Due to the spread of the COVID-19 infection, we had no choice but to cancel the study abroad program for the AY2021, but to keep students motivated to study abroad, we held "Immersive English Experience for Study-Abroad Preparation Summer Program" at British Hills in Fukushima Prefecture.

Here are some comments from the students who participated in the program, including their classes and their future goals.

＜Study Report＞

1. Mr. Riku Tanji (a third-year student)

I've learned a few things through the program about English culture and my English skill. In the orientation, I learned the order of writing of address in English is reversed to when writing in Japanese. I didn't know that.

I found it interesting that table manners in British made me more satisfied with the dinner unexpectedly than usual dinner. I had imagined that would be just a hassle. But manners made the dinner special. Of course, the course dinner was delicious.

In Business Experience, I've learned how difficult it is to present our idea in English. Our team did a presentation of an idea about the application helping people translate English to natural Japanese. I was confident with our idea. But we got little money from other teams. I think I couldn't convey my thought about the business idea. It was difficult and challenging for me to put our thoughts together and present them.

In addition to those experiences, through the program, I noticed that the reason why I can't communicate well with others in English is that I don't have good communication skills rather than my rubbish English. I need to study English hard, which is also what I have learned from the program. But I do need to practice communication itself. I knew that was something I needed to work on in the future. However, I got a bit confident with talking in English by communicating with teachers, which was my purpose. I think I had a meaningful time.

2. Mr. Kota Miura (a third-year student)

It was a good experience for me to participate in this program because I could learn many things and I have never experienced such environment which is surrounded by English. There were only 3 students who are 3 grades and others are 1 grade so I was worried that I can make friends, but I was just worried too much because everyone is very kind and nice. I can become good friends with them. We did table tennis every after dinner. It was very fun and good exercise.

There are many beautiful buildings in British Hills. I had never seen such Western Style buildings. They made me very excited, and I want to live a building like a British Hills's one.

The meal is very good, but I miss Japanese food and want to use chopsticks. Last dinner was especially delicious. That was a first experience for me to eat course dinner. My favorable is Roast beef. I can eat it many. The table manner was difficult, and I got nervous. I admire English person because they do it every day. If I were them, I can't endure. I don't want to take much time to eat so, I respect them.

I get down to main topic. My best interested lecture is "Business Experience" by Ms. Laura. Recently, I am interested in business, because in this summer I joined a program that do full-scale business. I realized business is so difficult but interesting. So, this lecture was very fun, and I can learn what is business and how to give a presentation our product. I thought to express what I want to say in English is very difficult. In presentation, I couldn't say what I think in English. I feel frustrated so I must study English very hard than before I went to British Hills. The experience gave me good stimulation. Laura is very beautiful, so I was honored to be taken her lecture.

The second interesting lecture was "Critical Thinking" by taken Mr. Luke. He is very nice man, and his ice break way was interesting. Thanks to him, I could enjoy the lecture.

I had never heard this word's meaning. So, this lecture had helped me a lot. I learned critical thinking is important to judge something. The RAVEN Method is needed to judge fairly. It can be used for our usual life. For example, when we vote election, we should identify which candidate is the best.

I think Japanese culture is very good and I realizes British culture is also nice. For example, buildings, food, and their human nature. Especially, human nature is good. They are very friendly and easy to communicate with them. I like Japanese one, but we should learn to be friendly from them.

In this program, my motivation that study English went up. I will study hard than before this program. I have a TOEIC on 24 October, so I want to get score 800 points. It is not easy. I must study to use this experience. I am glad I participated in this program.

3. Mr. Hiroto Sasaki (a third-year student)

Before the program, I said "I want to experience this precious event as soon as possible." in the 2nd consideration. Accordingly, this program gave me more wonderful and unforgettable stories than I expected.

After the long hill climb, the beautiful British style town suddenly appeared. I was really nervous in a good way. First lecture was an introduction for 4days program. I said "May I check in?". I think it was just the beginning of 4 wonderful days that were about to begin.

