Indian students learn about Japanese culture in an international exchange programme

Apeejay Stya University (ASU) organised a virtual international exchange programme for its students in which they interacted with their counterparts at Kokusai University, Japan.

The programme was held over four months, from October 2022 to January 2023, with two online sessions every month where students discussed common areas of interest and got an insight into the Indian and Japanese cultures.

At ASU, 25 students from various departments participated in the programme under the guidance of Ananda Padhan, Head of Department, School of Education, and Vijay Kumar, associate professor, School of Education.

“We began with an orientation programme where we were asked to prepare PowerPoint presentations on certain topics,” said Charu Bansal, a second year student of Integrated Biotechnology, ASU. “The students were divided into teams and were assigned a coordinator. We began with an introductory session where we got to know about the students in Japan.”

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Each of the sessions was dedicated to a different topic, ranging from hobbies to school life, holiday season activities and festivals. “The students from Japan were very friendly. From the engaging sessions, I learnt how language is not exactly a barrier in cross-cultural interaction. I learnt a lot about Japanese culture and the commonalities we share,” Bansal added. 

Aditi Choudhury, second year student of B Design, ASU, said, “My experience was amazing! I got to interact with the Japanese students and got to know them and their culture, and lifestyle. I also told them about Indian culture. This exchange of cultural, linguistic, and lifestyle information was the best part of this programme and I would like to participate in the programme in the future too.”

“It was fun interacting with people of another culture. We learnt and unlearnt things about Japan. The exchange programme broadened my horizons,” added Gautam Mathur, a second-year student of BTech, Computer Science Engineering.

Ishita Sharma, a third-year student from the same department, emphasised, “It was a very good experience to be part of such an exchange programme. It was an informative, fun and new experience. I would love to interact with them again.”

Another student Ayush Das from the same batch added, “The Japanese International exchange student programme was an amazing opportunity for the students to learn about the cultures of international students. We further discussed topics related to schooling, festivals, communities, and more, with help of both verbal and non-verbal communication. The teacher/translator assisted us with communication with Japanese students. The Japanese students were very polite and well-mannered. Overall, my experience at this event was very good and I definitely want to attend more such events.”

“Indian culture believes in “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”. Modern science proves we are all part of a bigger family. However, we need interactive sessions to understand the varied culture of different countries. ASU had this objective in mind for this international cultural exchange programme.”

–Vijay Kumar, associate professor, School of Education, ASU