When people abroad think of popular sports from the United States, they usually think of sports that are played in their own countries, such as basketball or baseball. Though these two sports have grown worldwide, neither is the most popular sport in America. People often think baseball is the #1 sport in the U.S. due to it being nicknamed “America’s Pastime”. However, the real king of sports in the U.S. is football.

Usually played in fall and early winter, football is the most-watched sport on TV in America. Every year more than 100 million people tune in to watch the Super Bowl, the National Football League’s (NFL’s) championship game. Not only that, most stadiums that can hold over 90,000 people in the world are football stadiums.

What is football? Football is played on a field that is 120 yards long (around 110 meters). The playing field is 100 yards long with a 10-yard "endzone" (scoring zone) on both sides of the field. The game is played in 4 quarters of 15 minutes. Each team is allowed only 11 players on the field at one time. One team is the offense and one team is the defense. The offense has to get to the opposing team’s endzone and the defense must stop them. The game consists of plays that only last a few seconds. Teams can pass the ball or run the ball down the field during these plays. However, if a pass is dropped or the player with the ball is tackled to the ground, they must pause and restart a new play. Not only is the game about athletic ability, but it is also a strategy game, like chess.

At the start of the offense’s turn, they have four plays (“downs”) to make it 10 yards. If they can make it to the 10-yard mark, they receive a new turn, “set of downs” and can continue. However, if they can not make it to the 10-yard mark, they must give the ball to the other team. Usually, the offence kicks the ball to the other team if it is the 4th play (4th down). This kick is called a punt. After the other team catches the ball, they become the offense.

If the offense team makes it to the endzone, they are awarded 6 points with a chance to run a new play for 2 more points or kick the ball through the “goalposts” for 1 point. Usually, teams kick the “extra point” for +1 points. If the team can not make it down the field but are close, they can kick a “field goal” for 3 points. If the offense gets tackled in their own endzone, the defense is awarded 2 points called a “safety”

Like any sport, the best way to learn is to watch. Luckily, you don’t have to go to America to watch a football game. Ritsumeikan University has its own football team, The Ritsumeikan Panthers! You can check their website to learn more about the team and their schedule. [http://www.ritsumeikanpanthers.com/]

Photo credit David Morris @Pexels.com

Q1. What sport is called "America's Pastime"?

a. Baseball

b. Basketball

c. Football

Q2. How many people watch the Super Bowl every year?

a. 50- 80 million

b. 80 - 100 million

c. 100+ million

Q3. How many points is a "touchdown"?

a. 1

b. 3

c. 6

Scroll down for answers

A1 a

A2 c

A3 c

A frequent question asked by students is how to keep up their English outside the classroom. This is an excellent question because language learning does not begin and end in the classroom. If you want to become a confident speaker of another language, you must create multiple opportunities to encounter the language and use it in your daily life. This blog introduces a few ways that students can use online platforms to habituate their language learning, personalise it, and match it to their wider goals in life.

Making a habit of learning something is a vital part of becoming “good at it”. Think of playing an instrument or practising a sport; the more you do it, the better you get. It is even better if it’s fun and easy to fit into your routine. How many times do you check social media on the train or at the breakfast table? Do you have a Twitter or Instagram account that you regularly post to and share content? Create a new account in English, connect to well-known English language sites and English-speaking celebrities. Post your daily musings and reflections in English. Even if it’s ten minutes of scrolling English content or posting one or two short comments in English, it’s a quality addition to your language learning outside of class and fits smoothly into your daily life.

This can be a motivating thing to do because you can personalise the content you interact with and create. It’s your hobbies, your interests, your world. Do you like European soccer? Follow the players and clubs on English-language social media and comment in English in real-time during a game. Love cinema? Connect to the accounts that do movie reviews, websites that rank movies, and the movie stars themselves. Write regular short movie reviews and share them. Pursue the same interests you have in your native language and find the equivalent platforms for those interests in English.

Perhaps your current interests are inspiring your wider goals in life: the job you want to do in the future or the lifestyle changes you want to make. Podcasts are a great way to practice listening skills AND learn something valuable at the same time. There are English language podcasts on thousands of topics, so find one that matches your life goals (fitness, exercise, cooking, job hunting, saving money). For writing practice, start a blog in English on a topic or cause that you feel passionately about (politics, international relations, climate change, volunteering). If it’s a blog that, over time, you can add rich and interesting content to, and connect with many followers interested in the same topic, you could list this on your resume as a significant achievement during your student days.

