LSAJ Forum

Lao students who are working towards winning scholarships to study in Japan had their first taste of what it might be like to live in Japan at the Lao-Japan Human Resource Cooperation Centre in Vientiane on Monday.

A ceremony was held to open the pre-departure training programme for Japan Grant Aid for HRD Scholarship Candidates (JDS fellows).

The event was attended by the Dean of the Faculty of Letters of the National University of Laos, Associate Professor Dr Bouasavanh Keovilay , Japan International Cooperation Centre coordinator Mr Takafumi Fukai, various faculty heads from the university, and 25 candidates from various provinces who had made it through the first round of exams.

The training programme will run for four months and end on June 14; to ensure each participant has the opportunity to be involved in class discussions, they will be divided into three classes for reading and writing skills, and two classes for logical skills, listening, communication skills, grammar/TOEFL preparation and IT studies.

“The overall objective of this pre-departure English training programme is to prepare the JDS fellows for a smooth entrance into their respective higher education institutions in Japan ,” said the Co-director of the Lao-Japan Human Resource Cooperation Centre, Mr Mikiharu Sato.

“This is based on the belief that most individuals often face difficulties in coping with their heavy workload, including written assignments and paper presentations, as well as difficulty in coping with cultural differences in postgraduate education, particularly in the early stages.”

The aim is to improve JDS fellows' skills both in logical thinking, computers and general English, and in their understanding of Japanese culture and traditions.

“General English skills will be very important for the candidates to overcome language difficulties during their studies in Japan,” the Co-Director of the Lao-Japan Human Resource Cooperation Centre, Associate Professor Dr Manisoth Keodara, said.

“Logical thinking and computer skills as well as knowledge of Japanese culture are also highly significant for the fellows to cope with academic life in Japan .”

During the training programme, participants will be required to undergo the institutional testing programme test twice, once in the middle of the course and again at the end. They will also be subject to various tests to measure their progress.

The Lao-Japan Human Resource Cooperation Centre is implementing this programme in close cooperation with the university's Faculty of Letters and the Faculty of Natural Sciences.

Vientianetimes