Statement of Purpose
When I was 8 years old, I knew two things about Japan. First, a “Made in Japan” sticker was tantamount to a lifetime guaruntee. Our family's Japanese-made items—the car, the answering machine, the dot matrix printer we still use to this day—never broke. Second, the hilarious Urusei Yatsura, my favorite tv show, was from Japan. As a child, these two facts lead me to respect the Japanese as a very humorous people who took immense pride in whatever they did. Naturally I wanted to get closer to the culture, and in high school I decided to learn the language. There were so many books to read and so many people to talk to, and I just wanted more than anything to understand. Japanese proved to be quite difficult for me, but that only drove me harder to learn it. Since then I've made it my major and have been lucky enough to be able to study abroad twice, once in Nagoya and once in Hikone, about 8 months total. I cherish every moment I spend in Japan, and look forward to working there in the future.
I have a keen interest in both language and learning, and working as a teacher would allow me to apply those interests. The topics fascinate me and I spend several hours each day studying both. I enjoy studying Japanese in its own right, not just as a means to an end. I have similar feelings about English, and have made a hobby of writing in my free time, as well as researching into the actual nature of the language. Studying Japanese has made me much more aware of how my own language works, and that in turn has lead me to be more interested in the differences between English and Japanese. I enjoy teaching what I know to people, and hope I can learn something as well.
If I were allowed only two passions, my second would be cooking. When I lived in Japan, I would go to great lengths to be able to make the same food I frequently enjoyed at home. I do the same for Japanese food in America. In both our countries, food is deeply connected to the culture, and I think an authentic meal can say as much about who we are as any lecture. During my service learning class, I had the opportunity to make zarusoba for a large number of elementary students. Despite the dish's simple flavor and intrinsic healthiness, the children unequivically loved it. Many asked where they could get the ingredients, and the youngest ones asked me to write the recipe for them. There is very little like zarusoba in western cuisine, and the newness appealed to them. In both America and Japan, many of our staples are foreign in origin, and for that reason I believe food is an excellent means by which cultures can connect and influence each other. I hope to use my personal food and cooking knowledge to do just that.
In the future, I hope that my experiences at CSUMB and in Japan help me better teach English as a second language. I intend to take full advantage of my knowledge and abilities in an effort to bring our cultures together.
When I was 8 years old, I knew two things about Japan. First, a “Made in Japan” sticker was tantamount to a lifetime guaruntee. Our family's Japanese-made items—the car, the answering machine, the dot matrix printer we still use to this day—never broke. Second, the hilarious Urusei Yatsura, my favorite tv show, was from Japan. As a child, these two facts lead me to respect the Japanese as a very humorous people who took immense pride in whatever they did. Naturally I wanted to get closer to the culture, and in high school I decided to learn the language. There were so many books to read and so many people to talk to, and I just wanted more than anything to understand. Japanese proved to be quite difficult for me, but that only drove me harder to learn it. Since then I've made it my major and have been lucky enough to be able to study abroad twice, once in Nagoya and once in Hikone, about 8 months total. I cherish every moment I spend in Japan, and look forward to working there in the future.
I have a keen interest in both language and learning, and working as a teacher would allow me to apply those interests. The topics fascinate me and I spend several hours each day studying both. I enjoy studying Japanese in its own right, not just as a means to an end. I have similar feelings about English, and have made a hobby of writing in my free time, as well as researching into the actual nature of the language. Studying Japanese has made me much more aware of how my own language works, and that in turn has lead me to be more interested in the differences between English and Japanese. I enjoy teaching what I know to people, and hope I can learn something as well.
If I were allowed only two passions, my second would be cooking. When I lived in Japan, I would go to great lengths to be able to make the same food I frequently enjoyed at home. I do the same for Japanese food in America. In both our countries, food is deeply connected to the culture, and I think an authentic meal can say as much about who we are as any lecture. During my service learning class, I had the opportunity to make zarusoba for a large number of elementary students. Despite the dish's simple flavor and intrinsic healthiness, the children unequivically loved it. Many asked where they could get the ingredients, and the youngest ones asked me to write the recipe for them. There is very little like zarusoba in western cuisine, and the newness appealed to them. In both America and Japan, many of our staples are foreign in origin, and for that reason I believe food is an excellent means by which cultures can connect and influence each other. I hope to use my personal food and cooking knowledge to do just that.
In the future, I hope that my experiences at CSUMB and in Japan help me better teach English as a second language. I intend to take full advantage of my knowledge and abilities in an effort to bring our cultures together.
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