Japanese students visit Knolls Vista Elementary
Trainees from the Japanese Agricultural Training Program at Big Bend Community College visited Knolls Vista Elementary Monday.
MOSES LAKE - Twelve energetic Japanese agriculture trainees visited a third-grade classroom and shared their culture and traditions with some equally energetic nine-year-olds.
The trainees were greeted by a chorus of "Konnichiwa" from the third-graders. The trainees wrote the students' names in Kanji and shared their knowledge of Japan, along with a lot of smiles.
Within the last week, the third graders learned how to count to 10 in Japanese and discovered Japan is about the size of California and has a population of 128 million, in addition to many other geographical and cultural facts about Japan. When concerned with the recent tsunami, third-graders asked how the JATP program ties in, and it was stated that the tsunami's effects on Japanese agriculture makes the trainees' commitment to the program even more personal and important to finding solutions to the challenges that lie ahead.
The trainees brought small electronic dictionaries to assist with writing the third-graders' names.
"Their translators were like little computers," Brice Carson said.
"It was really awesome that they were working so hard on their English," Laurissa Oronia added.
Tomohiro Aoki and Kensho Hirai were talking with students practicing their English and when third-grader Alfredo Moreno said, "Arigato" and Hirai responded with "De nada." The students laughed at the cross-cultural connection. All of the students bowed and said, "Arigato" and shook hands with the trainees as they left the classroom and went on to visit other classrooms at Knolls Vista Elementary.
"Knolls Vista Elementary is pleased to make the connection with the JATP students and honored by their visit. The Knolls Vista students benefit from personal contact with the JATP students and grow in their understanding of world cultures," Principal Michael Riggs stated.
Forty-nine Japanese students arrived in the U.S. on March 25 and are part of the Japanese Agriculture Training Program, which has been in operation for the past 45 years through Big Bend Community College. The program is an 18-month program in which they spend approximately five months in school and 13 months of work/training on the farm.
Big Bend provides the initial eight weeks of training. The students are instructed in English as a Second Language (ESL) and an introduction to American culture and agriculture. Trainees are given tractor driving and car driving lessons. Some take tests for their Washington State driver's license.
The trainees will be leaving Saturday for long-term farm assignments related to their specialties, including beef, dairy, potted plants, row crops, orchards, citrus and vegetables.
The BBCC Foundation is receiving donations to a fund to assist returned trainees who have been affected by the tsunami. Already $2,800 in donations have been received from local people and from host farmers across the U.S. The Foundation will follow the advice of the Japan Agriculture Exchange Council for distributing the funds.
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