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Mong Giang Dinh NGUYEN - Trainee Report

Japanese culture

I like Japanese culture very much. If you are sitting on a bench, a stranger will serve you tea. When you enter a building, you keep the door open for the next person. Initially, after my arrival in Japan, I felt a little uneasy as I was not used to such customs. But I followed suit and I found that such behavior makes people happy. Courtesy is a part of Japanese culture, so is kindness.

Japanese language and sign language

The three month intensive Japanese course came to an end very suddenly. I had a hard time improving my Japanese, but at the end of the course I was able to write sentences in hiragana. I was glad I could communicate via email in Japanese with my friends. Exchanging email helps language skills to improve and is also fun. Thanks to email in Japanese, I made a lot of friends.

I had a hard time learning sign language, too. I wasn't able to make myself understood at first and I asked my friends with hearing impairments for help. Now I can communicate in Japanese sign language quite easily.

Skiing

I saw snow for the very first time in my life in Japan. It was a little cold when I touched it, but it was beautiful and I liked it very much. On the first day, it was snowing so heavily that you couldn't see very well. It was nice on the second day and I fell a hundred times and my body ached everywhere, but now it's a fond memory.

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Home stay

During the New Year's vacation I stayed with Mr and Mrs Iwabuhi in Koyama, and Mr and Mrs Takahashi in Utsunomiya. For the first time in Japan I visited a home where persons with hearing impairments lived. In Vietnam, persons with hearing impairments do not usually understand sign language, but in Japan, a lot of people understand it. On New Year's Day we visited a shrine. I made an offering and rang a large bell. After the visit to the shrine, Mr Iwabuchi bought me an amulet. He said if I carried it, I would lead to a happy life throughout the year. I still carry it around. Mrs. Takahashi let me try on a kimono. I like kimonos because they are beautiful, but it was uncomfortable to wear because the sash of the kimono was so tight that I wasn't able to eat very much. I had a really wonderful New Year's vacation with the Iwabuchi and Takahashi families and I would like to thank them very much.

Persons of Shiga Prefectural Deaf Center

There is an abundance of natural beauty in Shiga. Employees at the center provide temporary translation services in sign language and dispatch scribes to the people who need it. They are very busy. There are three persons with hearing impairments on the staff of the center and they communicate with persons without hearing impairments in sign language. I really envied them.

Main Stream Association

I met persons with various disabilities. There were many persons with severe disabilities. Only one of the staff had hearing impairments. Other members understood little sign language, which worried me a little but they were all nice people. I was able to communicate with them through writing and gestures. The training at this association only lasted for a short period, but I'm glad to have made friends with the staff. Lectures were only a small part of the training here. Most of the time, I was out in the field where I received training in areas such as assisting, which was not an easy task.

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Training on Sign Language Interpretation (Shiga Prefectural Deaf Center, Sign Language Interpreter Program at National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities, Sign Language Interpreter Course at Setagaya Welfare Technical College)

Each institution has a unique teaching method. Shiga Prefectural Deaf Center teaches sign language with corresponding Japanese sentences. In general it is a good teaching method, but I think there is a drawback. Students read Japanese sentences and think they understand how they are expressed in sign language. If they actually try to express the sentences in sign language, they may have a hard time translating them. All the teachers at the National Rehabilitation Center for persons with disabilities are persons with hearing impairments. They teach sign language with visual teaching materials. It may take some time to get used to the method, but I think it is an excellent way to teach sign language. Training methods of sign language interpretation used at these institutions are interesting and very useful. I would like to introduce the method used at the National Rehabilitation Center to people in Vietnam. I have more to learn from these institutions, so I would like to visit them again.

Vietnamese Sign Language Lesson

I became an instructor and taught Vietnamese sign language to both persons with hearing impairments and persons without hearing impairments. I made some visual teaching materials at the Japanese Federation of the Deaf and prepared for the lesson. I also did a trial lesson. After the preparation I had more confidence. The students learned a little Vietnamese sign language and I was very happy when they said they liked the lesson.

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Japanese hearing impairments

Information accessibility has been well established in Japan. Although many often say that they still do not have enough access to information, I think there is a lot for people in Vietnam to learn. Some good accessibility examples include TV programs with captions, electrical bulletin boards at train stations, indoor signal devices, and communication via mobile phones. These systems make access to information easier for persons with hearing impairments. I tried using them and found them very convenient and useful. There are sign language interpreters in many places in Japan. Persons with hearing impairments can lead easier lives and participate in various activities. I would like to tell people in my country about what I learned in Japan and participate in movements to improve the situation there.

Ten Fellow Trainees

Immediately after we arrived in Japan, communication was not easy. We used gestures to have simple conversations. Some trainees learned sign language and we talked more about different topics. I am glad to have made friends with other trainees on the 4th program. It was good that we could help each other. I would like to keep in touch with them so that our friendship will last forever.

My dream

My dream is to be an instructor of sign language interpretation. I am glad that I have received training on other subjects, too because the skills and knowledge I have acquired will be very useful when I become a sign language instructor. Having a broader view and coordinating with other activities is essential. I think I have made a step forward in this training program towards achieving my goal. I am a college student now and when I graduate I would like to realize my dream and make the most of what I have learned in Japan.

Lastly, I would like to thank the Duskin AINOWA staff, the people at the training institutions and JSRPD. My stay was very meaningful thanks to your support and cooperation. Thank you again.

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