Let's talk about lectures in the British hills. There were many kinds of lessons. The teachers spoke to us very friendly. Speaking speed was very fast and pronunciation was so frequent. In all lectures, we discussed the issues and tried to solve them in the group. I learned with my friends in most of the lectures. In some of the lectures, especially "Critical Thinking", I had to communicate with those who I met for the first time. It was so hard for me and I couldn't state my opinion very well because of my mental strain. Furthermore, I couldn't make a presentation very much because of this nervousness and depression. I thought this was one of my tasks. In another lecture, I couldn't understand and follow my team conversation at all. I tried to think logically and understand their thinking. The reason why I couldn't follow the team conversation was because my understanding speed was too slow. I recognized this was also my task.

Let's change the topic to some fun moments.

Firstly, I could really enjoy all meals throughout these 4 days. Above all, the course dinner was inspiring for me. I felt nervous in a good way. Not only me, other students also hesitated to eat the course dinner at first. However, the longer the time passed, the better we could enjoy this formal dinner.

Secondly, "Snooker" was a precious event to learn British culture. It was so difficult for me because I have never played it before. I think it was the most interesting event for me. I couldn't get a good score, but I shared happiness with my friends.

Thirdly, the tour in the Manor house was fabulous. There were a lot of British historical rooms. Frankly speaking, all the rooms and facilities were very beautiful, but the King room and the Queen room were especially special. After these special guest rooms, we visited the library. There were a lot of antique books and tools. I took many pictures during the whole tour and I had some pictures taken by one of my friends.

In the Wren house, I enjoyed talking with my friends and other roommates in English. They tried to explain what they wanted to say in English many times. Their aggressive actions inspired me strongly.

On top of that, I was so glad to meet these excellent juniors as friends.

Throughout this program, I think I could enjoy this native English environment very well and this experience became one of my best memories I have ever seen. As a result, I took away some tasks which I have to train. I have to identify my current situation. And I would like to train based on these tasks to improve myself in the future. I am very honored to be able to participate in this program.

4. Ms. Angelita Gozaly (a first-year student)

The Immersive English Experience for Study-Abroad Preparation program in British Hills was one of the most memorable experience I have had in the University of Aizu. It was a great chance to get to know a lot of new friends, especially the Japanese students. I enjoyed talking to the Japanese students in English, and I really respect their enthusiasm and motivation to improve their English-speaking skills. I am also happy to get to know the teachers in British Hills. They were very friendly and supportive, and they encouraged everyone to speak up in classes, which in my opinion is a very important key to help everyone improve their speaking skill.

Throughout the program, we had several English lessons and also some additional activities such as treasure hunt and Energize Me! Challenge where we did mini games with the teacher. The lessons were very diverse, from serious lesson about critical thinking and business, to some more fun lesson like making a new flag and snooker. My favorite lesson was the 3^rd critical thinking lesson, where we were given some investigation files of an attempted murder case and we have to analyze it in order to determine whether the suspect is guilty or not. Discussing the case with other students was very fun and interesting because I got to see the case from different perspectives, and I also got to know some facts or piece of evidence that I missed. After that we also have a court simulation where we were divided in to defense and prosecution team. It was a new experience to me, and it is quite challenging to be able to give our opinion and speak very confidently like real lawyers or prosecutors do in the court. In addition, I also loved the Manor House Tour. It was my first time to visit a place built with that specific style, so I really enjoyed looking around and listening to the explanation about the history or meaning of all the designs and decorations.

Aside from the English classes, I also got to experience some British cultures in British Hills. One of them is learning the table manner. Before this, I have seen a lot of course dinner scene in movies, so I was happy to finally be able to learn about the manners and experience it myself. Additionally, I also got the chance to experience tea time in the tea room. As someone who enjoyed tea and sweets, it was a lovely experience to be able to try them with the traditional tea set, and in my opinion, the interior design of the tea room also played a major part in creating the perfect atmosphere to enjoy the tea.

To conclude, this program left a deep impression on me. I got to know a lot of new friends, improved my speaking and presentation skills, and also learned various things about British culture in a lovely environment. Additionally, I also experienced being a student assistant there. At first, I was nervous since it was my first time doing it. However, all the students and teachers were very nice and helpful, so it was not a hard task to do. Even though it was tiring because the schedule was quite tight and we have to wake up early every day, I really enjoyed the whole experience and I definitely want to join the program if I have the chance to do it again.

5. Ms. Satyabrata Pahari (a first-year student)

They say third time's the charm but British Hills proves that one chance is more than enough to fall in love and the second is enough to be obsessed

with its charms.

