A LONG-STANDING CONNECTION TO HPU: MA TESOL ALUMNA YUKA SARUWATARI

Yuka Saruwatari (MA TESOL ‘17), an English teacher at Bihoku High School in Japan, developed her connection to Hawai'i Pacific University 10 years ago when she enrolled in a summer workshop with HPU TESOL (Teaching English to Students of Other Languages) instructor Jean Kirschenmann, at the Nagoya University of Foreign Studies (NUFS).  

Saruwatari’s path to the NUFS summer workshop taught by Kirschenmann began during an English class she took as an undergraduate at Nanzan University. Although she had studied English for six years through junior high and high school, Saruwatari came to the shocking realization that she had not received prior English instruction focusing on speaking and listening from native English speakers.  
 
“The class pushed me to improve my English skills, especially speaking and listening,” she said. “It also motivated me to study TESOL.” 

After graduating from Nanzan University with an undergraduate degree in economics, Saruwatari first enrolled in a TESOL certificate program at the University of California Irvine (UCI) through its extension program. She said the UCI experience became the basis for teaching English in high schools. Saruwatari wanted to learn more, leading her to Kirschenmann’s workshop at NUFS and, eventually, in 2016, the HPU master’s in TESOL program. 

Saruwatari speaks highly of her HPU master’s in TESOL educational experience. “I learned both theories and practical methods of teaching English,” she said. “What I learned at HPU is still very helpful when I teach English in high schools.” 

Adding to her experience as an HPU master’s student in Hawai'i, her two sons accompanied her, attending Waikiki Elementary School. Outside of school, her sons engaged in extracurricular activities, including baseball, swimming, ukulele, and much more. As a family, they enjoyed all that Hawai'i had to offer. 
 
“We went everywhere and saw the beautiful nature on Oahu island,” she said. “We also enjoyed various kinds of food in Hawai'i. Every weekend, there were some events for kids and families somewhere in Honolulu.”   

Saruwatari’s relationship with Kirschenmann and HPU has endured. Fast forward to this summer, Saruwatari and colleagues — a fellow teacher Hifumi “Jack” Morita, Vice Principal Goto Koki, and Principal Mamoru Naya — accompanied 28 of their students to Hawai'i and Hawai'i Pacific University for an English Experience and Cultural Enrichment Program held July 22 through 26. Adding to the experience, the students participated in homestay living. 

The HPU program included immersive opportunities to enhance English skills and cultural knowledge through interactive lessons, experiential learning, and place-based learning, such as a Waikiki scavenger hunt, North Shore shopping, exploration of Kaka'ako murals, conversation partners, and a hula workshop.  

“It was very impactful for them to use English for a real purpose in shops at the International Marketplace and Matsumoto’s Shave Ice shop in North Shore,” Saruwatari said. “They learned how to order shave ice in class the previous day, and the next day ordered the shave ice there!”

Saruwatari worked closely with HPU Lecturer of Applied Linguistics and the Director of International Group Programs Ann (“Diane”) Tai Choe, Ph.D., and with support from HPU Director of Outreach Programs Carin Iha, over several months, to provide the Bihoku High School students with an English immersion and cross-cultural experience she saw her sons benefit from during their year-and-a-half living and studying in Hawai'i.    

“We feel very honored to have welcomed students from Bihoku High School, as for most, it was their first time traveling abroad,” Choe said. “And they have expressed how much they have enjoyed their time in Hawai'i.”

For Saruwatari, in addition to introducing her students to an invaluable learning experience in Hawai'i and at HPU, it was somewhat of a homecoming to a place she had called home for nearly two years: Hawai'i and HPU.

“We would like to express our deepest thanks to Diane and all the teachers and supporters in making this program successful,” Saruwatari said. “It was also really nice to see my associate professor Jean Kirschenmann and professor Hanh Nguyen from my graduate school days.”