Staff Reporter

The ambassador, his wife and Hissa Abdulla Ahmed at the programme

THE Japanese embassy is planning to invite specialists from Carnegie Mellon University to teach Qatari pupils Japanese animation film-making, the country’s Ambassador Yukio Kitazume said yesterday.
Talking to the mediapersons on the occasion of the first anniversary of the introduction of Japanese language course at Al-Bayan Educational Complex for Girls, Kitazume said the embassy is working to ensure that Japanese culture introduced to Qatar is sustained and has a meaningful impact on the students.
The school’s principal, Hissa Abdulla Ahmed said Qatar and Japan share similar culture, which account for the interest in teaching the language to students at a tender age, “in order to give them a cross-cultural exposure”.
She said the Japanese embassy has been giving its full assistance to the programme, adding that she hoped the relationship continues.
She said that the school has made efforts to increase the level of teaching Japanese language to pupils this year.
“Though, we have just one teacher handling the course for grades four and five, comprising about 36 students,  we are trying to use our break periods to teach the language to other grades, bringing the number to around 105,” she said.
“A vice principal of the school had earlier visited Japan to study teaching methods and students’ way of life in that country.
“Based on her experience and resources made available to her on Japan’s educational system, we are designing our curriculum for the language here,” Ahmed added.
Hiroko Kitazume, the wife of the ambassador was also present. She said she will organise a tea ceremony-cum-doll festival in late February and early March next year.
“March 3 is celebrated as girl’s day in Japan and we are hoping to hold a small ceremony on the day, where students would be taught how to make tea, dolls and the famed Japanese flower arrangement ‘Kibana’,” she said.