The second time around not only did British hills live up to the expectations that it had created during my first visit but somehow managed to exceed it and provided what may be one of the best experiences in my life.

British Hills, as always provided an incredible opportunity to experience a variety of engaging classes. While each of the lessons had its unique features that made them attractive, I enjoyed the discussion series the most.

There were two different classes for the discussion series. The first one was where we had to come up with an idea for a new flag for Japan and the second one which was my personal favorite, where we discussed what our perfect university would look like. We got to plan out each section of the university including what kind of activities we would provide there. I enjoyed it thoroughly and was able to show off my creative side while interacting and exchanging ideas with the other students there.

Due to my prior experience, this time around I was able to attempt these discussions without any kind of anxiety and felt much more relaxed and loose. I believe this is all the result of my last British hills experience and I feel pretty ecstatic and proud that I was able to live up to my previous goals of diminishing my fears of speaking up. Last time my main objective of going to British Hills was to be able to practice my speech and improve my speaking abilities, and I strongly believe the discussion series vastly improved my skills by reducing my fear of speaking in front of people. British Hills did an amazing job of making me comfortable about speaking up and this time I felt I was able to implement it pretty well without a hitch.

A 3 night 4-day experience filled with excitement and surprises, that's what British Hills was. Although shorter than the Winter program which lasted for a total of 5 nights and 6 days, the summer program showed that time doesn't matter in British Hills and that it can make you feel special regardless of the number of days you spend there. The summer season had its unique specialties which could not be experienced in the winter such as the nature trail and smog/fog which wasn't possible due to the snow in the winter.

Regardless of the season or duration, British Hills proves to be an amazing place to be not only due to its luxurious and extravagant settings but also its effort in making the English language fun to learn. It never stops oozing with excitement and keeps anybody who goes there engaged. It makes learning English seem like much less of a hassle and created a fire in me to improve my skills. If I ever had a chance to visit again, I would gladly go and would recommend others to do so as well.

6. Mr.Toya Aizawa(a first-year student)

I had a good time in British Hills program and I write it about three points that I experienced. First, I enjoyed special Western culture. Participant on program stay over in Wren dormitory. British Hills has good atmosphere like Harry Potter. Much furniture in all buildings is made of oak and It makes hills calm. We ate British foods (fish and chips for example) and course dinner, saw historical and noble rooms. Especially, I like to visit Manner House. It has a lot of great things a huge chandelier, Historic artifacts, and royal rooms. I became to be interested in western culture because of Manner House.

Second, I enjoyed badminton, table tennis, and snooker with same participants. Snooker is a sport which is similar to billiards, but instructor explain us "You have to use your brain like playing chess". I could not get points by putting ball in pocket but I could get some points by encouraging my opponent mistake. Snooker is team sport and I liked to consider strategy with teammates. I could make new friends by playing sports.

Finally, we took classes about business by English. For example, critical thinking class (being able to think logically to news) is my favorite class. It is difficult to listen to teacher's saying accurately and express my thinking by using correct English vocabulary. However, I was very glad to communicate my thinking to teachers and friends when I have courage and speak English. I sometimes appeared Japanese in times of unexpected so I feel my English skill is very poor.

I want to go to internship abroad from before and I have first step toward reaching its goal. I will continue to study English(TOEIC and speaking) and want to join planning about communicating to international students. (295 words)

7. Ms. Ishimoto Mana (a first-year student)

Summer program at British Hills gave me good experience. I have three reasons.

First, my English become better. In the class activity, I could think various things for English. We all listen English explanation and do somethings. Most difficult and interesting class is critical thinking. I first known The Raven Method. It is five view point when we think something critical. I studied in that class about the importance of how to look the information. Also, we checked some information is credible or not. It is difficult, but it is very important skill when we read and watch the news. Snooker is my first experience. We listen to English explanation. Surprisingly, I could understand the explanation and enjoy the snooker very well. It is difficult sports but I felt that sports connect us even if you do not understand the language.

Second, I could feel British. We took British Hills Manor House Tour in English and we heard a lot of information about the buildings of Britain. For example, there is a Queen's room and King's room, it is a room for queen and king. The color of Queen's room is rose pink and there are a lot of unicorn. Also, there is an Armoury. It is near the entrance in order to move weapon easily. Chandelier is a symbol of wealth. These are very interesting for me. Also, we try to eat course dinner. We are thought manner to eat. It is very good experience. I got some of new information of the manner. I think it will be good help when I become an adult.

