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加藤　紗采 ― What I Have Learned from Studying Abroad ―

　　Are there dialects in English?　 I thought there wasn't any, except for the difference between British English and American English.　 When I was a freshman, however, I heard English indeed had several dialects. 　 That interested me very much, and made me think of going to the place where

English is spoken in order to find out more about dialects in English. 　This was the initial motivation for my applying for the study-abroad program. 　 Now I have been studying at the University of Mississippi for five months and found myself having learned a lot more things than I imagined, setting aside the question of dialects in English.

　　First, I became able to express my own views.　 Before I came to the USA, I could hardly express my opinions spontaneously. 　 When I took my first class in the USA, however, I saw my friends in the class always raising their hands and speaking out. 　 I felt too embarrassed to raise my hand.　 Everyone looked fully confident. 　 Then, I tried to be confident in my English skills even if I couldn't speak it well enough yet.　 When I was

depressed, my friends said to me, "Your pronunciation sounds like that of a native speaker!", which encouraged me a lot, leading me to have confidence. There are a lot of international students in the University of Mississippi, all of whom are helping me make progress in English.　

　　Second, I realized how important it is to put my thought into words. 　There are a lot of different kinds of people that live in the USA. 　 They look different, but they all speak English, which I think is able to connect people from different countries. 　 When I was in Japan even if I didn’t say anything, people around me could understand what I was thinking. 　It's as if we were on the same wavelength.　 On the other hand, in the USA no one can understand you if you don't say anything. 　Therefore, I try to say aloud what my intentions are.

　　Through these experiences mentioned above, I think I have grown up a bit. 　 This study-abroad program is drawing to an end but I will do my best in the rest of the period in the USA. 　

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　2013年2月（2010年度生）