Chutobu Junior High School: "Expanding Interest in Language through Spanish"
Student A, Student K
Keio Chutobu Junior High School 3rd Year Students
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Interviewer: Shin Ebato (English Teacher, Chutobu Junior High School)
Why Study Spanish?
──Since 2005, Chutobu Junior High School has been working to expose students to languages other than English. From the beginning, we have offered French and Spanish courses. Since then, we have also opened courses in Chinese, Italian, and Korean, but these first two have continued without interruption for nearly 20 years. Today, I would like to talk to two third-year students who have chosen the Spanish course.
At the junior high school stage of Keio University's affiliated schools, Keio Futsubu School and Shonan Fujisawa Junior High School also teach languages other than English, but Chutobu Junior High School is the only one that offers Spanish.
What motivated you two to try a language other than English?
One reason was simply that I wanted to experience a language other than English. Also, my parents told me that when going to various foreign countries, being able to at least introduce yourself makes it easier to build friendly relationships, which was a big factor.
My father can speak Chinese, so I also wanted to try a language other than English. I thought that learning a new language in addition to Japanese and English would not only allow me to speak that language but also learn about a new culture. I decided to take Spanish because I thought that gaining that experience from an early age would be useful for something in the future.
──As Student K just mentioned, learning Spanish also means learning the culture behind the language. Have you ever felt that in class?
It wasn't in class, but when I actually went to Spain once, I felt that the way people spoke was softer than I expected.
When I actually started learning it, I thought there were some similarities to English. However, in conversation, especially when asked a question, I don't understand what they are saying at all. Even if there are similarities to English, I feel that the culture and way of speaking are completely different when the language is different.
Also, when I watched a Spanish movie before, I felt that there were no big differences in human relationships or communication even if the country was different, but on the other hand, I felt that the food, clothing, and atmosphere of the town were quite different.
──I see. Looking at the language population, English is the most spoken in the world with 1.5 billion people, Chinese is second with 1.4 billion, and Spanish is actually next, with about 500 million people.
It is a major language in the world like this, but do you have opportunities to hear Spanish in your daily life in Japan?
I haven't had much contact with Spanish in Japan.
I've seen scenes where Spanish is used in American movies a few times, but not in Japan. Rather, I think it's hard to have opportunities to encounter it unless you take a class like this.
──Actually, most people in the Americas, especially Central and South America, speak Spanish. For example, in interviews with baseball or soccer players, they often respond in Spanish rather than English. In that sense, it can be said to be a language that you have many opportunities to encounter through the media.
So, what parts do you think Spanish and English are similar?
The pronunciation and basic writing style, and also the fact that they use the alphabet, are similar. Although there are some letters in the alphabet that English doesn't have.
──That's true. But there are also many differences; in terms of grammar, sometimes the subject is omitted. The word order is also quite different.
How to Use Spanish
──Is there anything you would like to do if you went to a Spanish-speaking country?
If I have the chance, I'd like to try and see if I can use even a little of what I've learned. I think I'll use English a lot in the future, but I don't think there will be many cases to use Spanish, so I'd like to see for myself on-site how much of what I learned in this class gets through.
──Specifically, what kind of things would you like to try?
First, greetings. Then, I'd like to be able to ask questions in Spanish when shopping or when I'm in trouble.
──Through the classes, have you gained confidence in having conversations in Spanish?
I think I can do a self-introduction. I think I can handle simple conversations. Though I'm not confident (laughs).
──What is the atmosphere of the Spanish teacher like?
They are very easy to talk to. They often say things like "Well done!" (excelente!) in Spanish, so I can get a sense of the local atmosphere. There is an atmosphere where you can speak even if you don't understand everything perfectly.
Whether it's English or Japanese, speaking for yourself is very difficult, and I think I've acquired more of a sense of roughly understanding what I've heard.
──It's a big deal to be able to understand what a native speaker teacher says. Output (speaking or writing yourself) is even more difficult. From now on, I want you to go to high school and practice output and expressing yourself.
The Importance of Being Bilingual
──I am currently serving as the Deputy Director at the Research Center for Foreign Language Education at the university, and the Research Center for Foreign Language Education is currently active under the theme of secondary languages. This is because many people in Europe are immigrants who enter their own countries, and they often live using two languages. I want Chutobu students to feel these points through their study of Spanish.
Earlier, there was talk that English and Spanish are similar, but did you feel any differences?
I felt a difference in the emphasis of pronunciation. I felt that the pronunciation of things like 'R' is stronger than in English.
The trilled 'R' is strong, isn't it?
──Yes. French is also strong, but Spanish is even stronger. That is also part of what makes it Spanish. How was the vocabulary?
I felt that there were more similarities in vocabulary than in grammar. Similar words are very similar. However, there are also things that are completely different, which I thought was difficult.
──Did you feel the difference between the groups that are similar and those that are not?
Yes, I did. For example, I thought it was very similar where 'zero' becomes 'cero'.
On a test, there was a question to match pictures with words. I could understand about half of them because they were similar to English words, but I didn't understand the other half at all. I felt that there were many similar names for things we encounter daily or school facilities.
──When comparing similar words in English and Spanish, which do you think was born first?
Since we learn English first, I can't help but think English came first...
──When you study various languages, it's interesting to find out that a certain word actually originated in French. I think it's also interesting to trace such etymologies.
What was Learned through the Classes
──What was the most memorable thing in class?
The teacher's reactions were memorable. 'Excelente'—it's the word for 'excellent' in English, but I like the Spanish one better. Also, I was happy when the teacher used words that express emotion in Spanish, like '¡Vale!' or '¡fenomeno!', and I wanted to use them myself. I've come to like the Spanish pronunciation of 'Excelente' better.
In class, we start by actually trying to use it, so I was able to learn while putting things I was wondering about into practice. Even for a single word, I would find the answer to questions like 'Why is it pronounced like this?' by actually speaking. It was memorable that I was able to study while having questions in a good way.
──That was a very valuable experience. Finally, if you were to learn one more language besides Spanish, what language would you like to learn?
Chinese. My father studied it, so I want to try it too, and just as Spanish is similar to English, I think Chinese also has parts similar to Japanese, so I want to learn it. Also, I heard from my mother that Chinese is the next most useful language after English when interacting with people overseas for work.
For me, it's French. Since I've gone to the trouble of learning Spanish, I'd like to do a language that is connected like a line, rather than something completely different.
──I would be happy if you could use the experience of learning Spanish this time when learning other languages as well.