Third, we could meet good person. In British Hills, we talked English not only in class but also in free time. My roommate had good motivation for English, so she talked to me in English in our room and I really felt like stay in British for study abroad. Also, I could think I can be good for study abroad in the future. The person who join this program have good motivation for study English, so I could get motivation for it. Also, I am shy. But people talk to me and I could get friend. So, I could get confidence of communicate with people. Also, we do something in free time, for example, play card game, darts, go pub, eat scone. It was very fun and I enjoyed it. We talked about class too. We had the activity which we think new business. We talked about new product in English. It is hard, but it made us good training to talked English each other.

I could grow up in the Summer program at British Hills and I think I want to more improve my English skill because I really want to go study abroad. In this program, I could get confidence. This program gave me good experience and friend. Also, this program gave me the aim of study English. I want to know more English word and understand what they say clearly. I want to speak English good pronunciation. I am going to study English for my future.

8. Mr. Keigo Nojiri (a first-year student)

Through this British Hills program, I felt that the class of making successful business by Ms. Laura is the most interesting. We had to consider What is the important, essential point to make a good product and business.

Discussing such a thing in English made it harder, too. First, we built a consensus on our product was a smartphone application and using IT and AI. After that we considered and decided that we would make an application for searching good combinations of clothes. Finally, we made a really good presentation, if I do say so myself. But There was just one thing I regretted. I couldn't answer properly a question asked by teacher in the presentation. My answer was beside the point, I think. I felt that answering a question unexpected on the spot was very difficult. I had to consider more about detail Things of the product. Throughout the whole this class, I think I could improve not only English communication skills but also learn What is important for making a good presentation.

Of course, the other Classes were also so interesting. We could have many opportunities to discuss in a group with other participants. We all struggled to tell properly what we want to tell in English using full of our brain. It was so hard that sometimes I feel a headache. I think that is the most important to improve communication skills and Why I applied for this BH program. Also, Through the discussions We have to do it on the spot, so we often made many grammatical mistakes. I felt it difficult to talk immediately and smoothly with no grammatical mistake, too.

Through this program, I thought there was a long way to communicate so smoothly and correctly in English, I have to study constantly and progress steadily. From now, I will have more reading aloud practices at home to improve speaking and listening skills. This BH program was so worthful and interesting. I also made new, many friends through it. I am grateful to everyone working with me in this program.

9. Ms. Momoko Nakajima (a first-year student)

I was blessed with many new friends and good teachers and had a satisfying four days in the British Hills. Before participating in the program, I didn't have confidence in my English. Furthermore, I was worried if I could keep up with the class. However, as I took classes, I gradually gained confidence in my English. Among the four-day classes, the RAVEN Method of critical thinking and Business Experience was impressive to me.

At the beginning of this program, I had no friends. Although, I was able to get along with some of the same students by taking classes together. Some of my friends had a positive impact on my thinking. When I saw my friends who spoke English with international students, I wanted to speak English more. In addition, our teacher was friendly, and they gave me a lot of opportunities to speak English. My English conversation with them was exciting to me. Therefore, it was a great chance to make me want to speak English better.

Two of the four-day classes influenced my thinking and increased my knowledge. One is the RAVEN Method of critical thinking. In this class, we talked about what was written in the article reporting news whether it was true or not and discussed them. As we continued the discussion, I realized that some of the students thought about the article from an objective point of view that I had never thought of. Through this class, I was able to learn various ways of thinking. Besides, I learned how to express my opinions clearly and logically. The other one is Business Experience. In this class, I had close real business experiences, such as making imaginary products, thinking about sales strategies, and presenting them. I talked with students in the same group about the merchandise until late at night outside of class. I learned the difficulty of creating new things and the importance of group unity. In addition, I was able to learn some of the key points in the presentation, such as the specific flow, posture, and intonation. Especially in these classes, I enjoyed learning how to present in English, how to express my opinions, and how to think in articles.

