BYUH student shares how teaching the English language became a transformative experience and how Japan was his canvas for exploration and self-discovery
Brandon Galli, a senior majoring in TESOL education from Utah, embarked on a transformative journey as he ventured from his comfort zone to the captivating shores of Japan. Full of dreams and aspirations, he shared how he went on an internship that promised not only to broaden his horizons but also to shape his future. With a mission to teach English to students in a foreign land, Galli said the art of teaching English became a bridge to connect himself to Japanese culture.
“I don't have any regrets about Japan,” said Galli. He explained there were many pros and cons but the pros should always be the most important to look out for. Galli emphasized, “Find your why, why you want to go and if you don't know why, then just go and figure it out while you're there.”
Internship in Japan
Galli said he would go in and play board and video games in English with the young children. He said the students must interact only using English. He shared he would work for 10 hours a day. The young children didn't feel like work, said Galli, but the older children did.
“Japanese students are perfectionists, so they will not try. It was hard for me as I am used to a learning environment in America where we raise our hands and ask questions, and they do not do that in Japan. They sit and listen to you.
“I'm very interactive when I teach but no students would be willing to even try to answer because they don't want to be wrong. They would just sit there with their masks on and all you see is their eyes looking at you which is really funny,” shared Galli. Adjusting to it was the biggest struggle for him, expressed Galli.
Wenqi Zhan, a senior majoring in TESOL education from China, said she was able to share her summer internship along with Galli in Japan. “Brandon’s stories were very interesting. Seeing an American adapting to Japan was incredible. It was also fun to be around him because he cracks jokes around the house and the students love him as well,” expressed Zhan.
Reflections and lessons learned
The significance of empathy is so important for students here at BYUH, Galli said. “I think empathy was the biggest takeaway. I have a greater understanding of every international student here as they come and struggle. Everyone here is so strong and brave, and it was so hard and scary for me in Japan, but these students are just amazing at this university,” expressed Galli.
“I can do hard things that scare me. If something gives me anxiety or terrifies me, then it probably means I have something to learn from it,” shared Galli. Living in a foreign country and not being able to speak Japanese, Galli said he had a hard time communicating with others in the rural town he was in. “ People don’t speak as much English as I thought,” he said.
Deciding to go on an internship was hard for Galli, who said at first he felt like he should not go. One of the main reasons was to work and make money during the summer, said Galli. “I would recommend everyone if you have an opportunity to do an internship, if you are given this amazing opportunity to go and explore the world. Go. Money will always come back but time will not come back. So go buy all the things, do all the things to get the scholarship you need,” he said.
Adapting to a different culture
“Growing up as an American who lived in Utah, I was used to everyone speaking English. When I went to Japan, I assumed people would know English, but they didn't. I couldn't survive.
“I had to learn Japanese by watching YouTube videos and Duolingo. I learned little phrases such as, ‘Can you warm this up please?’ or ‘Can I get a bag please?’ ‘Where is this? I don't have this. I need this.’” shared Galli.
Galli said he lost a lot of weight and was not physically active. “Hawaii did prepare me a lot because there is a lot of diversity here, but it was different food than I am used to eating. I'm used to eating a lot of sandwiches, burgers and pizzas. In Japan, it was rice and noodles, which I was not used to at all,” said Galli.
Galli also said, “The kids would bring their lunches, and I was obsessed with their lunches. They would bring these cute bento boxes, and they would have rice and meatballs, vegetables, cooked chicken, bulgogi beef, seaweed cute designs of fruits that their mothers made. It was just so extra. Whereas when I was a kid, my lunch was in a paper bag with a sandwich, chips, cookies and some sugary drink.”
Galli shared how from his experiences, people in Japan are closed-off and disconnected. He said he would hold doors for people and they would just walk through and not even say thank you. Galli said there were times that people would take pictures and videos of him because they were not used to Americans at all and in the countryside.
“I have always lived in a place where I have been the majority so going to a place where I was the minority was eye-opening. I didn't like it at some point. But looking back, I am so grateful for it, that I could be part of the minority and understand what students at BYUH feel like when they come in and they are not in the majority,” shared Galli.
“I am certain that is why I went this summer so I could gain that understanding and the perspective of what it is like to be a student at BYU–Hawaii when it is not your country. The adjustments were hard, but so worth it. The No. 1 thing I got out of it was just how to care more for the students here at BYUH because they go through it every day.
“I saved about $1,000 over the course of the year for Japan, so I knew I wasn't making money as it was unpaid. The school did help me out a lot with the scholarship. I didn't really budget while I was there. I knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I wanted to buy everything that I could. If I saw a snack that looked good, I bought it,” said Galli.
Galli added, “They do not use cards. It is all cash. I did have to budget myself with cash. I only had a certain amount every week I could spend. So, if we went to this soft-serve ice cream place and I did not have any cash left over for that week, then I had to budget. It is a cash-dominated society.”
Process of finding an internship
Galli said as a TESOL education major, he did not need to do an internship but knew he wanted to do something during the summer. After talking to some professors, he said they recommended him to do an internship.
Galli said one day after work, he talked to some girls who were applying for the internship in Japan so he applied and got accepted. In the application process, Galli said, “I had to fill out a handshake application and do all that through Career Services. There is also a Facebook group where they post jobs all the time. All the TESOL students are on the page, where hotspots of jobs are available and they can apply from there. It helps to connect with professors and alumni as well,” shared Galli.
Leisure time
The manager of the cram school named “Holly Ohana” and his wife are BYUH alumni, said Galli. According to newworldencyclopedia.org, “Cram schools, also known as crammers, are specialized schools that train their students to meet particular goals, most commonly to pass the entrance examinations of high schools or universities.”
“The manager wanted me to see Japan, so he took us out with the other students on the internship every weekend. He took us to Hiroshima, a three-hour drive, where I was able to learn about the atomic bomb. I also went to Disney at the end of my internship,” shared Galli.
Galli said everything he learned at BYUH and his classes perfectly applied to what he experienced. Galli said, “It was so eye-opening to see everything fall into place, and I was very prepared from the teachings I received at BYUH.”