‘Summary
Description:
Three sessions were organised to present different dishes from around the world: Thailand, the UK and Brazil. A person from each country was invited as a lecturer and cooked with the participants while presenting his/her country.
For the UK session, the lecturer was an ALT who cooked scones and introduced the UK with a PowerPoint presentation.
Duration |
3 times (on Fridays, for 2 hours) |
|---|---|
Location |
Community centre, kitchen and class room |
Target |
Local citizens (a 300yen charge was collected to buy ingredients) |
Participants |
25 people each time |
Organiser |
Board of Education |
Budget |
0yen - 10,000yen |
Objectives:
This event was implemented to give an opportunity to learn about foreign countries through "culinary culture". Furthermore, it provided an occasion for citizens to get in touch and interact with foreigners living in the community who they never had the opportunity to talk to.
‘Implementation
Staff:
Besides the ALT and staff from the Board of Education, five to six volunteers from a local group helped. Since the ALT was not fluent in Japanese, a translator was requested.
Registration and Opening Greetings:
The class was held for two hours, from 7:00pm until 9:00pm. Volunteers and Board of Education staff assisted with the registration. One Board of Education staff member acted as moderator.
Handouts with explanations and recipes were distributed to the participants. As there were six tables in the kitchen, participants were split in six groups (four to five persons per group).
Following the opening greetings, the ALT was introduced. After a brief explanation of the recipe, participants began cooking by following the instructions written on the blackboard.
Cooking:
Each group cooked according to the ALT's instructions. At each step, participants gathered around one table where the ALT would demonstrate the next step and then they returned to their tables to try it themselves.
Tasting:
Participants moved to the classroom with the finished dishes. They tasted what they cooked while the ALT showed a PowerPoint presentation about British culture.
‘Preparation
Request to the ALT, Preparatory Meetings:
The ALT was informed two months ahead of the event and the date was set to meet his/her schedule. Next, the menu was decided, ingredients and recipe were confirmed, and, after a trial preparation, the content of the cooking class was decided. At each step, the ALT was closely involved.
The Supervisor would visit the ALT at school and use e-mail to prepare for the event.
The trial preparation was performed at the ALT's house, where ingredients and recipe were reconfirmed.
PR, Gathering Participants:
An announcement was placed in the community centre's monthly publication. The event was announced a month in advance and the deadline for application set a week prior to the event. Applications were made by phone.
Participants ranged from junior high students to people in their 60's. There were no restrictions except that children in junior high or younger must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Being an event with few participants, no confirmation was sent by mail. Participants were instead informed by phone.
Reserving the Venue:
The community centre was contacted to reserve the rooms, but in this case, they were free of charge.
Requesting a Interpreter:
The Supervisor asked an acquaintance who was a member of a volunteer group to interpret.
Creation of Documents:
The Supervisor searched for recipes on the Internet and created the handouts. The ALT wrote down the ingredients in English and the Supervisor wrote them in Japanese on the blackboard.
Buying Ingredients:
The Supervisor went shopping to buy ingredients with the ALT on the day before the event. The ingredients were stored in the refrigerator.
‘Budget
The participants paid a participation fee that covered the cost of the ingredients. The interpreter was a volunteer, so no fees were charged.
This event was organised by the city; therefore, rooms at the community centre were also free of charge.
‘Submitted by
Sakai City (Fukui Prefecture)
Board of Education
Mikuni Education Division
Tel: 0776-82-6400
‘Comments/Advice from the Supervisor
This class was designed in the spirit of "give it a try", "have a taste" and "letfs talk".
The cooking classes focused on dishes that were unusual in Japan (using condiments hard to find or unavailable in Japan, etc.), or others that were easy to make at home. The scones, which can be cooked quickly and easily, were delicious and the class was a great success. Many participants told us they would try to make them again at home.
The PowerPoint presentation was also much appreciated. It was well thought out and the pictures were beautiful.
My advice would be to delegate as much as possible (registration, translation, etc.) in order to focus on the presentation and facilitation of the class. If possible, I recommend asking volunteers to help. In the case of a cooking class, I also recommend dividing the ingredients and placing them on the table beforehand to start the event.
‘A Word From CLAIR
Cooking classes allow participants to take an active part in the process. This and similar projects, which can be called "experience projects", are very popular. Besides the cooking class described above, we received many examples of events introducing foreign culture based upon the interests or special skills of JETparticipants, such as dance, wine, movies, handicrafts, etc.
