The event that made me decide to study English more seriously was when I went to Tokyo last summer to support high school students in their English activities as a university student mentor. 　I had always liked and studied English, and I was invited to participate in this activity by a friend of mine who was attending a university overseas. To be honest, I felt envious that I could acquire English skills because I had studied in a fulfilling environment. I also felt a little depressed because I had always assumed that my English skills were limited because I did not have the money to study abroad and did not belong to an international faculty, so it was inevitable that my English skills would not improve. 　 However, a senior student saw this and approached me and told me that she had never studied abroad and was studying something unrelated to English at university. I was shocked because he spoke very fluent English, but he advised me that if I had the desire to learn, I could improve my English skills no matter what the environment was. He also gave me concrete information about the study methods he was practicing. I am very grateful to him, and I now want to continue learning English at my own pace and in my own way, without setting my own limits.

Hi, I am Tomoka, a freshman in Humanity and Social Science at Hirosaki University. I will talk about how I was learning English until now. In summer vacation, I went to the Philippines and experienced speaking English throughout the day. I got some new perspectives and realized speaking English is not difficult. Before my summer trip, I mainly attended seminars, but I seldom participated in Conversation Corner in English Lounge. However, after spending my time in the Philippines, I would like to talk with international students in English, so I tried to join Conversation Corner in my second semester. For this essay, I collaborated with Yusrin from Indonesia, a doctoral student at Hirosaki University. First, we met in the English Lounge in October. As we conversed, we found we shared the same interests, and this led to more frequent interactions. For example, we like the same anime, so we exchange information about it. On the other hand, we also teach each other our cultures in English. Hence, we introduced our hometowns to each other in English. In addition, we usually chat on LINE and record our voices. At that time, he gave some advice about grammar, idiomatic words, and expressions to me. Long story short, I think English is a communication tool to broaden my mind. If you are not really confident about how to communicate in English, don’t worry! You can enjoy English Lounge! You can talk with international students who can understand Japanese. Please come to English Lounge, you can speak English gradually in there!!

I had no interest in English when I was a junior high student. English was so confusing for me that I do not want to study it. But now, I do not think I am poor at English, and I attend classes more actively. Something that helped me were interesting stories and essays. I managed to enter high school. Although I had studied hard for the entering exam, I did not have high motivation to learn English. “I must study English, but I don’t want to.” When I was losing my way, my English teacher gave me a great present. It was a homework handout, which is written in English. Of course, I was reluctant. But during the homework, I found the story interesting. It told me why cola was made. I like trivia, so I was surprised and glad to know that cola was produced by mistake. After that, the teacher gave me English sentences one after another. Some of them taught me a little knowledge like cola’s one, the others were funny stories. I could enjoy studying English because of the handouts. I am a university student now, and I keep studying English now. Instead of the handouts, I started to read English comic books because I like Manga. It is sometimes difficult, but interesting. (Especially, I like “FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST”!) These stories and essays gave me various vocabulary. Recently, I started to practice for the TOEIC test. My English experiences help me understand what the problems say. I cannot use English perfectly, even though, it is fun to know what you feel in English. I will keep learning English because I can enjoy it!

My motivation to study English comes from English songs. When I listen to English songs, I want to understand the meaning of its lyrics. I LIKE ENGLISH SONGS！ One of my favorite songs is “Let it Be” by The Beatles. Their pleasant singing voice and rhythm makes me relax. They created many hit songs, like “Yesterday” and “Hey Jude.” Their songs are still popular around the world. In Japan, young people know them because their songs have been used in TV shows and commercials. I discovered their songs “Let it Be” and “Help!” on TV shows. I want to know about the lyrics of their songs, so I want to study English. HOW TO LEARN ENGLISH USING ENGLISH SONGS I introduce that how to learn English using English songs. There are three advantages.

First, it is to be able to develop listening skills. You can improve your English skills by singing aloud, while listening to songs. Also, you can learn English words and phrase. 　　 Second, we can learn about foreign countries. Folk songs express the scenery of the country and the life of the people. For example, “Take Me Home, Country Roads “by John Denver. Lyris to this song mention the names West Virginia, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and Shenandoe River. Finally, we can have fun while learning English. Using English songs, it is easy to keep learning. I think many people who lack the motivation to learn English so, why I recommend using English songs.

This is the story of why I decided to learn English. During my elementary school, I struggled that I couldn’t fit in my classmates. This is because I’ve dreaded opening myself up. To be honest, I thought I would be made fun of if I showed who I am. I had no self-esteem, I think now. It is painful that we can’t express ourselves while caring how people see us. So, I decided to change myself to a cheerful person when graduated from elementary school. At the beginning, it seemed that I succeed to pretend a bright boy. However, I gradually came to realize that it’s not me. Worse still, bullying me in soccer club started. they often threw my belongings away and made fun of my actions and words, exposed features of my body among all students. I couldn’t talk about it with anyone because of shame. So, I felt I don’t belong to anywhere. One day, I had influenza. I wished that I could have made it last. On the 4th from the first absence, I had nothing to do and finally found glee, a musical drama in the U.S., which my mother loves and recorded. I came across an episode that a boy tries to face bullying. I was crying unconsciously. Then, I continued watching episodes. There were teenagers like me who struggled with bullying, LGBTQ etc. Suddenly, facing bullying guys came up to my mind. I made up my mind and did. In conclusion, bullying stopped. What’s more, I became a friend with them. Glee taught me Guts and literally saved my life. After this, I wanted to see a bigger world or studying abroad. Now, I study English education for becoming a teacher and preparing for it. That’s why I study English.