There are two things I want to achieve through studying abroad. The first is to master the Japanese language. You may think that using the word of “master” is ambiguous, but I have set my own reasonings. I want to reach a level where I can teach Japanese. Now I know that "being good at Japanese" and "good at teaching Japanese" are completely different things. But I don’t want to change my standard. This is because people who are able to teach Japanese well must also be good at Japanese.
The second is to better my qualifications as a Japanese teacher, as I’m a studying to become one. I was originally scheduled to go to educational practice this year, however, due to the restricting of COVID-19, the studying abroad program had just re-started. So, I was at a crossroads. With much consideration, I decided to study abroad. Studying abroad will be a choice without regret, even if my educational practice was postponed and I will graduate a little later. Above all, the depth of knowledge that teachers who have studied abroad to teachers who have not, may appear completely different to the students. If you can teach a class based on what you have gained from your study abroad experience, it will be a much more fulfilling experience.

　Since coming to Japan, I have been surprised at how fast time has flow. Every time I realize that I have less than half a year left to study abroad, I feel very sad, but I think it is very important to look back on my study abroad experience from this point of view and plan ahead.
　First of all, it's about the Japanese language. Originally, I majored in Japanese, so I didn't have much trouble with communication problems. I wonder if that's why I was so careless. I got a terrible score in the vocabulary part of JLPT in July. Fortunately, I passed, but I realized that I didn't study the part in Japanese expression enough. I always used expressions that I was used to, and I didn't try to say them differently depending on the situation. Also, I thought, "Now that I've come all the way to Japan, I'll learn Japanese on the spot," so I spent less time sitting at my desk and learning new expressions. Learning Japanese on the spot must be a valuable experience that I can have because I'm studying abroad, but just living in Japan doesn't necessarily make me be fluent in Japanese. From now on, I will try my best to improve my Japanese ability while balancing out social life and my studies with people and books.
　More importantly, the key is the balance between study and having fun. If you take a train, you’ll get to Umeda in 15 minutes, and in 20 minutes, you'll get to Namba. Even on weekdays, it was within the distance of the end of the class, and there were many places to go there, so I often went out. I went there because my favorite singer did a live performance in Hyogo, and my friend invited me to see a fashion show for the first time in my life. Recently, I went to the Yodogawa Fireworks Festival and saw beautiful fireworks while eating delicious food. The picture shows shaved ice that I bought at a stall. I want to spend the rest of my study abroad life healthy and enjoy it as much as possible.

Through this program, I have improved on my Japanese listening ability the most. When I first came to Japan and spoke to Japanese people, they spoke so fast that I couldn't understand them well. They were speaking at a normal speed, but to me, it sounded like they were rapping, I had practiced listening through audio files of the textbook. When having a conversation, I could ask “Please repeat”, but when we were all chatting together as a group, I couldn't ask for help. To overcome this, I decided on a topic and talked. If the topic is set, I was able to predict what people would say, so I was able to continue the conversation even if I couldn’t understand particular words. I also tried to get used to the speed of native speakers while watching Japanese dramas. As a result, I had got used to even a little fast paced Japanese speed.
　　Recently, I started to be able to talk to the people in stores. The clerks tend to be the most challenging people for me to talk to because they honorifics. Also, there was music playing in the shop, and the voices of other customers overlapped, so I couldn't hear the staff very well. At first, I asked again and again and pretended to understand, but now I can easily understand what the clerk is saying with a little concentration. When there was a mistake in the price of the receipt, and when there was a problem on the reservation screen, I was able to solve the problem right away after speaking to the clerk.
　　After returning to Japan, I would like to make use of my study abroad experience to try various activities. The most important thing I want to do is become a Korean partner for foreign students who come to my university. Now that my study abroad is over, the people I want to thank the most are my Japanese partners. They talked to me, helped me prepare for the presentation, and took me interesting places. The photo shows a lottery ticket drawn at Kiyomizu Temple with my partners. They were my friends who I heavily relied upon. Therefore, I would like to become a language partner and help other foreign students. Furthermore, I think there are many things that I can help because I have studied abroad. As much as I've been helped, I want to be helpful for someone and get back what I learn.
　　Also, there are some things that I became interested in through studying abroad. That's a polite expression. It seems that I became unknowingly interested in it because I intentionally tried to listen to understand what the staff ware saying. So, after graduating from university, I plan to come back to Japan on a working holiday and learn how to use honorifics while working part-time. I will continue to study my favorite Japanese, the language I love.