The digital world gives us many engaging, free, and easy to use platforms for creating and sharing content on topics that interest us. Use these platforms in the target language in which you want to become better at speaking, listening, reading and writing. Habituate your use of these platforms (a little time every day), personalise it (topics, causes, and people that inspire you), and match it to your broader life goals (job hunting, money, wellness). Tweeting, podcasting, and blogging are great ways to keep up your English outside the classroom.

Photo credit Ivan Samkov @Pexels.com

Q1 Is the following statement true or false? “Habituating something means doing it occasionally.”

Q2 When you personalize something, you do it ___.

a. with one person.

b. only with people who share the same interest.

c. because it's meaningful to you and you like it.

Q3 Is the following statement true or false? “The author recommends tweeting, podcasting and blogging in a language in order to learn it.”

Scroll down for answers

A1 True

A2 C

A3 True

When I was a university student in the United States, I was frequently required to write essays for my exams. We used a small journal called “Blue Books,” which were named because of their blue covers. For four years, I took  “Blue Book exams,” where I had one hour to write a long essay on a given topic. I truly dreaded taking these tests, as my hand would always hurt afterward, and they were paper-based, making it difficult to go back and change paragraphs once I wrote them. However, while I didn’t enjoy writing essays at the time, I can now say that this experience taught me how to write essays quickly. I am now teaching this skill to students taking English proficiency exams. I’d now like to share my technique with you, which includes four steps: brainstorm, introduction, body, and conclusion.

First, it is essential to create the essay’s main ideas before you even start writing. Remember, each paragraph has one main idea, and an essay with around 250 words will have either two or three paragraphs. Therefore, read over the question carefully and consider two to three main ideas that answer that question. Write these down somewhere so that you don’t forget them.

Next, once you have your main ideas, start with the introduction. The first two to three sentences of an introduction include some vague background about the topic. Here, you can rephrase the question into a statement or create entirely new sentences. Just make sure that your sentences have unique words; don’t simply copy and paste the essay question! Now, the next sentence will just be your main ideas. Simply write your main ideas in one sentence as concisely as possible. Now you are finished with your introduction. Congratulations. Let’s move on.

You will now write out the body paragraphs. Remember, one paragraph equals one main idea, and the first sentence of the paragraph explains that main idea. Make sure the first sentence has clearly stated things by avoiding vague words like “he, she, it” or “they.” After writing the first sentence, write a few more supporting sentences and move on to the next paragraph.

Finally, you will complete the conclusion. Here you will summarize the main idea in just a few sentences. It is important that you don’t add any new ideas or arguments, as these are supposed to be in the body paragraphs. The conclusion is the least important part of proficiency exam essays, so if you run out of time and can’t complete it, it’s much better than not being able to complete your body paragraphs. Now you can spend the rest of the time reviewing your ideas, grammar, and vocabulary.

To sum up, while it was tiring to take many Blue Book exams, this process has taught me an important process that I can share with my students now. There are many strategies that can be used for proficiency tests, so this is not the definitive method. Please use my technique if you think it will help, or modify it if that fits your needs better.

Photo credit Zen Chung@Pexels.com

Q1: What is a Blue Book exam?

Q2: Why did the author dislike taking Blue Book exams?

Q3 What are the four steps of writing an essay, according to the author?

Scroll down for answers 

A1: A Blue Book exam is a test where students must write an essay for a given topic. The name comes from the small book having a blue cover.

A2: Blue Book exams are paper-based tests. Therefore, the author’s hand would hurt after writing for an extended amount of time, and it was difficult to change paragraphs once they were written out.

A3: The four steps to essay writing include brainstorming the topic, writing the introduction, writing the body paragraphs, and writing the conclusion.

In modern society, people can go on a trip even when they are busy. By means of transportation such as cars, trains, or planes, they can easily reach their destinations in a short time. While most tourists today choose these means of modern transportation, some enjoy bicycling to their destinations. In this blog post, I would like to share with you some advantages of going on a bicycle trip that I realised as a member of the cycling club at my university.

