of Failure in American Comic Superheroes and Japanese Comic Superheroes 

Student Honoree: Yuki Nakata
School: Kawasaki High School
Project Title: The Role of Languages in a Diverse Society: The Case of Having an Official Language in a Company

Stanford e-Oita
Oita Prefecture, known for its hot springs, is located in the mountainous island of Kyushu. Having lived and taught on Kyushu for three years, Stanford e-Oita Instructor Kasumi Yamashita felt at home with her students. The focus of the course was the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Yamashita announced the honorees as follows:

Student Honoree: Hozuki Mori
School: Hita High School
Project Title: Education for Students Who Can’t Go to School

Student Honoree: Ken White
School: Oita Uenogaoka High School
Project Title: Immigration in Oita

Stanford e-Tottori
Tottori Prefecture is the least populous prefecture in Japan and is known for its seafood and nature, including its iconic sand dunes. The first kanji character of Tottori means “bird,” and Stanford e-Tottori Instructor Jonas Edman has helped his students gain a bird’s-eye view of U.S. society and culture with a focus on U.S.–Japan relations. Edman announced the honorees as follows:

Student Honoree: Mai Kageyama
School: Yonago Higashi High School
Project Title: Differences of Body Image Between Japan and the U.S.

Student Honoree: Yumeka Mizuno
School: Yonago Higashi High School
Project Title: Japanese Educational Issues and Their Solutions

The SPICE staff is looking forward to honoring these eight students at a ceremony at Stanford University on March 29, 2021. Each student will be given the opportunity to make a formal presentation in front of members of the Stanford community and the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.

SPICE also offers online courses to U.S. high school students on Japan (Reischauer Scholars Program), China (China Scholars Program), and Korea (Sejong Korea Scholars Program), and online courses to Chinese high school students on the United States (Stanford e-China Program) and to Japanese high school students on the United States and U.S.–Japan relations (Stanford e-Japan).

To stay informed of SPICE news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Related articles:

• Stanford e-Oita: Distance Learning Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic
• Stanford e-Kawasaki: Arches and Pillars of Support During an Unstable Time
• Stanford e-Tottori: Reflections
• Stanford e-Hiroshima, SPICE’s Newest Online Course for High School Students: Sharing Cranes Across the Pacific

The following is Part 2 of a two-article series on Stanford e-Oita. For Part 1, please go here. 

Stanford e-Oita is an online course for high school students in Oita Prefecture in the southwestern island of Kyushu, Japan, that is sponsored by the Oita Prefectural Government. Launched in fall 2019, it is offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) in collaboration with the Oita Prefectural Board of Education. SPICE is grateful to Oita Prefectural Governor Katsusada Hirose whose vision made this course possible.

Note: The content of this publication has not been approved by the United Nations and does not reflect the views of the United Nations or its officials or Member States. 

Stanford e-Oita was launched in October 2019, soon after the Climate Action Summit at the United Nations. Over six million people marched in protest all over the world. It was another wake-up call to global warming. Swedish activist, Greta Thunberg’s UN speech on the environmental crisis addressed the world, but resonated with the youth in particular, who made up many of the 5000 protesters at rallies throughout Japan. A high school student herself, “Greta-san’s” UN address also spoke to high school students throughout Japan including those in the smallest of towns in Oita Prefecture.

With a population of a little over a million, Oita Prefecture is located in the lush and mountainous island of Kyushu. It’s known for its onsen (hot springs) which bubble with organic minerals from the rich, volcanic deposits below. Steam rises from onsen towns like Beppu City as well as neighboring Yufuin in Yufu City at the foothill of Mt. Yufu. Stanford e-Oita students are from 15 high schools in Oita Prefecture. They are from the southern towns of Tsukumi and Usuki, known for their stone Buddhas. They are from Nakatsu and Usa, home to the head Hachiman Shrine, along the northern coast. They also come from the historic cities of Hita and Taketa further inland.

My reflections on the course follow, interspersed with comments made by students in their online discussions, in their final presentations, or in evaluations that were used for assessment, collected by Mr. Keisuke Toyoda and Mr. Hironori Sano of the Oita Prefectural Board of Education. Both teachers attended my class as well as the four days of final student presentations.

This year’s inaugural cohort focused on U.S.–Japan relations, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), and entrepreneurship. The six-month course ended in April 2020, just as the world began to lock down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To first- and second-year high school students, the 17 UNSDGs can seem broad and a bit intimidating, but my 30 Stanford e-Oita students reframed unfamiliar concepts like “Sustainable Cities” and “Responsible Consumption and Production” to more familiar terms such as “tourism” and “recycling,” and even “up-cycling.” They soon realized that not only do these issues reflect so much of the immediate world around them, these agendas are also interconnected with one another. It grew increasingly clear that each student has an impact on our environment. They also have the responsibility to sustain it whether they’re from Stockholm or Oita.

