Record of Our Activities

For the prevention of the spread of coronavirus infection, the above-mentioned event was cancelled.

Five schools designated as New Super High Schools (known as NSH), Izumigaoka, Nanao, Sakuragaoka, Nisui and Komatsu, gathered at Ishikawa Industrial Promotion Center.  The selected teams of each school made presentations on their research topics. Suisei High School was invited as a special guest presenter. Three groups from Class 21 and 22, which were chosen on Presentation Day in December, participated in the event. This was a fruitful event where the participating students exchanged their opinions on the spot.
(Voices from the Participants)
・It was really tough to fix the presentation slides again and again but we finally made satisfying ones. Everyone in our group worked seriously and talked actively, which was key to the successful presentation today. This experience will be helpful when we do research in college and when we work in society.  
・It was great fun and a good experience to discuss how we could improve our community with participating teachers and students from other schools as well as our group members. By working very hard for this event, we acquired the ability to find a problem and solve it.

The students in both SG and SS courses made presentations on January 24th with an audience of about 60 teachers from high schools or universities all over and outside of Ishikawa.  Two representative teams from each course presented in the auditorium, and heated arguments with pointed questions and good answers followed.  In the afternoon, the poster sessions were held and all the research groups presented to the listeners proudly.
(Voices from the Students)
・I learned that making a presentation is like playing catch; I asked a listener who looked puzzled, “Have I made myself clear?” and then he asked me a question. Taking advantage of the advice I got today, I would like to develop our project.
・Opinions from adults or science course students are helpful in making our research more logical and interesting.
・This was a good opportunity to improve our research since we got comments from various perspectives. We talked a lot after school every day for the past two weeks to prepare for the presentation and deepened our research, so we now have stronger bonds with our group members. We want to remember what we have learned through this experience and have confidence in continuing to work on challenging matters to change society.

On January 15th, the SG course students made presentations to the arts students of Class 21, 22 and 23.  On the following day, in turn, the arts students presented their research to the SG students. They shared their ideas, which became a good opportunity to reconsider their research procedures.

49 groups from Kanazawa University High School, Izumigaoka, Nisui and Kanazawa Nishi High School gathered at the gym of Kanazawa University High School, and shared what they had been working on during the past year. This year, Kanazawa Nishi high School joined us for the first time. This event was motivating to the participants, who are geographically close to each other but seldom have opportunities to discuss their projects.  A participant said, “I was impressed at everyone’s ambition to contribute to the society, the feasibility of their plans and their ability to take action.”

Representatives of the high schools all over Japan designated as Super Global High Schools met at Tokyo International Forum on December 22nd to present their research projects.  The two students from our school made a poster presentation about the effectiveness of their revised prototypes of the current disaster prevention manual used in Ishikawa. They also had a discussion on global issues in terms of contributing to SDGs in English. They said, “We met a lot of people in the same generation who looked promising, which inspired us to work hard to be global leaders.”

On November 27th, sixteen college students who participated in a program hosted by CAPE (Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence) visited our school.  They were freshmen studying in universities in New Zealand, and stayed in Ishikawa for about two weeks to learn Japanese and Japanese culture. The students of Class 24 welcomed them and talked about their research projects and enjoyed discussion about social issues in New Zealand.
(Voices from the Students)
This was my first time to talk with people from New Zealand.  They were easy to talk with and kind. They shared their thoughts about our project cordially. Their feedback about our research was helpful in our further fieldwork.

On November 20th, some graduate students were invited to listen to the presentations by 2nd year SG-course students on their research topics.  Eight research groups explained how their projects were going and got advice in terms of effective use of data and information. They also found out whether they were doing research in the right way.
(Voices from the Students)
・The graduate students made a good point.  They pointed out our hypothesis was completely wrong, which perplexed us.  However, this was a good opportunity for us to think about it objectively. I was also impressed with the logic and abundance of knowledge of the graduate students.
・I thought the graduate students were good role models in how we should approach our research, which motivated us greatly. They also pointed out what was lacking and suggested some improvements, which would make our research better. 

