[outfinofulpv]

Hey all, I decided to take the plunge and apply for the JET programme, set to leave for Japan next July. I've been working on my 'personal statement' essay and I'm asking everyone I know to read and comment on it. Some of it is obviously stolen, even from Kendo World magazine...

The essay questions are

a) why do you want to do JET?
b) what can you offer JET, what travel experience do you have and what problems did you have to deal with?
c) in a classroom environment, how would you motivate uninterested students?

I tried not to abruptly stop the essay for each question so that it flows easily, but have marked the transitions for your clarity.

Here goes...

My reason in participating in the JET program is to experience the Japanese way of life and to share my culture with the people I come into contact with.

My interest in Japanese culture began around two years ago when I started practicing Kendo. So that I could understand my sensei better, I took a course in Japanese language and from there my interest in Japanese culture developed. I am by no means fluent, this year I am sitting the examination for JLPT level three, however I can maintain everyday conversation in Japanese and am comfortable in situations where the person I am talking to can speak little or no English.

At first my interest was only in Kendo, but as I started learning the language and making Japanese friends, I was exposed to more and more of the culture and became very enthusiastic about going to Japan. At first I was very impressed with all of the usual things that get a gaikokujin's attention... the food, the history, the media and things like that. The differences between east and west were always made apparent to me by my Japanese friends I had made in the dojo or a language exchange, and my non-Japanese sempai who would tell me stories about their visits to Japan. I was fascinated by concepts like the focus on the group rather than the individual, the social hierarchy clearly manifested in the language or perhaps the strong sense of identity as a Nihonjin that Japanese people have. After learning about all of these facets of Japanese culture, I slowly came upon an important realisation.

The concept in most westerners minds about Japan is a place that is completely alien to them, and few really ever take that image any further. If they do however, like me, the differences in the way people do things, the food they eat, the work habits, the social norms and values are all completely fascinating. To someone new to the culture, Japan is a neverending source of new, wonderful, interesting differences that can be experienced. However, focusing on the differences alone can only get you so far. It's my belief that celebrating our differences and recognising the similarites between our societies is, for a gaijin, the starting point for a real understanding of Japan, it's culture, and its relationship with the rest of the world. It is my intention to explore this in my time with the JET program.



This is not just an observation of Japanese culture and western culture, but more a statement about human nature in general. Having been brought up in many different cultural environments meant that looking for the similarities was the only way I could preserve a sense of culutural identity for myself.

I was born in the UK but soon moved to Pakistan, the country of my families origin. Due to part of our family already settling here, my parents decided to move to London when I was six years old. Three years later my father decided to work as an expatriate, lecturing at the Riyadh College of Health and Science in the capital city of Saudi Arabia, and a year later the family, myself included, followed. Moving to Saudi Arabia was a difficult experience as I was very used to the way of doing things in the UK, however being ten years old meant that there still wasn't much I had to do for myself. At that point, I was already bilingual (Urdu/English) so picking up Arabic without actively studying the language was quite easy for me.

My parents wanted me to be educated in the British system, and so four years later sent me to do my GCSE's at a boarding school in West Sussex. It was here that the combination of being put into another new culture and for the first time having the responsibility of taking care of myself provided for a challenging two years. In London there is a mix of nationalities and people from all over the world, however in countryside areas, like the area of West Sussex I was in, the population is almost entirely anglo-saxon. In a way, this was my first experience of being a 'gaijin' as there was nobody at the school that had the same kind of background as me. This meant that it was difficult for me to integrate myself into or create a social circle. Though I didn't consciously think about a solution, the way I ended up solving this problem was by diving head first into an activity that is rich with history and culture, namely the Army Cadet Force under the Princess of Wales Royal Regiment where I reached the rank of Lance Corporal in the signals platoon. This activity had me meeting people from all over the county and I eventually made a wide circle of friends, some of whom I am still in contact with today. Also, in the later stages of my time as a cadet, I was instructing those below me in areas such as First Aid, map reading and leadership.



This is the only real classroom teaching experience I had, however a lot of the time the young recruits could be undisciplined and not very motivated. What I found motivated them was relating exciting stories of using the skills I was teaching, and I would imagine that the same kind of approach might work in an English conversation classroom. By sharing my experiences with for example, a classroom full of Japanese schoolchildren, I would hope to bring to life some of the English they learn so that they have the motivation to learn more, not only about foreigners, but the world outside of Japan. I also think it's important to try and relate the subject matter to the lives of the students and would encourage participation from the students at every opportunity. Failing that, especially if it's a very young group of students and the topic is a bit dull, sometimes you just have to do something fun with them. This could be teaching them a song or creating a game where they have to use their English vocabulary.

I'm very excited about going to Japan and hope that my experience with the JET program will be a mutually beneficial one. Thank you for taking the time to consider my application.

Problems I envisage....

a)The references to Saudi AND Pakistan in the statement together. I don't have the time to get into politics, but I fit the profile to a T, all I need is a beard and a backpack. That coupled with the time in cadets makes me out to be a well trained killing machine... Perhaps I'll just say 'our family went abroad' but that obviously takes out the exotic arabian flavour.

b)I've tried to demonstrate high value by saying things indirectly, i.e. telling stories and making statments (see the second to last paragraph of this post for an example) that just happen to have extremely awesome details about me in them. Still, this is a fine line, so are there any instances that obviously come accross as bragging?

I still have a few cards left to play at the interview i.e. Founder of New UCL Kendo Club, and the South Africa aid project I was involved with but depending on how this essay develops I may change things around and put them in here.

Advice, comments, criticisms, flames, threats, assaults welcome.