School Global Education and Tanzania Library Project
This page introduces JAT-related activities including African global education programs held at schools in Aichi, participatory lessons for junior high school students led by international intern speakers, African cultural exchange through mancala, and Kyocho Elementary School’s support for a library in Tanzania.
These activities helped children not only learn about the world, but also think about what they could do for international cooperation and turn that learning into action.
Project Overview
This page introduces global education activities held at schools in Aichi, participatory lessons by international speakers and student speakers, African cultural exchange through mancala, and Tanzania library support that grew from Kyocho Elementary School.
A key feature was that children did not only learn about world cultures and daily life at school; they also thought about what actions they could take and connected their learning to used-book sales and support activities.
These practices are recorded as educational activities connected to the Grade 5 moral education textbook by Mitsumura Tosho, “International Cooperation: What We Can Do.”
Main Topics Introduced on This Page
International speakers and student speakers visited schools and introduced cultures and daily life around the world.
Lessons combined country information sheets, quizzes, group discussions, and intercultural understanding drama.
Students collected used books, sold them at a local event, and used the proceeds to support a library in Tanzania.
The children’s international cooperation activity was featured for several years as moral education material.
School Global Education Program
Through dialogue with international speakers, teaching material sets, and presentation activities, the program aimed to help children feel the wider world more closely.
Learning Directly from Speakers Around the World
International students and speakers from diverse backgrounds, including Kenya, France, Armenia, the Philippines, and China, introduced their cultures and daily lives to children.
Supporting Lessons with Teaching Materials
Materials included DVDs, country information sheets, country-based understanding quizzes, photo galleries, and mini certificates designed for easy use in schools.
Expressing Learning through Intercultural Drama
Children presented what they learned and what they wanted to communicate with international guests through 90-second “intercultural understanding drama,” learning about cultural understanding through experience.
Participants
Records include 10 organizers and 135 general participants.
International Speakers
Speakers from diverse backgrounds, including Kenya, Indonesia, and Armenia, participated.
Implementation Year
A program was held at Wakamizu Junior High School in June 2013.
Grant-Supported Project
Implemented as a Nagoya City international exchange activity grant project.
Lessons through Direct Exchange with International Speakers
In the global education programs, international speakers and student speakers visited schools and introduced their cultures, daily lives, schools, food, and values.
Through questions, quizzes, and group discussions, children encountered real-world perspectives that they could not learn from textbooks alone.
- Cultural introductions by international speakers
- Use in English classes, integrated studies, and related subjects
- Group discussion-based lessons
- Development of intercultural understanding, expression, and communication skills
School Exchange with Speakers from Africa
Speakers from Africa and other international backgrounds visited schools and introduced African cultures and daily life to children. These exchanges helped children begin to think of distant countries as part of a world connected to their own lives.
Later, these learning experiences led to children’s own actions, including used-book sales, T-shirt exchange, and support for a library in Tanzania.
African Cultural Exchange through Mancala
Through mancala, a game that can be enjoyed without relying on language, the project created spaces for cultural exchange where both children and adults could participate.
Hands-on Cultural Understanding
By actually playing mancala, children had an opportunity to learn about African culture through hands-on experience.
Exchange at Local Events
In addition to schools, African culture was introduced through mancala at local events and exhibitions.
Exchange Across Generations
Because mancala can be enjoyed without relying heavily on language, it was used as an effective tool for multigenerational and multicultural exchange.
Tanzania Library Project
Students at Kyocho Elementary School learned about the educational environment of children in Tanzania and took action as “international cooperation we can do” by collecting used books and selling them at a local festival.
The proceeds were used to support a library in Uswaa Village, Tanzania. Messages of thanks and records of exchange were received from the local community, showing that the children’s actions supported learning across borders.
This was not simply a donation activity. It was an important practice in which international understanding learned at school was turned into children’s own action.
Donation Ceremony and Thanks from Tanzania
At Kyocho Elementary School, students gave activity reports, presented support funds, and heard messages from Tanzania. Through this, they learned that their actions could support the learning environment of children overseas.
- Collected used books and sold them at a local event
- Used the proceeds to support a library in Tanzania
- Received messages of thanks from the local community
- Students’ reflections and learning records were also preserved
Supporting the Educational Environment in Uswaa Village
In Uswaa Village in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania, children faced challenges in accessing books and learning materials. Library support was an educational support activity that aimed to provide local children with books and learning opportunities.
Although many students lived in Uswaa Village, there was a shortage of accessible library spaces and enough textbooks. Supporting the library space and the purchase of books was an important effort to support children’s learning.
“International Cooperation: What We Can Do”
The activity in which Kyocho Elementary School students learned about library support in Tanzania, thought about what they could do, collected and sold used books, and delivered support funds was featured in a Grade 5 moral education textbook by Mitsumura Tosho.
The activity was introduced as a practice in which children learned about global issues, acted with support from their local community, and connected their efforts to educational support overseas.
View Materials Related to the Textbook FeaturePlease manage the use of textbook pages and text while confirming copyright and usage conditions.
The Value Shown by This Textbook Feature
This activity was not simply an international exchange event. It was recognized as an educational practice that helped children think about “international cooperation we can do” within school education.
It is also a record connected to the values HHHJapan emphasizes: multicultural coexistence, education, international cooperation, and collaboration with local communities.
The major significance of this activity lies in the fact that children learned about the world and became involved in society through actions close to them.
Activity Photo Gallery
Representative photos of school global education, mancala cultural exchange, and Tanzania library support.
Why This Activity Connects to HHHJapan Today
The school global education activities and Tanzania library support were practices that connected learning about the world with children’s own actions. They are also connected to the values HHHJapan emphasizes today: multicultural coexistence, education, international exchange, and collaboration with local communities.
Bringing the World Closer
Through exchange with international speakers and people from Africa, children came to feel distant countries as closer and more familiar.
Turning Learning into Action
In the Tanzania library support activity, students joined international cooperation through a familiar action: selling used books.
Connecting Education and Local Communities
Schools, local events, and children overseas were connected, creating an educational activity that expanded from the local community to the world.
Related Pages
Please also see the overview of JAT-related Africa activities, the Kenya agricultural support page, and the Japan-Africa children’s food education exchange page.
Learning about the World, and Turning Small Local Actions into International Cooperation.
HHHJapan draws on its past experience in international cooperation, multicultural coexistence, and education to build a society where people can learn from one another through Japanese language education, support for foreign residents, international exchange, and environmental activities.
Contact Us