On November 2nd, twelve alumni, who graduated from Izumigaoka and now work all over Japan, and fourteen graduates, who study at university, visited us to hold special seminars for 1st and 2nd year students.  In the seminars for 2nd year students, the twelve alumni introduced themselves and their jobs to them, gave them a discussion topic and had them discuss in smaller groups. In the seminars for 1st year students, the fourteen graduates made a presentation about the fields they majored in. Through the presentation, the students learned about the skills for delivering a message effectively in a presentation as well as about studies and life in college.
(Voices from the Students)
“Confidence comes only from making an effort.”  I learned this today and decided to remember this phrase throughout my high school life.
I thought college life would be fun and decided to work harder in high school so that I could enter the college that I wanted to go to and enjoy studying there.
“Think freely from convention” - I thought it was a common phrase. “But without conventional knowledge, you could not do so”- when I heard this, I changed my way of looking at the world.  I realized that I should know more about the world in order to create something new and have broader views.

Yusui Minami, a musical actress in the U.S.A. and a graduate from Izumigaoka S.H.S., visited us on October 24th.  After graduating from high school, she learned drama in a university in America, and now she is performing mainly in New York and taking a leading part in the musical world.
In her lecture, Ms.Yusui emphasized the importance of having a dream by talking about the hardships before she started to perform.  The students were impressed by her words, “The sky is the limit,” “It’s up to you” and “Heart connection.”  The lecture was followed by a workshop, where the participants played games and enjoyed talking with others. They were able to feel more open-minded and found how fun communicating with others can be.  Inspired by Ms.Yusui, who was full of the energy and aura of a musical star, they looked more determined to have their future as bright as Ms.Yusui’s.

On October 23rd, Yuta Ando, a graduate student of Kyoto University, was invited to give a special lecture on SDGs. “In what field are no SGDs set?” he asked, and the students answered, ”Religion.”  In such a casual exchange, they got a deeper understanding of SDGs.  After the session, they asked a lot of questions about SDGs and studies in universities individually.

(Voices from the Participants)

・I enjoyed a totally new approach to the understanding of SDGs.  Usually, in class, we started with the question of what we can do to achieve SDGs.  I expected that this lesson would go in the same way, but it was very different.  We thought of a new SDG or welcomed the criticism of what we usually praised.

・I have been thinking about becoming a researcher just because I like science.  I have never considered the relation between a job as a researcher and global perspectives such as SDGs. But after listening to this lecture, I can connect the two easily. I think the procedure of increasing knowledge to understand what is happening in the world by thinking logically is applicable in learning in science.  Finding something in common between different fields is truly important.

 

The students in Class 24 visited the U.S. for eight days. They left for America on September 30th and made presentations about their research projects at Princeton High School, Princeton University and Eco-village in Ithaca. While enjoying the discussions, they learned new things from a lot of people they met during the visit. It was a fruitful tour for them.
(Voices from the Students)
・I thought Japanese students should join in the class as actively as American students. I should be more active and more involved in classes I take.
・I was nervous about the homestay.  I knew I should not hesitate to ask a lot of questions, but I was not confident enough. However, I gathered my courage to talk, and I was able to communicate. If we become more confident and try to speak with a smile, our spirits will be brighter and we can be positive. I learned this from the experience.  I felt as if I had new family members and the homestay became a memorable experience.
・Seeing a lot of neon signs in Times Square, I enjoyed a flashy side of America, but when we visited the eco village in Ithaca, I noticed some people were environmentally aware. After helping villagers with their farming, many of our classmates said that they became hungry for the first time in the trip because they were overwhelmed by the large portions of food given at meals. We appreciated food more seriously through this experience than just by collecting information about wasted food in our research.
・If we get stuck in our research, we want to use the experience we had during this overseas trip.  I want to think of what I can do to solve problems in the world and work hard so that I can play a leading part in settling world issues.
・It was a good experience because I was able to improve my communication skills and capability to tackle problems.