Oita’s selection to host the Rugby World Cup in October 2019, and its invitation of athletes from New Zealand, presented an opportunity to learn about UNSDGs in an unexpected way. While the international teams were warmly welcomed by Oita’s residents, their arrival may have stirred controversy had the local tourist association not loosened its age-old refusal of bathers with tattoos. While body-art is part of Maori cultural heritage and a source of pride and identity, in Japan, it is often affiliated with the underworld. Stanford e-Oita students used these current events to shift lines of sight and inquiry to have discussions on equity, inclusivity, and human rights.

Students identified one or more UNSDGs that resonated with their concerns and personal experiences whether it was the flooding of their neighborhood due to climate change, the rising aging population of their hometown, or the arrival of foreign residents in their communities. For their final presentations, students pitched their ideas on how they would tackle particular social or environmental challenges. They had five minutes to present 10 PowerPoint slides, in English.

Sustainable Cities and Communities
“Sustainable Cities and Communities” must have been the most popular UNSDG among students. This was not surprising considering Oita’s recognition as a major travel destination for onsen. When exploring “Sustainable Cities,” students wondered how onsen culture and tourism could be re-imagined to appeal to, and be accessible to more diverse audiences including teens, young professionals, international visitors, and the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community.

Stanford e-Oita student Koyomi envisioned a multilingual travel app linking travel agencies, inns, transportation, and tourist destinations, allowing visitors to explore sites and accessibility in real time. Nao looked at ways to address issues common in many regional towns such as population stagnation, vacant housing, and school closings. She suggested launching an interactive website to revitalize interest in historical sites and make regional festivals appealing to youth. Moe thought that historical sites could even be refreshed using “retro” designs and images.

Affordable and Clean Energy
Yuri approached onsen from a different, environmental angle. In her final presentation, she showed us how the onsen steam can harness renewable geo-thermal energy. Unlike nuclear plants, geo-thermal power plants harness energy from turbines, powered by steam, produced by water, and heated by seismic activity.

Nao described the “Heat Island” phenomenon in Japan: cities in urban areas are warmer than nearby rural areas, having the potential to raise the temperature of urban areas by several degrees, enough to affect weather patterns. One way to counter this effect would be to develop innovative and environmental “green roof” buildings.

Airi commented, “Before, I thought that onsen were just a source of tourism but onsen can also be thought of as renewable energy. It’s amazing that onsen can have many uses. We need to preserve this wonderful culture in Oita!” Students recognized that their neighborhoods, whether they lived in the city or in remote towns, were rich in resources and stories. 

Quality Education
Next, Stanford e-Oita students approached the UNSDG, “Quality Education.” Rather than focusing on the social and educational services for students already enrolled in schools, students looked at the potential educational needs of working, foreign students and their families, as well as foreigners who want to permanently relocate to Oita to work. Ken hoped to see laws enacted to provide these permanent immigrants with voting rights so they can become more empowered and contribute to Japanese society.

Kohaku proposed a cultural school for foreigners that would allow them to attend night classes, online. This would offer those working during the day with a chance to build up their language skills while simultaneously learn about Japanese culture and history. Proposals like this touch on education, gender, and economic growth, showing the inter-connectedness of UNSDGs. 

Hozuki supported online classes for non-traditional students who need flexible learning options. She also welcomed this option for youth who resist attending school due to bullying, domestic abuse, or a family’s financial insecurity. Hozuki added, “It would create a ‘safe space’ for them.”

Gender Equality
“International Coming Out Day” on October 11th is another “safe space” for individuals wanting to reach out to their communities for support and self-empowerment. Manaka pointed to specific “gender free” and “barrier-free” spaces that provide daredemo toire (the “anyone toilet”). Acknowledgment of “safe spaces” like these reduces the harassment and violence that many LGBT communities face.

Zero Hunger/Clean Water and Sanitation
Ayami pointed to the importance of promoting local foods and labeling it for transparency and accountability. Amiko suggested the creation of “Oita Care Packages” that would simultaneously promote local food to other regions of Japan and minimize food waste.

Asako made sure to add that the production of food also involved aquaculture. Honoka and Yuri noted that the management of these marine resources should begin with measures countering pollution.

Amika, who gave a presentation on tackling food waste using an app, commented, “I realized that there was something that even young people can do.” When asked how she would finance the development of her app, she replied with confidence, “Oh, I’ll just crowdfund!” Technology and social media have made it easier for students to collaborate and share ideas. This is certainly the case for tech-savvy high school students.

