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1. What prompted you to decide to participate in the "JSPS Science Dialogue" program?
The time and energy required to pursue research effectively often leaves little chance for communicating meaningfully with people outside one's field, much less outside of the university setting. Participation in the JSPS "Science Dialogue" enables the individual researcher to get out of the lab or library and to convey to high school students the fundamental benefits of research, and by extension, the rewards of an intellectual life. Along the way, the presenter is compelled to articulate what is most important—not to the "in-crowd" of colleagues that typically comprises a conference audience—but rather to a group of young students with scant knowledge of the topic at hand. Finding a suitable idiom to introduce the one's research or thinking can be difficult, but it is good exercise. I also saw the program as an excellent opportunity to deepen my knowledge of Japanese society and its educational system. Because my particular interest was in educational facilities for students with hearing impairments, I was immensely gratified that JSPS was able to introduce me to just such a school, the School for the Deaf at Tsukuba University.
2. To what did you give greatest attention in preparing and giving the lecture?
In preparing my remarks the most difficult challenge was gauging the sophistication of the audience. For advice I turned to the teachers, who, after all, are the ones who know the students best. They generously read in advance the entire speech manuscript and flagged spots of potential difficulty for the students. Under their guidance, abstractions were made more concrete; additional examples were introduced; and ideas were elaborated so as to make them more immediately intelligible. The ultimate purpose of the speech is to communicate ideas to the students, so any degree of success my presentation may have achieved was due in large part to the prior vetting the manuscript received by the teachers, and to the skill of the sign language interpreters employed during its delivery. In this sense, although I was billed as the single "guest speaker," the event was unquestionably a collaborative effort.
3. Could you give your impression with regard to participating in this program?
I think most of us in the "hearing world" intuitively regard the deaf as somehow pitiable, as being stricken by a handicap. My visit to the School for the Deaf at Tsukuba University tells another story. Never have I encountered a more bright, curious, energetic, and cheerful group of high school students. They deal with their circumstance realistically, and show the strength and wherewithal to master alternative means of communication. They pay attention to their teachers' signed explanations, but also use sign to snicker, tease, joke, bluster, and make mischief. Sign language, in other words, is an exceedingly subtle and versatile craft. When combined with a repertoire of facial expressions, it enables communication just as dexterous and substantive as ordinary verbal communication; and because of its performative dimension, it may even be more dynamic. The so-called "Deaf World," I have come to understand, is a rich one.
4. Was it meaningful in terms of your fellowship activities?
Roughly 80% of my time I devote to research and research-related activities—the rest I spend trying to get to know Japan better. Unless there is some direct personal connection, a school for the deaf remains (even for Japanese) unfamiliar territory. For this reason I was especially pleased to have been given the opportunity to visit this unique facility. I look forward to studying Japanese sign language further and to another visit to the school.
5. In what ways do you think the students benefited from the program?
It is my hope that the students benefited in three different ways: 1) that the content of the speech provoked thought about notions of "foreign" and "native," and the ways these terms affect the relations between an individual and the society in which he or she resides; 2) that an encounter with a Westerner "in-the-flesh" provided a counterpoint to various stereotypical images seen in movies, television, and advertising; and 3) that the English practice sessions enlivened their foreign language studies.
6. Could you give some overall advice or comments to future participants in the program?
The importance of getting to know the relevant faculty members and planning the speech in cooperation with them cannot be overstated. Even if the assigned school is a good distance away, I would strongly recommend setting aside a half-day to visit in advance of the presentation so that good lines of communication can be established, and all parties understand the structure and content of the talk.
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