Faculty Spotlight: Kiko Sunga

Kiko-sensei shares about his origin story and reflections as a teacher in the latest installment of the faculty spotlight!

1. What got you interested in learning and teaching Japanese?

I was really interested in Japanese pop culture growing up so I thought that I would never ever feel bad working if I’m doing something related to my interests.

The pop culture interest was also a great gateway kasi it led me to the deeper aspects of Japanese culture and while learning, it was a mirror din for me to see myself as a Filipino/SEA learner.

Pero I guess for me, the turning point was I felt that the best application of the language I have learned was to teach it. After getting introduced by my sensei/senpai to the huge network of Japanese language teachers both here and abroad, it kinda just felt natural for me to pursue teaching.

2. How is your experience teaching the language at UP Diliman so far?

I think one of the major changes we have felt is ‘yung change from teacher-centric learning to student-centered learning. A lot of our classes today are more focused on peer reviews, triangulating, active learning, self-monitoring, etc.

Before, it was very difficult to find Japanese media available online pero now, it is very easy to find a commonality between one’s hobbies and their target language, so that also changed the structure of our classes.

Before, “Ok, ito ‘yung grammar then exercises.” Now, I ask everyone to try looking things up before we tackle it in the classroom and then we discuss it together with their peers.

I think a lot of my colleagues rin adjusted our goals. Instead of just focusing on language proficiency in Japanese, we try to incorporate din autonomous learning so if ever man na they want to learn Japanese or another language in the future on their own, they have the necessary skills.

Another major change din I think is our shift towards incorporating pop culture. I remember before, it was very taboo to talk about pop culture while in a Japanese classroom pero now, we even encourage or use it as a starting point.

3. Can you share some tips for learning Japanese, especially for students who might be intimidated by the language and its writing system?

Always start with something that you can already do/near to your interests. In our classes, if ever we face a new question related to Japanese, we always backtrack and try to start on words/expressions that we can already understand. Also, take a mental note of the can-do’s introduced for each lesson kasi they will eventually add up and make us more confident learners.

Another thing that I have learned was to create an image of yourself after you have mastered the language. Sometimes, that alone is enough to give learners a clearer focus on what specific goals we should focus on.

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Currently, Kiko-sensei teaches beginner classes, as well as higher-level courses. This second semester, he will handle one section of Hapon 11, and one section of Hapon 122. Access the “Regular Classes” and “Course Catalog” tabs of CRS for more information. 

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This article is part of the “Faculty Spotlight” series of the Department, and is also done in celebration of 100 years of Japanese language teaching in the university. Click here for more information.