Conclusion
Big social change can come from individuals in small and remote towns. Stanford e-Oita students have shown that their hometowns in Oita offer fascinating contexts to begin conversations on sustainability. Students have gained a deeper appreciation of local natural resources, cultural traditions, and historical sites. They also gained a sense that they, too, can contribute to social change right from their own backyards. Yuzu noted, “What I enjoyed most about the final presentations was that I was able to get to know ‘Oita’ from different perspectives.”

Now, better equipped with the confidence to discuss their ideas and speak up about their local and global concerns, e-Oita students may feel a step closer to even internationally recognized activists like fellow teen Greta Thunberg. If the UNSDGs represent our world’s commitment to building a better world for people by 2030, then Stanford e-Oita students would be the perfect Gen Zers to stand alongside Greta to do just that. 

Acknowledgements
SPICE provided me with an opportunity to invite artists, activists, researchers, and entrepreneurs (including several Stanford alumni) to share their personal and professional stories with students over Zoom. Their openness to address questions put Stanford e-Oita students at ease, allowing them to take a bold step out of their comfort zones and engage. I’d like to thank the following individuals for their collaborative spirit and generosity:

Gary Mukai
Director, Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE)

Michelle Kumata
Artist and Former Exhibition Director, Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience

Jan Johnson
Owner, Panama Hotel [National Historic Landmark] in Seattle's Nihonmachi (Japantown)

Glenda Pearson
President, Friends of Mukai Farm & Garden [National Register of Historic Places]

The Honorable Norman Mineta
Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Transportation

Xiao Wang
CEO, Co-Founder, Boundless Immigration

Sara Daniels
CEO, Co-Founder, Blue Canoe Learning

Jonathan Poli
Product Design Engineer, Seattle Children's Hospital

SPICE also offers online courses to U.S. high school students on Japan (Reischauer Scholars Program), China (China Scholars Program), and Korea (Sejong Korea Scholars Program), and online courses to Chinese high school students on the United States (Stanford e-China Program) and to Japanese high school students on the United States and U.S.–Japan relations (Stanford e-Japan Program). 

To stay informed of SPICE news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Related articles:

• Stanford e-Oita: Distance Learning Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic
• SPICE/FSI Serves as Stanford University Host of the California-Japan Governors’ Symposium
• Announcing Stanford e-Oita, a New Online Course for High School Students in Oita Prefecture, Japan

The following is Part 2 of a two-article series on facilitating cross-cultural online learning. For Part 1, please go here.

Last month, I shared my reflections on a March 20, 2020 virtual class (VC) session that SPICE facilitated for high school students in Japan and the United States to engage in a cross-cultural online exchange. This online discussion engaged my U.S.-based students of the 2020 Reischauer Scholars Program and Waka Brown’s Japan-based students of the Spring 2020 Stanford e-Japan Program in a Zoom session, during which they talked and learned with and from one another on a range of topics, including the impact of COVID-19 within their respective communities.

During the main portion of the session, the 45 students were divided into six small breakout rooms to engage in 40 minutes of discussion. Each group had a designated volunteer student moderator and a notetaker/reporter; the latter was asked to share the key points of discussion from his or her small group when we reconvened towards the end of the 90-minute VC. All discussions were conducted in English, with the exception of one group, which was designated as a bilingual space for students who felt comfortable conversing in both English and Japanese.

Since this was the 2020 students’ first opportunity to meet (another joint VC on comparative education took place on April 10), we felt it important to preface the session by setting a few ground rules for discussion. Communication styles and norms—particularly in group settings—tend to be quite different in Japan and the United States. We have found it helpful, for example, to address these differences up-front to alleviate potential cross-cultural misunderstandings.

For assessment purposes, we also asked students to send feedback on their experiences in the session. Some of their comments are included below as we turn to the student perspectives on what they experienced in this joint online discussion. More specific points from our observations and students’ feedback fall into five areas.

First, the session provided a platform for students to talk openly about the COVID-19 pandemic and also to learn about perspectives from another country. Risako of Stanford e-Japan reflected, “I could … learn about the way American students perceive political issues and coronavirus through an absorbing discussion and was surprised to discover that their perspectives were much more similar to Japanese students than I had expected.” Alika of the RSP noted, “It was really interesting to me to see how different countries are coping with the virus. I was pretty surprised to hear that many Japanese people still use public transport/eat out at restaurants and go on with their daily lives in the face of the global pandemic.” She continued, “I think some of the e-Japan students were also surprised to hear that California has a ‘6 feet apart’ rule and that many restaurants have closed as a precaution.” Yasuyuki from Japan added, “It’s not difficult to look up the news to find out about what’s going on in America, but living in Japan, you hardly ever get the chance to talk with people in America and hear from the horse’s mouth.”

