Under the training collaboration between the University of Yamagata (YU) and Hanoi University of Agriculture (HUA) established since 2008, Voluntary Japanese Classes delivered by YU students have been held at HUA during the academic year 2012 – 2013 (from 01/4/2012 to 31/3/2013).


During this period, HUA has received 28 YU students to HUA for Voluntary Japanese Classes. About 150 HUA students have attended these classes.

In addition to basic Japanese, the class focused on such very interesting and popular topics as food, clothes, hobbies, culture etc. Cultural exchanges for example cooking, outing tours to relics in Hanoi were integrated into the class activities. Such activities really attracted HUA students and YU student tutors.

Those classes have enhanced Japanese proficiency for HUA students which further open opportunities for them to get scholarships to study in Japan, a beautiful and internationally recognized training country.  The YU student tutors in turn had chance to explore Vietnamese culture via lessons, and involvement in daily and typical activities with students and local people. 

Kurita Mika – an YU student tutor

Hi, I am Kurita Mika, a fourth year student from Faculty of Culture and Humanity, the University of Yamagata. I am very glad and happy to be here with HUA students. The HUA students are very active and joyful. I am very impressed at their pronunciation when they tried to speak new words and say goodbye when the lecture ends such as “さような",じゃあまたね etc.

The most matter challenging me is to make student understanding new words in English. It is much easier if they are visualized. I highly recommended practical lectures and illustrated pictures.

I can learn Vietnamese too. The HUA students teach me Vietnamese. Whenever I teach a new Japanese word, I try to learn the corresponding Vietnamese too. I think it is a very useful and easier way for Vietnamese students to learn Japanese. 

I am moved to tears when one student told me that “you are the first person to teach me Japanese so for me you are Japan”.  For Japanese students like me, going to Vietnam is going abroad while for Vietnamese students meeting us means landing on our country. I do feel that our presence here really helped Vietnamese students.

Finally, I strongly expect that more YU students can come here and the cooperation between the YU and HUA is increasingly nurtured.