新入生のみなさんへ（教員メッセージ⑥：矢澤オーリヤ）

Dear students,

I am Olya Yazawa, I teach English at SWU and I am delighted to welcome and congratulate you on this Business department blog webpage.

Considering current situation in the world and Japan with the outbreak of COVID-19, we are all well aware, that it is a tricky balance, maintaining sanity, personal relationships, and high educational activity in these precarious times. Thus, do not worry, relax, and know we’ve got your back! Look at it as not an obstacle for your new university life, but a possibility to finally become tech savvy and learn new gadgets. We are all learning them with you too!

Remember that books are a great help. Read daily! Those who study online right now must be extra-vigilant and extra-prepared to defend the continued importance of daily routines in their education, even when their long-planned objectives are melting away faster than the polar ice caps. Buy your textbooks, make a new plan, set daily goals and follow them!

I know that learning English online, and not just the Basic English, but all of a sudden, Business English may seem intensely complex and undeniably daunting. Do not fret, students, there is help for this! Prof. Yuko Asada sensei and I have prepared comprehensive manual for you to refer to in the first weeks of online study. Watch it once, twice, as many times as you need. And remember, you can always contact us with a question online, it is even easier than in person.

Believe me, I only wish I had such great online resources as you have right now when I was in your shoes. Yes, you’ve read the sentence right, I too had to learn English as a foreign language when I was a freshman in my university. When I was a student all we had were boring lectures, little practice and no personal computer. Yes, I am that old.

I remember very well the day when the department I was studying at got a computer room where anyone could access the Internet and connect with the world. That was amazing! It felt unreal to be able to talk to people from far away in real time and use my English skills in practice. The Internet put me in a position where I had to show my skills, produce words, sentences, communicate; and not just passively listen and do boring drills. I had FUN with English! And I want you to have fun with it too!

Now we have the Internet, PCs, smartphones, cool apps and wonderful authentic textbooks to rely on. The world is in our hands! Let us learn English and help each other in these difficult times by staying dedicated, involved and positive.

Looking forward to interacting with you virtually and seeing in person in the nearest future!

Sincerely,

Olya