Second, the session underscored the importance of empathy at times like this. Kristie from the RSP commented, “I always enjoy finding commonalities between me and others, and I think our shared experiences with the coronavirus really allowed us to connect and understand one another. I think the most important thing I will take away from this experience is that youth in Japan and America are really no different—despite our varied experiences and interests we were able to communicate about issues facing our countries and relate to one another on a deeper level.” Similarly, Yuna of Stanford e-Japan noted, “Since I have had only [a] few opportunities to interact with American high schoolers, it was a precious time for me. It was wonderful especially because we both were interested in each other. Talking ... with them made me realize how [thin] the border between our minds actually are. We were, after all, just friends.”

Third, the session prompted students to reexamine their own culture. For example, Hiromu of Stanford e-Japan noted, “I feel very pleased to have such a wonderful opportunity to teach them [the RSP students about Japanese language] and, simultaneously, however, recognized how I lack information about Japanese culture. I think this integrated meeting is vital in that it provides us opportunities for looking back on our culture and broaden[ing] our narrow-minded thoughts.” Jin of the RSP added, “What’s more, they [the Stanford e-Japan students] all spoke fluent English. This made me reflect on the world languages education in the U.S. I think the U.S. should incorporate more global studies (both language and culture) in the education system. America-centric curriculum will cause the younger generation to lose a global vision, and become unaware of Japan as a major political and economic ally in East Asia.”

Fourth, the session shed light upon how diverse both countries are. Jin of the RSP noted, “I’ve always thought that Japan has a rather homogeneous population, but talking to e-Japan students has given me a new perspective on Japanese society. I encountered a student from Myanmar who is living in Japan currently, a Japanese student who used to live in NYC for four years, and a student from Singapore who has been studying abroad in Europe for a couple years.” Rinako of Stanford e-Japan reflected, “Up until now, even when I had the chance to communicate with people outside of Japan, it was usually done in English. However, this time, all three of the Reischauer Scholar students [in her small group] spoke fluent Japanese which made me very happy as we were able to use both English and Japanese.”

Fifth, we came to realize how invaluable international and cross-cultural dialog—especially during times of crisis—can be for students. Having a session during such an unprecedented time seemed to add special significance to the experience. Brandon of the RSP noted, “Overall, it was an extremely memorable discussion, and I hope that we can continue this kind of online cross-cultural connection throughout the rest of the program.” Many Stanford e-Japan students like Fuka also reflected upon the opportunity to discuss critical topics like the coronavirus at this time. She noted, “It gave me a chance to think about familiar issues not just with people of my own country but with people from all kinds of backgrounds.”

Students are among those most acutely experiencing the direct impact of this global pandemic. As they look into the future with confusion and uncertainty about their educational prospects and options, our students seemed to find comfort in this opportunity to connect with their like-minded peers across the Pacific. As they reflected upon their differences, they deepened their understanding of one another and forged what I hope become lasting friendships.

For more information about the Reischauer Scholars Program or the Stanford e-Japan Program, please visit our programs’ webpages at reischauerscholars.org and stanfordejapan.org. SPICE also offers other online courses to U.S. high school students on China (China Scholars Program) and Korea (Sejong Korea Scholars Program), and an online course to Chinese high school students on the United States (Stanford e-China Program).

To stay informed of SPICE news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Related articles:

• Bridging “Social Distancing” Across the Pacific: 6 Tips for Facilitating Cross-Cultural Online Learning
• SPICE’s Stanford e-Japan Instructor Waka Takahashi Brown Honored with the Elgin Heinz Outstanding Teacher Award
• Stanford e-Japan: My Window to the Wider World
• Honoring High School Students from Japan and the United States: A Glow for Global Peace
• The RSP: A Stepping Stone in My Journey with Japan
• Yanai Tadashi Foundation and SPICE/Stanford University

The following is Part 1 of a two-article series. For Part 2, please go here.

Stanford e-Oita is an online course for high school students throughout Oita Prefecture in the southwestern island of Kyushu, Japan, that is sponsored by the Oita Prefectural Government. Launched in fall 2019, it is offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) in collaboration with the Oita Prefectural Board of Education. SPICE is grateful to Oita Prefectural Governor Katsusada Hirose whose vision made this course possible. 

Social media posts, video-conference invites, and webinar notifications flood our inboxes ever since COVID-19 drove traditional classroom instruction online. Distance learning has gone mainstream.