I went to the British Hills and had the experience of living in English there for the first time. I had a good time because I was able to meet many new friends and good teachers. Thanks to them, I gained the confidence and courage to speak in English. Furthermore, they encouraged me to express my feelings in English. I think it was a good decision to participate in this program. I want to continue to improve my English by using my experience at British hills.

10. Mr. Kaiki Nohara (a first-year student)

At first, I felt that I was trained my vocabulary and speaking skills. I had researched unknown words and necessary words many times by smart phone and electronic dictionary. And, I had spoken in English all days. It was too tired for me however it was a too good experiment because I can research many words many times.

Second, now I am confident in English because I only spoken in English for this event. I could know "English Conversation", in short useful phrases, words, collocations, idioms, conjunctions, and so on.

Thirdly, I could get used to use English. I don't know whether there is a "English Brain", but I had been forgotten how to use Japanese. In the breakfasts, classes, lunches, rest room, dinners and so on, I used only English.

Fourthly, I think that there are also a few bad points. For example, I could not concentration on follow grammar rules. I had my hands full by communication, so I think that we should be get used to communication in English by going to the global lounge frequently. There are a few unmotivated men. I think that there is a need to try hard at this event for everyone.

In conclude, I can know feel about using fundamental English. It was too valuable days because much people used only English very well. By entry this event, I want to study abroad very much, but I'm little sacred because my English is cheap yet. So, I want to keep studying English.

11. Ms. Kanno Rika (a first-year student)

It is so wonderful experience for me to join this program.The program was hold like an alternative for studying abroad cause of COVID-19 but the place is just like British so I didn't feel staying Japan.

The British Hills stands on a mountain so the weather is rather inclement at the moment and so cold...But it's a very extravagant architecture and made me feel history so I think we enjoyed just to be inside.

And schedule has a lot of classes which I'm curious therefore I was able to spend a very worthwhile time. I especially enjoyed "Business Experience" all the others. We will decide what to create and development cost, target customer and how to make a profit and so on in this class.

I came up with an idea which is creating fashion application deal with style of one's own, weather and situation and I told our group about it. I was glad when they understood my idea and said that the idea is good.

That was very unfortunate I couldn't participate the presentation because I was sick but I was able to take the initiative to join the lesson.

I'd like to make the most of what I've learned.

12. Mr. Tsubasa Sato (a first-year student)

I have been able to develop myself by participating in this program. For example, I think I was able to develop the ability to see things without preconceptions. Also, I felt that the hurdle to speaking English has been lowered compared to before. In the past, I was hesitant to speak English because I was afraid that my grammar or pronunciation would be wrong, but now that I am in an environment where speaking English is the norm, the hurdle has been lowered.

One of the reasons why I was able to develop so much was because I learned from the various activities at British Hills. During my four days there, I took a variety of classes, including classes on business, critical thinking, and an introduction to Japan. These classes were all conducted in English, of course, and I had more opportunities to speak English than in university classes, which gradually reduced my resistance to speaking English. There were also many opportunities to experience British cultures, such as snooker and course dinners, and I was able to deepen my understanding of different cultures.

The activities that I felt I learned the most from were the "Critical Thinking" and "Business" classes. In the Critical Thinking class, we had to think about what critical thinking is, and then use critical thinking to examine and discuss actual events. In the business class, we learned how to make presentations in English and worked as a team to present a new product that we came up with.

First, in the critical thinking class, we learned how to look at things objectively. By examining things from the five perspectives of evaluation, ability to see, vested interest, expertise, and neutrality, we can make more objective decisions. In the last class, we did an activity on a fictional case where we used this procedure to determine whether the suspect was guilty or not, and we were able to acquire the ability to apply it to real-life matters.

Second, in the business class, we learned what it is like to make a presentation that is understood by others and how difficult it is to do so. I felt that it was very difficult to make a presentation that would be understood by the audience, as I had to pay attention not only to the content of my speech but also to my posture and many other things during the presentation. In the actual presentation, I felt frustrated because I could not fully convey the appeal of my team's product in English. This made me want to improve my English skills even more.

In addition to the classes, I was able to gain a better understanding of different cultures by participating in activities that exposed me to British culture. Snooker and course dinners were particularly impressive. Snooker is a type of billiards, and it is such a popular sport in the UK that it is broadcast on TV. When I played snooker, it was a game that required more brainpower than I had imagined. For the course dinner, we learned about table manners in class beforehand. It was very interesting to learn that each country has different tools and manners to use.

