Portland trip gave me not only valuable experiences but also it gave me an opportunity to think about history and war. Also I learned about education in the U.S.; it moved me.
Learning history makes our life rich. On this trip we went to the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. There are some kinds of history for example the Ice Age and Lewis and Clark who were explorers. This center had some costumes and we could dress up as a Native Indian and the corps of discovery members. We could learn not only the knowledge of history but also we could experience history. It is good for students because we can enjoy learning and those experiences will never forget. To learn about history makes us thinking deeply because it taught us many interesting ideas such as reasons why humans did something.
Learning history makes our life rich. On this trip we went to the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. There are some kinds of history for example the Ice Age and Lewis and Clark who were explorers. This center had some costumes and we could dress up as a Native Indian and the corps of discovery members. We could learn not only the knowledge of history but also we could experience history. It is good for students because we can enjoy learning and those experiences will never forget. To learn about history makes us thinking deeply because it taught us many interesting ideas such as reasons why humans did something.
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| Source: puka.cs.waikato.ac.nz |
We went to three colleges during this trip and they were different from each other. I learned different educational styles. My favorite college is Reed College because it had very different school systems and it turned over my image of education. If students do bad things the other students can be juror and they can judge the students. It is very interesting for me because I have never heard about that system. Japanese school will never happen those things because we must respect our teachers. Therefore the students don’t have strong rights same as a teacher. Second I learned about the honor system. It is the very nice system for students because students can take tests anywhere even in the bath room. The reason is teachers trust the students. The Reed College students don’t care about each others' grade. On the other hand they cooperate with each other. All students have the same kind of purpose such as they have passion about learning. Therefore the students don’t cheat others' tests. The teachers and the students believe the each other and it is my ideal relationship. I really enjoyed learning those facts and I was impressed Reed College educational style and it opened my mind widely.
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| Unforgettable Memorial |
The Japanese-American Memorial got me thinking about a lot of things in . I didn’t think I learned Japanese history in the U.S. Before I came back here, I didn’t know about the Japanese-American lives in the U.S. Through a reading book and the lecture, I could learn them. Therefore I know how difficult their lives were; I thought I could understand their lives. However when I went to the memorial, I was impressed by the strong spirits that more than I expected. There were a lot of poems was written down the hard and sharp stones and those poems were real voices from Japanese-Americans. The voices rang in my heart as if they were alive. “Going home, Feeling cheated, Gripping my daughter’s hand, I tell her we’re leaving Without emotion.” This is one of my favorite poetry because I could understand their feelings and difficulties directly; they must move their houses no matter what. How pathetic it was especially for children. They should feel happiness; they should not become victims. War never bring a wonderful life for humans. However humans still continue battling in these moments. I want to say to the people who begin the wars, "How come you battle each other? What are the purposes? Please, please think about not only yourself but also other people; this great earth is not only you." Japanese-American Memorial reminded me about those things and it was a good opportunity to think about many things deeply.