While distance learning may never replace traditional classroom instruction, it’s certainly transforming how we teach, learn, and behave. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, 30 Stanford e-Oita students in Japan—on the other end of my virtual classroom—showed me what distance learning can offer: a greater appreciation of where we live, renewed cross-cultural perspectives, and a chance to enhance one’s communication skills in a foreign language without a textbook, classroom, or a trip overseas.

Students from 15 high schools throughout Oita Prefecture—from the capital city of Oita to the tiny island of Hotojima—logged onto their laptops, tablets, and smart phones on Saturday mornings for my bi-weekly distance learning class. It’s a course offered to highly motivated students with a certain proficiency in English. They could attend a class as if they were in Palo Alto without ever having to leave their tatami-mat living rooms.

Stanford e-Oita focuses on three areas: U.S.–Japan relations, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), and entrepreneurship. These are the collective objectives of SPICE, the Oita Prefectural Board of Education, and Oita’s Governor Hirose. For six months, I explored their intersections with my students.

I designed a course curriculum that engages students to think critically about global issues, empowers them to take pride in their hometowns, and encourages them to give back to their communities. We took what’s happening in the world and made it relevant to their daily lives in Oita. Students took this a step further by exploring issues that were personally meaningful.

Students worked individually and collaboratively through guided group discussions, submitted written assignments, developed research projects, watched documentary films, and prepared multi-media slideshows as part of their final presentations—all in English. I also created virtual experiential learning opportunities for students by introducing them to guest speakers via Zoom. In the pre-COVID-19 days, I took students along with me on fieldtrips to National Historic Sites in Seattle’s International District and visited social activists on Vashon Island, Washington.

Stanford e-Oita is taught in English, but it is not an English language course. I offer my students a chance to become confident in English, competent in critical thinking, and fluent in accessing the technologies of a digital classroom. We use online platforms like Zoom and Canvas and take advantage of discussion boards, breakout sessions, and other digital tools which are not often used in Japanese schools.

In order to ensure access and equity, students who did not have access to a computer or Wifi were able to return to their schools on Saturday mornings to take the class in the computer labs. Most students worked on tablets (some used smartphones) and grew accustomed to the online format within a few weeks. For the most part, e-Oita students were excited and open to technology enabled learning. One student noted, “For me, using Zoom in this new style of class is really refreshing. Students are scattered all over Oita and you’re in America but we’re all communicating through my tablet. It’s so cool!”

Getting Japanese students on board Stanford’s rigorous distance learning program, in a foreign language, was a challenge at first. In fact, the learning curve was steep for all of us. I taught my students the word “troubleshoot” early on and walked them through online setting changes to video presentation uploads.
 

Here are some lessons learned:

Distance learning provides learning opportunities for students in less accessible communities—in rural towns or islands—where traditional classrooms are unable to serve.

Distance learning allows students to re-invent themselves with a new audience, with people you have never met.

Distance learning can create an informality that breaks down the wall between teachers and students and makes their relationship less hierarchical. This is a new experience for students from Japan.

Distance learning allows instructors to invite speakers whose participation is not limited by geography, departmental budgets, disabilities, or availability of a considerable amount of time. All they need is a quiet corner, a laptop with Wifi, and a time commitment of 30 minutes to an hour.   

Section Manager Hironori Sano and Teachers’ Consultant Keisuke Toyoda of the Global Education Acceleration Project Team (High School Education Division) of the Oita Prefectural Board of Education, reflected, “The most amazing thing is seeing how our students developed through the program. They have acquired five important skills: (1) the ability to cooperate with people around them; (2) the ability to state their ideas; (3) knowledge of Japan and Oita; (4) the confidence to communicate in English; and (5) the confidence to make a contribution in the world.”

Kasumi Yamashita

In part two of this series, I will focus on Stanford e-Oita’s priorities (United Nations Sustainable Development Goals), guest speakers, final student presentations, and assessment.

SPICE also offers online courses to U.S. high school students on Japan (Reischauer Scholars Program), China (China Scholars Program), and Korea (Sejong Korea Scholars Program), and online courses to Chinese high school students on the United States (Stanford e-China Program) and to Japanese high school students on the United States and U.S.–Japan relations (Stanford e-Japan). 

To stay informed of SPICE news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Related articles:

• Announcing Stanford e-Oita, a New Online Course for High School Students in Oita Prefecture, Japan
• SPICE/FSI Serves as Stanford University Host of the California-Japan Governors’ Symposium

The following is Part 1 of a two-article series on facilitating cross-cultural online learning.

COVID-19 has now extended into most communities around the world, and we are only just beginning to understand the depth and breadth of its impact. Here at SPICE, our hearts and minds are especially focused on the effects that this global pandemic is having upon students. School closures and remote learning are becoming the norm as people are being asked—and in many cases, required—to maintain “social distancing” in order to prevent an even more rapid spread of the disease.

