Memories of Graduation

Rose Tanasugarn, ALT Shimane Prefecture (1990-1993, 2003-2006)

　As a two-time Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme participant, March for me has come to be associated with junior high school graduations.

Graduation is quite formal; there is a lot of special bowing done throughout the ceremony, especially when the students are called to the stage one by one to receive their diplomas from the principal. In fact, the entire week before graduation, the school is involved in cleaning, decorating, and rehearsing the parts of the ceremony.

During my first graduation back in March 1991, I was barely over culture shock and the language barrier enough to understand what was going on. I didn’t know why the students and teachers were crying. However, due to Japan's educational structure, students must take entrance exams to determine which high school they will attend. This means that once students finish 9th grade, some friends who have been classmates since nursery school would no longer see each other on a daily basis.

Of the six ceremonies I attended, last spring’s was the most special. It was the final one for me as an ALT, so I decided to borrow my friend's hakama (kimono and pleated wide trousers) for the occasion. It was made by her mother for her graduation from Hiroshima University and I was honored to wear it.

However, it wasn't the fancy clothing that made the ceremony special. It was the students. We had shared many special memories over the three years they studied with me at Hamada 2nd Junior High School in Shimane Prefecture.

The end of the ceremony was especially touching. The 9th graders prepared a surprise for their teachers. One of the class clowns was selected to deliver a speech of gratitude while five of his fellow unruly classmates presented gorgeous bouquets to the homeroom teachers.

For the first time in three years, the class clown was speaking in earnest. Almost immediately, his voice began to crack as he spoke from the heart about the teachers to whom he and his classmates owed so much. Of course, this made all his classmates cry, as well as the parents and other school faculty and staff.

After the ceremony was over, the students gathered in their homeroom class one last time. They each took turns saying a short speech of thanks to their classmates, parents, and homeroom teachers before leaving the school, collecting gifts and flowers from the 7th and 8th graders in their sports teams and school activity clubs.

My favorite part of the afternoon was the frenzy of students outside, trying to snap pictures with each other and their favorite teachers. I can't wait to relive the entire experience when I am a guest at Hamada 2nd JHS' 2007 graduation ceremony.