Through these various experiences, I was able to grow a lot and I am glad that I participated in this program. I never thought that I would be able to grow so much in just four days and three nights. I met a lot of new people, and I am glad that I participated in this program.

In the future, I would like to make efforts to improve my language skills and participate in more and more other programs. For example, study abroad programs and overseas internships. Studying abroad depends on the status of my corona infection, but in any case, I would like to prepare myself for studying abroad. Also, by participating in overseas internships, I would like to acquire international skills and knowledge of IT in addition to my language skills.

13. Mr. Yujin Miyoshi (a first-year student)

Of course, I have experienced a lot of good and interesting things in British Hills. Now I can say that learning English in real activities was very efficient. Because I have a feeling like my English skills, especially in the speaking area, are better than before I started this. This is based on everything I have experienced at British Hill, but I have focused on the two things that I think are the most important.

One is the unusual English classes. There are many interesting classes at British Hills. Most impressive is the class for presentations. The students must introduce their new product through the role playing. In this class we made teams to give our presentations. In the meetings, we discussed the new product with our teammates in English. The experience of discussing the details of the product, especially outside of class as if we were actually making the product, made my thinking deeper and let me know how difficult making a new product is. I think it cannot be gained from daily classes.

Another is new friends. At the beginning of this program, I had no friends in the members. Most of the people were new people to me. However, it was a chance for me to experience getting along with new people in English. In the end, I was able to make friends, some of them I have still communication with even after the program.

I mentioned above how important my experience at British Hills was to me. However, I also believe that whether it is really important or not depends on what I do afterwards. To not make this program useless, I want to continue my efforts in my daily life.

14. Mr. KANEKO Yuta (a first-year student)

I enjoyed this program and studied a lot. All programs in BH are so exciting that I wanted to go again. Particularly the programs of Snooker and Business Experience are in living memory.

Snooker is a type of pocket billiard. It is said to be the original form of billiards. One white ball is used as a handball, and 15 red balls and 6 colored balls are dropped into the pockets to score points. The word "snooker" means "to obstruct" or "to interfere," and the name comes from the fact that the game is played by interfering with another ball so that the opponent's target ball does not go into the pocket.

It was so difficult for me and maybe for almost all of the students. Because I did it the first time in my life, I was very poor. In 90 minutes I put in one red ball, which is one point, and I put in the white ball more than 4 times, which would have given me -4 points if I put in. At my table, both of the opponents and my team were so poor that we could only gain points from the opponent's mistakes.

But, it was very fun. However I was poor, this game made me happy. To play something with friends with laughing is the most exciting time I think even if we are very poor.

Business Experience is a class where we think of a product we want to sell and make a presentation about it. In the first class, we think of a product and on the last day, we give a presentation for other students and the teacher.

In this class, finally, my team couldn't win the presentations of this class but I was fun to make a presentation and give the presentation. However, in giving our presentation, there are many questions which are got at the heart of the matter, thinking about the setting of the products was so exciting and fun. Besides, I learned a little about how to make and to give a presentation, which is important for me in the future.

15. Mr. Ryoma Hashimoto (a first-year student)

I participated in the four-day British Hills program from September 25 to 28. In the following, I will explain why I joined the British Hills program, what classes impressed me the most, and what message I would like to send to anyone who is interested in British Hills.

I chose to participate in the British Hills Program because I plan to start my own business overseas in the future, and I need to be able to speak English well in order to do so. In addition, this program has a fascinating class called "Business Experience", where you can experience product development, which is another reason why I joined this program.

A class which impressed me the most is Business Experience class. In the class, we were divided into several groups. Then each group had to come up with a product which has actual functions, cost of development, how to monetize it, promotion media, target users and so on. And present it in front of everyone.

My group came up with a clothing suggestion application that utilizes AI technology which is named Pineapple. If you take a picture of your clothes with this application, it will suggest a coordinated look from among the clothes you own. Also, if you register a celebrity you like, it will retrieve information about their attire from Instagram, Twitter, etc., and suggest coordinates that resemble the style of that celebrity's attire. So, the application enable you to wear your ideal outfit without having to buy new clothes.

Through the Business Experience class, I could experience the fun of team development and think about what kind of products are needed. It was a very good experience for me because this kind of opportunity is something that I cannot experience in my daily life.