Every day there are more resources becoming available for teaching and learning online in the COVID-19 era. Many educators are struggling with how to adapt their teaching to the digital environment, while also striving to take full advantage of their new online context. We would like to share a few tips that we have learned from our own experiences with leveraging online teaching to forge international student connections, in hopes of encouraging others to develop similar cross-cultural online experiences for students on a global scale.

First, let me describe our own context for teaching online at SPICE. SPICE has been engaging high school students in the United States in online learning since 2004, when our first cohort of the Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP) began its intensive study of Japan and U.S.–Japan relations. When we launched a counterpart to the RSP in 2015—the Stanford e-Japan Program, an online course on U.S. society and culture and U.S.–Japan relations taught to high school students in Japan—we began to explore ways in which these two cohorts of students could come together and learn directly from and with one another. Just as the RSP students are spread across the United States, the Stanford e-Japan students are distributed across the islands of Japan. The diversity of perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences that these students bring to their cohorts is one of the richest and most valued aspects of SPICE’s online teaching initiatives.

We wanted to give our RSP and Stanford e-Japan students an opportunity to come together and discuss their shared experiences, concerns, and anxieties within the contexts of their new realities. How is the COVID-19 pandemic impacting daily life in their respective societies and communities? What are the local and national government responses to this crisis? How are their schools managing the closures, and how is it impacting their future education plans and prospects? These were among the many topics discussed by students across the Pacific at a recent virtual event.

On Friday, March 20 at 7:00pm PDT (which was 11:00am on Saturday, March 21 in Japan), 45 students from across Japan and the United States came together in a Zoom virtual classroom (VC) session to meet, chat, share, learn, and listen. Below are a few best practices that we implemented in this recent session, and that we hope will be helpful for others when considering pedagogical strategies for engaging students in international and cross-cultural online discussions.

1. Prepare students in advance

To make for a rich and productive session, it is crucial that students come to the session well prepared and ready to engage actively. Prior to the session, all students were sent an agenda and asked to prepare at least two questions for small-group discussion. We also asked for student volunteers from each course to serve as small-group discussion leaders; half from RSP, half from Stanford e-Japan. Simple guidelines for moderating the discussion were sent to the discussion leaders in advance, including the following:

• Begin by identifying yourself as the small-group discussion leader.
• Facilitate self-introductions.
• Be mindful of encouraging all students to participate and voice their opinions and perspectives.
• Remind everyone of the agenda and the time allotted for small-group discussion.

2. Set basic ground rules for discussion

For online discussions in general—and especially for discussions in a cross-cultural setting—it is important for students to know what to expect and understand what is expected of them. In our case, because communication styles and norms—particularly in group settings—tend to be quite different in Japan and the United States, we have found it helpful to address these differences up-front to alleviate potential cross-cultural misunderstandings. Following brief introductions by the RSP and Stanford e-Japan course instructors, we began the session by taking a few minutes to highlight key differences in cross-cultural communication styles. For example, students in the United States tend to be less comfortable and/or familiar with silence or pauses in conversation, while students in Japan are often used to allowing for more time and space to think before speaking up.

3. Divide students into small groups

While student discussions can certainly be facilitated in one large group, we highly recommend dividing students into smaller groups if your software allows. (In Zoom, use the “Breakout Rooms” feature to do this.) In our experience, small groups create an environment that fosters dialogue that is more student-centered, dynamic, and inclusive—and therefore more meaningful to students. We have found that group sizes of five to eight work well. With 45 students in attendance at our recent session, we decided to divide students into six small breakout rooms in Zoom, each with a mix of students from the United States and Japan. All groups held their discussions in English, with the exception of one bilingual group comprised of American students fluent in Japanese and Japanese students fluent in English. With about seven or eight students in each group, each student had ample opportunity to actively engage in discussion and share his or her perspectives and experiences with one another. Each group was preassigned a topic/theme for discussion: COVID-19 (two groups), U.S.–Japan politics and economy, Japanese pop culture, Japanese language, and education.

4. Assign roles

In addition to the discussion leader role, students were also asked to assign a notetaker/reporter in each small group. For groups with an RSP student leader, a Stanford e-Japan student was asked to report back to the main group at the end of the session, and vice versa for groups with a Stanford e-Japan leader.

5. Support student discussion

Once students’ discussions are underway, periodically check in on each group and provide support as needed. We use Zoom for our virtual class platform, which allows for the host to hop between the breakout rooms throughout the duration of the session. While we prefer to allow for the small-group discussions to remain student-centered and student-led, there are times when a teacher might jump into a small group and either notice that a particular student is dominating the discussion, or that there are extended silences. It would be appropriate here for a teacher to send a private message to the discussion leader with some guidance and support as needed.

