1月よりニュージーランドへ留学していた生徒1名が、3月末に無事帰国しました。現地の語学学校や現地校での学びを通して、語学力の向上に加え、主体性や異文化理解を深めるなど、大きく成長することができました。多くの貴重な出会いにも恵まれ、充実したターム留学となりました。以下に、帰国した生徒のレポートをご紹介いたします。

　 I came back to Japan on March 22nd. My 75 days in New Zealand flew by.

　 At first, it was a challenge for me to communicate in English because people in New Zealand speak very fast, and Kiwi English has a different accent and intonation from American English. Therefore, I could not communicate very well with my host mother, which was a bit difficult for me. However, by asking my host mother for advice and making friends at a language school, my communication skills gradually improved. I enjoyed spending time with my host mother and friends. All of them were older than me, so they often helped me. I am truly grateful to them. I still keep in touch with them once in a while.

　 I cried on the day I moved from my first host family to the second one. My next host family was very kind as well. They often spoke to me and told me about New Zealand. They are Vietnamese, so I often ate Vietnamese food, which suited my taste. I learned how to cook and tried cooking by myself. My host mother is a food technology teacher, so she is good at teaching cooking. I made Japanese food for my host family once a week. Before I went to New Zealand, I didn’t like cooking, but now I am interested in it and am learning more about it in Japan.

　 I really liked a local school called Sacred Heart Girls’ College. This school is Catholic, so it was very different from Doshisha Girls’ School. I liked the religion class. It was very difficult because I didn’t know most of the words used in class. Understanding the class was a challenge, but it was also interesting. There were many people who believe in Jesus there. At the local school, most of the students are Christians. It was one of the most interesting differences between Japan and New Zealand. I also liked learning about Māori culture there. In fact, the pronunciation of Māori is a bit similar to Japanese. I learned some Māori words, songs, and culture. My family name actually sounds Māori, which was very interesting for me, and I am still learning about Māori now.

　 New Zealand is one of the most famous immigrant countries. Therefore, there are many different ethnic groups such as Asians, Europeans, Polynesians, and Māori. As a result, I was able to make friends with people from all over the world. I loved the environment in New Zealand, where people can get along regardless of race or age.

　 I loved the people, food, nature, and everything about New Zealand. I am very grateful to my friends, host families, and my family for supporting me. Thanks to them, I gained confidence in my English and communication skills. I hope to go back to New Zealand again someday in the future.