A group of students from National Taipei University in Taiwan visited Konan in July. It was a great opportunity for students from both countries to exchange ideas and share their cultural knowledge. But which language did we use? Not all of the Taiwanese students speak Japanese. And of course not all Konan students speak Taiwanese! 

So what did we do? At times like this we can rely on English! English is not only a language spoken by some native speakers from far away countries. It is also the most widely used lingua franca (共通語) in the world. So, for example, in this situation two groups of students from neighboring Asian countries rely on English to communicate with each other. 

 

 

Before meeting, Konan students prepared discussion questions about Taiwan and also about the image of Japan that Taiwanese people have. We were surprised by some of their answers!

 

 

This exchange of ideas was held at Konan’s Global Zone Porte – a comfortable and inviting facility that offers many kinds of cultural learning opportunities. As you can see, at Konan we don’t just study English, we use English. The Konan students who participated in this discussion are enrolled in our 「留学のための英語集中コース」 -- this is a course that students from any department on Okamoto campus can join. So, if you hope to become a real English user too, please consider joining us!
（文責:国際交流センター参与 / 国際言語文化センター教授　トーマス・マック）