6. Debrief as a class

Save time at the end of class to reconvene students as a large group and share out to each other. In our case, the notetaker/reporter for each small group presented a short summary of his or her group’s discussion and some time was allowed for comments from the whole group following each presentation. While there were five different topics assigned to the six groups, it was interesting to see that all of the groups ended up discussing the impact of the COVID-19 situation at some point during their time together. Dedicating time to this whole-group debrief enabled students to learn about different perspectives and varied comparative responses to COVID-19, and it created a valuable opportunity for students to forge a cohesive virtual community of their own.

Concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic, of course, hovered above all of us during the session and one of the big “take-aways” for the students was how interdependent and interconnected the world is. The anxieties of suddenly transitioning to online learning, being separated from friends and classmates, and not knowing how this pandemic might impact their prospects for higher education are shared by high school students everywhere. With many students transitioning to some form of remote learning, this could be an ideal time for young people to reach out across cultural and societal boundaries and deepen their international and cross-cultural awareness and understanding, and for schools to consider offering opportunities for these virtual connections to be made.

For more information about the Reischauer Scholars Program or the Stanford e-Japan Program, please visit our programs’ webpages at reischauerscholars.org and stanfordejapan.org. SPICE also offers other online courses to U.S. high school students on China (China Scholars Program) and Korea (Sejong Korea Scholars Program), and an online course to Chinese high school students on the United States (Stanford e-China Program).

To stay informed of SPICE news, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Related articles:

• SPICE’s Stanford e-Japan Instructor Waka Takahashi Brown Honored with the Elgin Heinz Outstanding Teacher Award
• Stanford e-Japan: My Window to the Wider World
• Honoring High School Students from Japan and the United States: A Glow for Global Peace
• The RSP: A Stepping Stone in My Journey with Japan
• Yanai Tadashi Foundation and SPICE/Stanford University

In Summer 2020, three of the top students of the Fall 2019 Stanford e-Japan distance-learning course will be honored at an event at Stanford University. The three Stanford e-Japan Day honorees—Ayano Hirose (Okayama Sozan High School), Chisaki Sano (Gunma Kokusai Academy), and Natsumi Shindo (Keio Girls Senior High School)—will be recognized by Stanford e-Japan Instructor Meiko Kotani for their coursework and exceptional research essays that focused respectively on “Three Basic Ways to Promote Cross-Cultural Understanding in Japanese Education,” “U.S.–Japan Relations: Economic Interdependence Seen in 7-Eleven Operations,” and “The U.S.–Japan Security Alliance: Its Preservation and the Responsibilities of Both Countries.”

Yuta Myojo (Rikkyo Ikebukuro High School) received an Honorable Mention for his coursework and research paper on “How Could Japanese Society Achieve Increased Biculturalism: From the Aspects of Education Reform and Self-Awareness.”

In the Fall 2019 session of Stanford e-Japan, students from the following schools successfully completed the course: Aiko Gakuen (Ehime), Gunma Kokusai Academy (Gunma), Hiroshima High School (Hiroshima), Hiroshima Prefectural Hiroshima Junior/Senior High School (Hiroshima), Hitachi First Senior High School (Ibaraki), Ichikawa Junior and Senior High School (Chiba), Keio Girls Senior High School (Tokyo), Keio Senior High School (Kanagawa), Mita International High School (Tokyo), Nishiyamato Gakuen High School (Nara), Okayama Prefecture Asahi Senior High School (Okayama), Okayama Sozan High School (Okayama), Rikkyo Ikebukuro High School (Tokyo), Ritsumeikan Uji High School (Kyoto), Sendai Shirayuri Gakuen (Miyagi), Senior High School at Otsuka, University of Tsukuba (Tokyo), Senior High School at Kyoto University (Kyoto), Shibuya Kyouiku Gakuen Shibuya Senior High School (Tokyo), Shibuya Makuhari Senior High School (Chiba), Shirayuri Gakuen Senior High School (Tokyo), Takada High School (Mie), Takatsuki Senior High School (Osaka), Tokyo City University Senior High School (Tokyo), Waseda University Senior High School (Tokyo), Yokohama Science Frontier High School (Kanagawa), and Zushi Kaisei High School (Kanagawa).

For more information about the Stanford e-Japan Program, please visit stanfordejapan.org.

To stay informed of news about Stanford e-Japan and SPICE’s other programs, join our email list and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

SPICE offers separate online courses for U.S. high school students. For more information, please see the Reischauer Scholars Program (online course about Japan), Sejong Scholars Program (online course about Korea), and China Scholars Program (online course about China).

