Discussion Time Questionnaire（Otowa Muragaki）
Discussion Time Questionnaire（Imari Yasuda）
The Respondent: Otowa Muragaki
（School of Economics)
Otowa Muragaki(Right)
Have you noticed any changes in your English since starting Discussion Time?
Actually, the reason why I wanted to join Discussion Time, which is held once a week, is that I didn’t want to forget my English, which had improved during my study abroad. Through this opportunity, I can have many chances to speak English with English teachers, exchange students and Japanese students. I think my English has become more natural than before.
What do you like about Discussion Time?
I can talk with people from different countries, so I can see their various ways of thinking. I like this group because most people come every week, but I can also see people I have never met each week, so I have learned how to make conversations on various topics with someone I don’t know, and I enjoy it. Every week we talk about a wide variety of interesting topics such as Japan, other countries, hobbies, our experiences, or recent news.
What topics are you interested in discussing?
As I said, I talk about a wide variety of topics in the group. Of those topics, my favorite is “things about Japan that surprise you”. When I ask this question, they tell me about their interesting experiences. I really like to listen to their stories of their previous experiences, and it is easy to expand on that topic.
Have you ever studied abroad? Tell us about your experience.
I studied in the UK last year. One thing I was surprised at is that British English is quite different in accent, in expressions, and even in vocabulary. I have studied English for a long time but I have never thought about the accent that I was learning. Some words have different meanings from what I leaned, so at first I was a little confused. Now I think that I can listen to the British accent the best. What I learned is it is important to listen to many kinds of English accents.
During my stay in the U.K
Are you planning to study abroad in the future? Tell us about your plans.
I have just come back to Japan so I haven’t decided whether I will study abroad again. But if I have the opportunity, I want to go abroad again because my mind was stimulated there, and I now can talk a lot about my experience with others.