On September 20th and October 21st, students who went overseas this summer reported their trips in their attractive presentations for 1st year students who are thinking about going abroad next year. Most of them used the programs such as Tobitate JAPAN Program (Public-Private Partnership Student Study Abroad Program), Aeon 1% Asia Youth Leaders Program, and AIG High School Diplomats. Some talked about the experience of living abroad for a year.
(Voices from the Listeners)
・I thought the difference between short stays and long ones was just the length of the period.  However, I learned how attractive studying for a year or longer was because I could have more free time to spend with friends and build a stronger friendship. I also learned tips in choosing programs, which will be very helpful.
・I heard of the Tobitate Program before from my friend who participated in it.  But from the report, I was surprised at how fruitful, as well as demanding, the program was. I learned if I choose it, I need to be independent.  This has made me more interested in it.  Tobitate students have many opportunities to make a presentation and talk with students from other countries about Japanese culture in English. I am respectful of them because they had courage to try something new and have achieved it. It is my turn to give it a try.

Four students in Class 24 participated in the exchange program above from August 18th to 23rd.  High school students from nine Asian countries gathered in Hanoi, Vietnam and worked together on the topic: Diet in Vietnam and how to improve it. This was our third time to join in the program. Once they were in a group of people from different cultural backgrounds, the four participants from our school were overwhelmed and somewhat disappointed to learn how incapable they were compared with other Asian students, even though they had expected it. They matured mentally during the week; they acted voluntarily, listened carefully to others, and never gave up. They learned many important things which are helpful in their school and social lives.
【Voices from the Participants】
At first, our group had a lot of disagreements and a hard time. We had no meeting at night just because our leader said that he was tired. The four Japanese members were worried and worked until midnight.  I suggested that we should meet to talk at breakfast time, but nobody came. I was sometimes annoyed and other times, I felt frustrated that we were not able to communicate with each other because of our poor English and cultural differences. However, we won the first place in the final presentation on the last day. Why? It is because we never gave up despite the barrier in language and culture.  In discussion, conflicts arise between people who have different opinions. Those who are shy and are not assertive like me tend to give in to people who have strong opinions.  Other Japanese members had their own strong opinions and tried to make themselves understood in English to other Asian students, who spoke English more fluently.  On some occasions, they clearly said no, which led to severe arguments, but the members from other countries gradually respected our opinion, which resulted in a better group discussion. That is why we succeeded in making a good presentation.

 

Four students in the SG course participated in SR Summit Focus hosted by Ritsumeikan Uji High School. Eighteen schools from all over Japan gathered in Ritsumeikan University in Kusatsu, Shiga, and joined in the three-day workshop that started on July 30th.  In the workshop, the participants learned new problem-solving skills such as how to brainstorm and map ideas, and they actually tried out the new methods to work out solutions with the help of the mentors.
(Voices from the Participants)
・Before the program started, I was worried about whether I could make it for the three days, because I did not know who would be in the project team. Now the program is over, and I found that I was able to enjoy the program two or three times more than I had expected.  One reason for this is that I was able to meet people who had the same ambition. I was inspired by how actively they worked, so I decided to try without worrying about mistakes. I also thought that the well-organized slides and presentations were breathtaking. I asked them about their secrets of such wonderful performances. They said gaining a lot of experience was important. I decided I should be more active and participate in this kind of event more often.
・It was an exciting three-day program.  We talked about one topic for more than twelve hours during the two days of the seminar, which was my first time to think for such a long time. I cannot deny that I was tired, but I was never sick of it, nor did anybody suggest giving up.  I think it was not because they had concern for others but because they were passionate and hardworking. Although we were not in the same group because we had anything in common, we became really good friends in a short time. It seems to me how long we stay together doesn’t matter if we have one goal in common.

