Language Support for Volunteering Beginner’s Seminar held at TUFS

September 11, 2019

On Tuesday the 23rd of July, a beginner’s seminar on language support for volunteering aimed at TUFS students and alumni was held at TUFS (sponsors: Social Coordination Management Office, Volunteer Action Space - VOLAS). This seminar aimed to teach the inter-personal skills, language support basics and other knowledge, skills and manners required of volunteers at volunteer activities involving foreigners.

In the morning session, VOLAS Volunteer Coordinator KINOSHITA Yoshihito led a seminar on “manners and risk management at volunteer activities” in which he used classic lecture techniques and group work to teach participants about the rules of volunteering and risk management, and got participants to share their thoughts and opinions with each other.

The afternoon session focused on interpreter training. Participants were split into three language groups – English, Chinese and Spanish – and practiced interpreting and notetaking through roleplaying realistic situations. This session was led by TUFS Language Supporters (English: TANAKA Kenichi, lecturer/interpreter; Chinese: YAMAURA Ikuko, lecturer/consultation interpreter; Spanish: KAMEI Reiko, lecturer/consultation interpreter).

Through this seminar, participants were able to learn the knowledge and skills necessary to real life volunteer activities by experiencing cooperative group work and interpreting practice.