Related articles:

• Spring 2020 Session of Stanford e-Japan Online Course Begins
• Winners Announced for the Spring 2019 Stanford e-Japan Award
• SPICE’s Stanford e-Japan Instructor Waka Takahashi Brown Honored with the Elgin Heinz Outstanding Teacher Award
• Stanford e-Japan: My Window to the Wider World

The Stanford Center at Peking University (SCPKU), the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL), and the APARC China Program jointly hosted a workshop on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in early March. The workshop, held on March 2 and 3, welcomed researchers from around the world with expertise in the Initiative. Unfortunately, because of the rapidly developing health emergency related to the coronavirus, participants from not only China, but also Japan, were prevented from attending. As described by Professor Jean Oi, founding director of SCPKU and the China Program, and Professor Francis Fukuyama, director of CDDRL and the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy, who co-chaired the workshop, the meeting aimed to provide a global perspective on the BRI, consolidate knowledge on this opaque topic, and determine the best method and resources for future research.  

The workshop began with presentations from several of the invited guests. Dr. Atif Ansar from the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School kicked off the first day by describing not only the tremendous opportunity that the BRI presents to developing economies, but also the serious pitfalls that often accompany colossal infrastructure projects. Pointing out the poor returns on investment of mega infrastructure projects, Ansar examined the frequest cost and schedule overruns, random disasters, and environmental degradation that outweigh the minimal benefits that they generally yield. China’s own track record from domestic infrastructure projects does little to mitigate fear of these risks, Ansar claimed. In response, he urged professional management of BRI investments, institutional reforms, and intensified deployment of technology in BRI projects. Dr. Ansar was followed by Dr. Xue Gong of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Dr. Gong’s analysis centered on the extent to which China’s geopolitical motivations influenced its outward foreign direct investments (OFDI). Although her research was still in the early stages, her empirical analysis of China’s OFDI inflows into fifty BRI recipient countries from 2007-2018 nevertheless revealed that geopolitical factors often outweigh economic factors when it comes to China’s OFDI destinations.

Image

Professor Curtis J. Milhaupt and Scholar-in-Residence Jeffrey Ball, both at Stanford Law School, followed with individual presentations on the role of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the BRI and the emissions impact of the BRI on climate change, respectively. Professor Milhaupt  characterized Chinese SOEs as both geopolitical and commercial actors, simultaneously charged with implementing Party policies and attaining corporate profits. Chinese SOEs are major undertakers of significant overseas BRI projects, acting not only as builders but also as investors, partners, and operators. This situation, Milhaupt asserted, carries significant risks for SOEs because these megaprojects often provide dismal returns, have high default rates, and can trigger political backlash in their localities. Milhaupt highlighted the importance of gathering firm-level data on businesses actually engaged in BRI projects to better infer geostrategic, financial, or other motivations. Jeffrey Ball turned the discussion to carbon emissions from BRI projects and presented preliminary findings from his four-country case studies. He concluded that, on aggregate, the emissions impact of the BRI is still “more brown than green.” Twenty-eight percent of global carbon emissions may be accounted for by BRI projects, Ball asserted, underscoring the importance of the BRI to the future of global climate change.

The day concluded with presentations by  Michael Bennon, Managing Director at the Stanford Global Projects Center, and Professor David M. Lampton, Oksenberg-Rohlen Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Bennon first presented findings from two empirical case studies of BRI projects and then went on to describe how the BRI is now practically the “only game in town” for infrastructure funding for developing countries. Lengthy environmental review processes at Western multilateral banks have turned the World Bank, for example, from a lending bank into a “knowledge bank,” he argued. He also highlighted that, in general, economic returns on BRI projects for China are very poor, even though recipient countries may accrue macroeconomic benefits from these projects. Finally, Professor Lampton turned the discussion back to Southeast Asia, where China is currently undertaking massive cross-border high-speed rail projects through eight ASEAN countries. He described how each host country had varying capacity to negotiate against its giant neighbor, and how the sequential implementation of these cross-border rail projects also had varying impacts on the negotiating positions of these host countries. BRI played out differently in each country, in other words, eliciting different reactions, push-backs and negotiated terms.

The second day of the workshop was dedicated to working toward a collaborative approach to future BRI research. The group discussed the key gaps in the existing research, including how to know what China’s true intentions are, how to measure those intentions, who the main players and their interests in both China and the host countries are, and even what the BRI is, exactly. Some cautioned that high-profile projects may not be representative of the whole. Participants brainstormed about existing and future sources of data, and stressed the importance of diversifying studies and seeking empirical evidence.