 

On July 12th, the 3rd-year students of the SGH course made a final presentation for an audience of exchange students from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and Kanazawa University.  Many teachers in or outside of Ishikawa as well as the students’ parents came to watch the presentations in English.  Question & answer sessions were also conducted in English and the students did their best to overcome the challenging parts.  The audience said, “I was impressed with their presentation skills, especially with their facial expressions,” or “I was surprised at how well the students answered questions in English.” Some said, “The research was logical and I was able to understand that they approached their topic from various perspectives.”  Others pointed out that students were actively involved in the event not only as presenters but also as the MCs or the supporters for organizing the event. The students enjoyed the praise from the audience.
【Voices from the Students】
・Different people have different ideas. We were not able to reach an agreement easily. We sometimes thought it might be easier to work individually but we highly valued working as a group and specifying the roles of group members in most of our activities.  We hope we can do some more projects related to the topic that we are working on.
・We sometimes got stuck in deciding how we should develop our research. Now we can say that we were right in that we did not stop our research even though we were not sure that what we were doing was right.  We realized that the quickest way to the solution is, actually, to keep working, even if you are not sure.
・We thought how difficult and how interesting it was to work on the issues that had no clear answer.  At first, we felt less confident in what we were doing since we were not sure of whether we were doing in the right way, but we were able to be more confident as we thought more about what we were trying to achieve and for whom we were working.  We were happy to be in the SG course and involved in the problem-solving process even though we contributed very little to it.

  On June 15th, SG course students visited Shishukan, Graduate School of Advanced Integrated Studies in Human Survivability, of Kyoto University and joined in the workshop conducted by its graduate students. The purpose of this tour is that the students get advice on their research from graduate students who represent what leading researchers should be like. Students in Class 24 visit there every year, and this was our fourth visit.
  Each of the eight research groups had one graduate student as an advisor, and they discussed how they should set a research question and a hypothesis, and learned a better way to conduct further research.  This was a great opportunity for them to get a new point of view for their research, and was a motivating experience.
  Some college students who graduated from the SG course planned a campus tour in Kyoto University. Nine students from Tokyo or Kyoto University met our students at Kyoto Station and escorted them to Kyoto University and gave a tour around the campus.  They also joined in the workshop and shared their experiences in high school.

Our school took part in the event, which started 4 years ago, three times in a row.  Two of the groups joined in the presentation sessions held at Kansei Gakuin University.  One team talked about the food label designing using well-organized slides, and the other about the danger of alien species invasion and the importance of biodiversity, with the use of their elaborate poster.  They both talked passionately about what they had been working on in the past year.

On March 15th and 16th, students from Hokushin’etsu district gathered at Ishikawa Youth Center (Ishikawa Seishonen Seminar House) for the 1st SGH Hokushin’etsu Forum, which is hosted by Kanazawa University. Eight students from Class 24 (SG course) participated in the event and worked with students from other prefectures in Hokushin’etsu area. Participants were divided into groups where they worked on the topic given by facilitators and got ready for the presentation on the second day.  They did a great job in working out the solutions of the social issue as a group. Our students were greatly moved by the outstanding creativity and ability to communicate.  Poster sessions were held on 16th and all of the eight research groups in Class 24 enjoyed exchanging the ideas with the audience.

On February 6th, in the i-studio, many students were impressed by the special talk by Osamu Katsuyama, who works at Komatsu Ltd.  He worked abroad and through his experience, felt how difficult it was to work in a different culture.  In the talk, the participants learned tips for working together with those who have different values and culture, as well as how difficult and important that was.

Five schools designated as New Super High Schools (known as NSH), Izumigaoka, Nanao, Sakuragaoka, Nisui and Komatsu, gathered at Ishikawa Industrial Promotion Center.  The highlight was the presentations by the selected teams of each school and Suisei High School, which was invited as a special guest presenter.  We sent three groups from Class 22 and 23, which were chosen on Presentation Day in December, to the event.  One student from our school said, “I learned how to organize the content well from Suisei’s presentation.  I found it important to look at the topic from various points of view. ” Another pointed out, “Critical thinking is key in this kind of research project.”  Comments from others who are the same age seem to be helpful as well as stimulating to them.