Finally, the message I would like to send to anyone who is interested in British Hills is "If you want to start your own business or work abroad in the future, this program is the best choice for you!"" In this program, all classes are in English, so you can experience product development as if you were working overseas. This is a great program for people like you, because you rarely have this kind of opportunity when you are in Japan. Let's take a step forward for your future!"

16. Mr. Shingo Morimoto (a first-year student)

I learned many things from the British Hills Program! It was very difficult for me to live for four days only in English, as I had not studied English for a long time. The teachers only spoke in English, and I could hardly understand what the teacher and the other students were saying in English, so I realized my English skills are very poor. Especially, I've always hated learning vocabulary, so I found that I need to increase my vocabulary from now on! However, there were some times when I didn't speak up because I was afraid of making mistakes, so I will reflect on this and actively participate in English classes. And I will try to improve my English skills.

Also, all the lessons ware very enjoyable as we often discussed and came up with ideas in groups. I especially enjoyed the critical thinking, using RAVEN method. "R" represents "Reputation", and "A" represents "Ability to see", and "V" represents "Vested interest", and "E" represents "Expertise", and "N" represents "Neutrality". In the RAVEN method, we learned to use these things to determine if a subject is credible or incredible based on a fictional case. I am convinced that this knowledge will help us to verify the credibility of the information we get from the Internet and other sources. I also really enjoyed playing snooker, which is similar to billiards and Badminton and table tennis.

Lastly, I am proud to have participated in this program. This experience has made me realize that I need to work harder.

17. Mr. Yuya Wakatsuki (a first-year student)

British Hills was a good opportunity to experience a lot of things. My most memorable lesson was "critical thinking" and "business experience". In the critical thinking lesson, I learned the RAVEN method which is a way to think logically about given information. At first, I couldn't understand the RAVEN method very well, but as I repeated the lesson, I was able to understand it little by little. However, it was a little frustrating that I often didn't know what to say in the lessons and couldn't speak up.

In business experience, I worked with my group to come up with a new product and gave a presentation about it. It was difficult to figure out how to explain things in English in a way that was easy to understand, but I felt a great sense of accomplishment when I finished. In addition, I experienced a lot of things outside of the lessons.

At British Hills, we ate all out meals with a knife and fork, which made it a little difficult to eat, but the food tasted good. I was also a little nervous about eating with unfamiliar table manners. When I came back from British Hills, I found it easier to eat with chopsticks.

I played snooker for the first time at the British Hills lesson and enjoyed it so much that I played snooker during my free time as well. In addition to snooker, I also enjoyed spending my free time playing badminton and darts.

By participating in this program, I was able to expand my friendships. In addition, I realized that my English is still in its infancy, and I would like to continue studying English in the future.

18. Mr. Rintaro Takahashi (a first-year student)

I decided to participate in the British Hills program for two reasons. The first is that I am not very good at speaking English, and I wanted to use this program to improve my English conversation skills.

The second reason is that I wanted to make new discoveries and broaden my horizons by experiencing different cultures. 4 days of lessons had a lot of difficult content, and there were times when I could not put my thoughts into words and had to think for a few seconds on the spot. Even so, I actively raised my hand and spoke up during the program. As I did so, my self-confidence grew, and little by little I began to feel that I could say what I wanted to say.

One of the most interesting lessons I took during my four days at British Hills was a lesson on introducing Japanese culture to other countries. The lesson showed me how much Japanese culture is known abroad. I was surprised by the differences between the two cultures, some of which are less recognized than I expected and some of which are more recognized than I expected. The lesson was to introduce Japanese culture based on the presentation to our partner university, the University of Waikato, based on our presentation later in the day. My group decided to introduce hot springs in Japan. It was very challenging and interesting to work together as a group to come up with ideas, make a presentation, present the presentation, and then have a free talk with students from the partner university.

In summary, I would highly recommend participating in the British Hills Program because even if you are not confident in your English, the local teachers and staff will be able to understand you, and the facilities are beautiful and fun to look at.

But I think the biggest reason is that you can make new friends as you spend several days with other people who want to learn English.

I would like to study English more in the future, and I hope to use my experiences and growth from this program to help me in my future studies. I really enjoyed the program at British Hills.