2014/04/06

GKA’s Pioneer Vision in Promoting English Immersion with the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program

Speaker: Gale Zimmerman & Shizue Yoshida

For the first time in memory, Gunma JALT held its meeting in Ota. Gunma Kokusai Academy (GKA) was the meeting site as well as the theme of the event. Principal Shizue Yoshida introduced the merits and challenges of this first of its kind school. Her introduction touched upon her refusal to accept the status quo in regards to the traditional system of learning. She spoke of the unique mission of GKA in bringing English education in an immersion context. Attendees were shown how GKA students learn in English while being trained to develop their critical thinking skills. To fully develop these skills, GKS has become an International Baccalaureate (IB) school.

Gale Zimmerman, the GKA IB Coordinator gave attendees an overview of the IB program and how it operates at GKA. As a new IB school, GKA faces some challenges, such as classes with few students and the difficulties in finding qualified teachers for this unique learning program. However, as Ms. Zimmerman pointed out, the success of the system can be seen in the fact that the first time graduates of the grade 1 to 12 immersion school were accepted to reputable institutions across Japan, and even abroad.

Mao Murakami is one of those graduates. Ms. Murakami, an IB graduate, presented the challenges she and her fellow students faced in gaining their Japanese secondary school graduation diploma as well as their International Baccalaureate Diploma Program diploma. Among these are the cultural challenges these Japanese students faced as well as the heightened level of confidence the GKA IB students felt as a result of their critical thinking approach to life. Ms. Murakami showed the attendees the finished product of education in a critical thinking environment. For those in attendance, it was inspiring to see that there are such schools that do help produce these graduates, a nice change from the culture of cram schools that most of us see around us.

Gale Zimmerman has been the IB Coordinator at Gunma Kokusai Academy since July 2010. She has been a teacher of math, grade 10 Biology/Chemistry/Physics, and Advanced Placement/IB Physics at Beaverton High School in Oregon, USA for over 20 years. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Master’s in Mathematics.

Shizue Yoshida has been Principal at GKA Secondary School since April, 2013. For the previous two years she had been Deputy-Superintendent of the Gunma Prefectural Board of Education. After graduation from Tsuda College, she worked at a private company, taught English at senior high schools, worked as an English teachers’ consultant for three years, was Vice-Principal for five years and Principal for six years for the Prefectural Board of Education.