The students in both SG and SS courses made presentations on January 25th with an audience of about 70 teachers from all over and outside of Ishikawa.  The day started with the presentations of the representative teams from each course, which was followed by heated arguments with pointed questions and good answers.  In the afternoon, poster sessions were held (with SGH in Students’ Hall and SSH in Keisen Auditorium).  This event was a great opportunity for them to think about how they should do further research.

(Voices from students)
When we looked at the poster we made, we were impressed because in April and May, we hadn’t been expecting to achieve this much. I am thankful for other group members, who are hardworking and supportive.  We worked hard even after school and had a hard time, but we feel very satisfied. This is not the end of our research.  The advice we received today was specific and unexpected, so we have found that there is much left to be improved in our research project. 

Three high schools (Kanazawa university High School, Kanazawa Nisui High School and Kanazawa Izumigaoka High school) met in the gym of Kanazawa University H.S. on January 12th.  SG-course students and two groups from Class 22 made presentations on what they had worked on for the past year.

Fifteen Izumigaoka students participated in an empowerment Program, where they enjoyed discussions with exchange students in English for three days. Some students from Kanazawa University High School also joined in the program.  The participants looked nervous on the first day, but they talked about their dreams very proudly in the presentations on the last day.

Twenty three Princeton High school students visited us on November 6th and experienced the high school life of Japanese students for two days, after traveling in Kyoto and Hiroshima. On the first day of their visit, they played games and enjoyed chatting with Izumigaoka students.  The performance of Calligraphy Club students also impressed them.  On the second day, they joined the classes that their host buddies are taking, such as calligraphy, and experienced what Japanese high school life is like. They spent two nights with the families that volunteered. 

On October 19th, Runa Yamamori, a graduate student in Kyoto University, was invited to our school and talked about the environmental issues related to the sea by using the various pictures of sea creatures she caught all over Japan.  The students were impressed by her words, “If we can successfully prove the biodiversity, it will be helpful in protecting the environment.”  She welcomed a lot of questions from the students, ranging from about the frequency of her fieldworks to how parasitized creatures “feel” about their situation. 

In October, 2nd-year students in the SGH course visited the U.S.A. for about a week.  They made presentations at Princeton High School, Princeton University and Eco-village in Ithaca about their research projects. Through the discussions, they got new ideas from more global perspectives. They learned a lot in talking with many Americans and staying with American families, which made their stay more memorable and inspiring for their future.

(Voices from the students)
●In the presentations we made at Princeton High School, Princeton University and Ithaca, we had a very fruitful experience and were glad that we were able to get completely new ideas from high school or university students there and the residents in the village, which will be helpful in our future research.  In Ithaca, they have a similar traffic problem to ours, and gave us a useful suggestion such as pedestrians wearing reflective vests that will possibly protect them from getting involved in an accident.
 
●Ms.Yusui and Ms.Kawamori are good role models to me.  I learned that setting a goal and finding something that I can be enthusiastic about were very important.  Ms.Yusui said that she never gave up working hard because she had a goal of standing on the Broadway stage.  Ms.Kawamori had a passion to study abroad and learn about international relations.  Even if you have hardships, you can continue to work hard if you have a concrete dream to realize and a strong passion.

●We were asked why we chose the theme almost every time we made presentations, which was quite surprising to us.  It was a pity that we were not able to answer it clearly.  We made use of this experience in Ithaca and enjoyed the discussions.

On July 18th, Mr. Ryobun Santou from Musashi High School was invited to give a lecture on the SDGs.  All the first-year students and the second-year students in the SG course were able to listen to the lecture.
  
In the lecture, the first-year students ate and compared the chocolates that are made by using palm oil and chocolate that are made without palm oil.  Through the lecture, the students learned the situations in the Borneo Island where there are sides: people who want to save the rainforest and people who want to increase the area of palm oil plantation for profit.
  
The second-year students in the SG course played “2030 SDGs Game” and imagined an ideal world in the future.

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The second-year students in the SG course planned “Omotenahi: How to Welcome People” Project on July 14th for the foreign guests who participated in the Final Presentation the day before.
   
This year’s guide plan was inspired by the workshop that the students participate in June.  The theme for this year’s project were “COLOR”, “TIME”, “WATER” and “SOUND”.  The students and guests were divided into four groups according to the theme.
   
The “SOUND” group took guests to places where they can listen and play an instrument called “Shamisen”.

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On July 13th, the third year students of the SGH course gave their final presentation.  They have worked on their project for more than a year and a half and they did their final presentation in front of many teacher and foreign guests around the nation.  Not only did they give a presentation on their research, but they also participated in the Q&A session and answered the questions in English. 

The people who watched and listened the presentation gave positive comments like: “We were surprise to see the students keep on having a conversation with the foreign guests after each question.” or “The students were doing their presentation seriously but also had some sense of humor”.

During a short break, the students had some time to chat with the foreign guest and learned a bit about foreign cultures.

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All the second-year students in the SG course had the chance to interact with some university students from the U.S.  The university students came to Kanazawa on a program hosted by the Ishikawa Prefecture.  Twenty two university students came to our school and our students were able to talk and introduce what they have been working on in their research project.

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The second-year students in the SG course and few of the third-year students were able to listen to a lecture presented by Mr. Tomoki Nitta.   Mr. Nitta had been stationed in Bhutan for three and a half year.  In his lecture, he talked about the uniqueness of the country and the things we can learn from the country.  The students were able to reflect on the lifestyle in Bhutan and their sense of value through this lecture.

From March 26th to 27th, forty newly-elected students visited United Nations University and other cooperative institutions in Tokyo to prepare for the next SG course research project.

The purpose of this visit was to get some advice on what kind of theme is suited for the research and which problems to study by taking some lectures about global problems.

On the first day, at United Nations University, the students had lectures from the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) and from UN University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) on the activities of the United Nations, which aimed at Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and made a tour of the United Nations University.  On the second day, during the training course separated with each group, they visited the Earth Park of JICA, Plan International, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).  They took some lectures, made a tour and interacted with the students there.

Based on what they learned from this training, they will then prepare for research.

【Comments from the participants】
＊I felt that in the world today, we must think about the future and set our goals to create a sustainable environment.

＊What impressed me the most was the words, “Thanks to the SDGs, we are able to see the problems and issue easily”.  Now that we know and are able to see each country’s progress in achieving the SDGs, it became easy for each country to set their goals.  This will eventually be a large factor in solving the global issues.
 
＊The lecture taught us that our outlook was narrow and broad.  When there is a problem in another country, we must not think of it as a problem in another country, but think of it as a problem in our world.
 
＊I was surprised that children also mine rare metals for cell phones with their bare hands.  Although I know there are some reasons for cheap clothes, I think it is difficult to change lives quickly.  I want to find out what I can do. The common ideas of UNDP and Plan International and JICA are that we should not give temporary help, but give them something that will last for a long time.  I want to consider ideas that have long insight in mind.

On March 17th, four of the second-year students in the SG course participated in “The Poster Session for High School Students 2017” held at Kyoto University.
62 teams from 37 high schools around the nation participated.  Our students gave a presentation titled “A New Type of Children Cafeteria”.
The student who participated listened to the presentation given by students from different schools.  This experience gave them a lot of ideas on how to approach issues around the world.

On February 20th, the first-year students made presentations for the SG Basic Research

First-year students in our general course were divided into 9 classes.  In the SG Basic Research, they did a research on many local problems and thought about the solutions since April.  They researched actively in fieldwork, sent questionnaires, visited institutions, and interacted with people outside the school.  They gave their presentations confidently on each of their topic.  Afterwards, the audience asked presenters a lot of questions.

They will continue to do research on a new topic in the second grade, making use of this year’s research experience.

On February 18th, representatives from the Junior Chamber Incorporated (JCI) all over the Asian-Pacific region gathered at a conference in Kanazawa.  The third-year students in the SG course got up on the stage to do a speech in English.

The conference was held to promote activities and research whose goal is to achieve the SDGS.  The third-year students in the SG course have learned about the SDGs while working on their research. 
The students presented their research with a lot of confidence and added some humor occasionally.  We will continue to ask the people at the Junior Chamber for future cooperation and continue our research to achieve the SDGs.

On February 14th, Mr. Ryobun Santou from Musashi High School was invited to give a lecture on the SDGs.  The second-year students in the SG course listened to the lecture.
  
In the lecture, the students ate and compared the chocolates that are made by using palm oil and chocolate that are made without palm oil.  Through the lecture, the students learned the situations in the Borneo Island where there are sides: people who want to save the rainforest and people who want to increase the area of palm oil plantation for profit.
  
The students also played “2030 SDGs Game” and imagined an ideal world in the future.  The lecture and the experience gave students a lot of enthusiasm to work on their research.

On February 11th and 12th, there was a conference at the Kanazawa Chamber of Commerce and Industry to talk about how to collaborate the research projects performed in high schools and universities in Japan.  Two students from the second-year the SG course participated.

More than 120 teachers and students participated from all over the country.  The two students from our school did a poster session on their research and had a group discussion with teachers from high school and university.  It was a good opportunity for our students to learn and realize the importance of the research they are doing.

On January 31st, NSH Meeting for Reading Research Papers was held at Sakura-gaoka High School.  Three teams from our school participated and presented what they have worked on for the past year.

Many of the students that participated have done research on various topics and the students, including ours, exchanged a lot of information through this event.

On January 27th, Meeting for Reading Research Papers was held between three high schools (Kanazawa Univerisity High School, Kanazawa Nisui High School, and Kanazawa Izumi-gaoka High School).  Two teams from the SG course participated and presented what they have worked on for the past year.

On January 26th, SGH and SSH students held an event to present their research project.  About 100 students’ parents and educators from in and out of Ishikawa Prefecture took part in this event.

＊SG Basic Analytical Skills: a school-designated subject for first-year students in general course
Students looked into the goals of institutions like the UN and relevant institutions, and considered current issues related to them.  They also proposed the possibility that technology would contribute to their fields when delivering their poster presentations.  This was their first time presenting their research, but they were very positive in the question-and-answer sessions.

＊Practical English: a school-designated subject for second-year students in SG course
Students talked about how to make Izumi-gaoka High School better, explained and wrote logically their ideas and opinions about them in English.

＊SGH×SSH Oral Presentation by second-year students in SG course and Super Science course
Representative teams had oral presentations about their research as a collaboration project between SG and SS course students.  They exchanged their opinions and had question-and-answer sessions.  So far, they had mutual presentations and exchanged information while they engaged each other.  This time again they actively exchanged their opinions about their research fields.

＊SG Poster Presentation about their research by second-year students in SG course
Second-year SG course students delivered poster presentations about their research from the beginning of the school year.  Three graduate students from Kyoto University gave valuable comments and advice.  The students will have a presentation in English in July.

＊Research Conference for teachers who visited the conference
We told teachers about SGH activities, our results and our problems.  We are going to make the most of the questions and advice from teachers in order to make SGH activities better for now on.

From December 25th to 27th, the ‘Global Leadership Program’ was held, in which the students had discussions with foreign students from universities, and gave presentations in front of them.  The participants looked nervous at first, but had confidence by the final day.

[the participants’ comments]
＊I want to improve my communication skills when using English.
＊I have more confidence than ever.
＊I had an experience of having myself understood in English with a person from a foreign country.
＊I came to like English better than ever and I am glad I joined this program.

On December 14th, six teams of students from the second year Liberal Arts course gave a presentation in front of 120 students.  The top three teams will automatically be the representatives for our school in the NSH Meeting for Reading Research Papers scheduled to be held on January 31st.

On December 9th, all the first year students participated in the Discussion Day.  We invited 37 foreign guests from different countries around the world.  The students were put into a group of 3~5 students, and had conversations on the similarities and the differences between Japan and the foreign guest’s country.  It was a great opportunity for the students to use their English communication skills they acquired in class.

[the participants’ comments]
＊I was able to understand what the foreign guests were saying, and I was able to make myself understood in English.
＊I was able to have conversations with people from various countries like Indonesia and China.  I feel more confident than ever speaking English.

On November 22nd, fifteen graduate students from Kanazawa University were invited for the SG Research Interim Report.  Each research team gave a presentation in front of two graduate students and our students were given valuable advice afterwards.

[the participants’ comments]
＊We were able to learn many things like presentation skills and know-hows for questionnaires.

On November 3rd, all the second year students participated in sessions to learn what it is like to be a member of the society.  The guests working in twelve different fields of occupation were invited to give lectures.

On November 3rd, all the first year students participated in sessions with university students to learn presentation skills.  The guest speakers were all graduates of our school and they gave lectures on how to give an effective presentation by using PowerPoint slides showing their school life in each of their universities.

On October 13th, 37 first-year and second-year students participated in a lecture given by a graduate student from Kyoto University majoring in Studies of Asian and African Regions.  The topic of the lecture was “Names”.  The students were able to learn about the differences between Japan and the country of Uganda through this lecture.

[the participants’ comments]
＊It was surprising to learn that in Uganda there are names that originated from words like “Poor” and “Rich”.

＊It was hard to understand the culture of Uganda at first, but I realized that the life I’m living today is not the standard compared to the life around the world.

On September 15th, four students who studied abroad using “トビタテ留学JAPAN” had the chance to talk about their experiences abroad.  30 students participated in it, and learned what it means to study abroad, and got the image of life and education in foreign countries.

From August 20th to 26th, an event called “AEON 1% Club – Asian Youth Leaders” was held in Tokyo.  Three students from the second-year SG course participated.  The topic of conference this year was “Food & Health”.  High school students from six Asian countries gathered to have discussions on the topic.
[the participants’ comments]
＊I became friends with people from foreign countries.  I was able to understand the differences in religions and cultures.
＊Thanks to this program, I understood that the world I knew was just a portion of it.

From August 3rd to 7th, four students from the third-year SG course participated in this event held in Tokyo.  The theme of the conference was “Sustainable City & Community”.  High school students from Japan, China and Korea participated and had discussions in English.

[the participants’ comments]
＊There were times when I was not able to express myself in English.  However, when I was able to, it gave me a lot of confidence. 
＊Before joining this program, I assumed the high school students from China and Korea had some kind of hatred toward Japanese, but I found out that this assumption was not true as I had conversations with them.

On July 14th, the third year students of the SGH course had their final presentation.  They have worked on their project for more than a year and a half and they did their final presentation in front of teacher around the country and foreign guests.  Professor Shigeru Matsumoto of Rikkyo University and foreign exchange students from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and Kanazawa University were invited to the sessions.  The people who watched and listened to the presentation gave positive comments like: “The students looked very confident when they were answering questions during the Q&A sessions”, “Most of the research consisted factors from the SDGs and were amazing”.
  
【Comments from students】
・It was our first time working and doing research on the same theme for more than a year and half.  There were tough times, but we came to realize each other’s characteristics and started to respect each other.  We were able to experience things, which were impossible if we worked on it by ourseleves.
・At first, I had difficulty explaining things in English.  There were even times when I had difficulties explaining things in Japanese.  However, now that I have finished giving the presentation for my research, I can say this with confidence.  “If the listeners feel that you are trying hard to get the message across, they will try hard to understand you.  So don’t give up.”

On July 14th, after the presentations by the third year students, the second year SG course students had an empowerment program where they explained and asked for advice from the foreign guests on the project they are working on.  This session was done in English. 
 
【Comments from students】
   ・I was able to get my message across to the foreign guests.  I will like to improve my English skills so that in the future, I can ask and answer questions smoothly in English.
   ・The foreign guests listened to our presentation and asked many questions.  We are grateful for their questions and advice.  We were also inspired by the way the guests were actively asking questions.