A trip is not just about visiting famous sightseeing spots, but it also consists of the moments on the way. On a bicycle trip, the scenes that you see will pass by slower and thus will be more memorable compared to those in a car or on a train. If you are the type of traveller who finds it fun to take pictures, you can stop at any good photo places on a bicycle trip. (Of course, you cannot take pictures on the ride. It’s too dangerous!) There are many other things on the way that may become memorable during your trip. Stopping by less-known spots that are not in travel guidebooks, you may be able to have special experiences such as meeting local people.

Eating special food on an empty stomach is another big advantage of a bicycle trip. Have you ever felt that something tasted better because you were starving? The hunger you feel after a long ride can be the best sauce for what you eat during the trip. Speaking of my experience, I still clearly remember the taste of the ice cream cone I ate at an ice cream shop on the top of a mountain in Tohoku.

By the way, do you know cycling is one of the most effective workouts? According to 改訂版「身体活動のメッツ(METs)表」the National Institute of Health and Nutrition, biking at a speed of 16.1-19.2 kph comes in at 6.8 METs, which means a 65kg person can burn as many as 464 kilocalories per hour. Even if you enjoy local cuisines to the fullest, you may no longer have to worry about standing on a bath scale when you return from the bicycle trip.

If you can’t afford to take a long bicycle trip, I recommend one day “puttering.” It is Japanese-English derived from the English word “putter” to mean going out on a bicycle without any specific destination. There are many spots around the three campuses of our university that you can visit on your mama-chari. Why don’t you go “puttering” and find new places this weekend?

Last, remember that bicycle insurance is compulsory for cyclers in Osaka, Kyoto, and Shiga. Be safe and have fun riding!

Photo credit Mabel Amber@Pexels.com

Questions

Scroll down for answers

Q1. The author states that visiting famous tourist areas is the most important part of a bicycle trip. True or False?

Q2. What did the author eat on the top of a mountain when travelling in Tohoku.

a) a cookie

b) a rice ball

c) an ice cream cone

d) a sandwich

Q3. The author suggests that people may not have to care about their weight when they return from a bicycle trip. True or False?

A1. False

A2. C

A3. True

Would you like to enjoy a comedy drama in English and become a good person at the same time? The Good Place (2016-2020 on Netflix) might help you with that.

The story of The Good Place begins when Eleanor (Kristen Bell – you might recognise her voice: she played Anna in Disney’s Frozen) finds herself in an unknown, office-like location. She is told by Michael (Ted Danson) that she is dead, and she is now in “the good place”. According to Michael, who designed the good place in which Eleanor is now, everyone is put into the good place or the bad place after their death based on their actions on earth. For example, on the one hand, if you remember your friend’s birthday, you earn a couple of points. On the other hand, when you cut in line, you lose some points. People who have a lot of points can be put into the good place. Eleanor, an environmental lawyer who dedicated her entire life to saving others, seems to be a perfect fit in the good place.

The only problem is, however, that there has been a mistake: Eleanor is, in fact, quite selfish. She was not even an environmental lawyer – she worked at a company that sells fake medicine to the elderly. What should Eleanor do to stay in the good place? Should she stay in the good place? Would it be possible for her to become a good person?

One of the important messages in The Good Place is that we cannot exist on our own; we communicate with and depend on each other every day. As one of the characters says, we “choose to be good because of our bonds with other people”. As a member of a community, we should at least try to help other people and make each other better.

The Good Place helps us think about what makes one a “good person”. Being a good person is not always easy - there are countless reasons which make you think that it is okay to be selfish, that you do not have to care about people around you. However, doing even a tiny bit of good action for someone can give you a sense of belonging to a community, and that feeling will brighten your world a little. After watching The Good Place, you will want to go do something good.

Photo credit: cotton bro@pexels

Quiz

Q1. What example is given in the blog as a way of earning points to get into the good place?

Q2. What is Eleanor’s problem in the good place?

Q3. What is one of the important messages in The Good Place?

Scroll down for answers

A1. Remembering your friend's birthday.

A2. She is selfish and does not deserve to be in the good place.

A3. That we cannot exist on our own.

(Please see main blog page for part 1)

After we started biking on the road, it was indeed very tough. Summer heat as well as long distances on the road made many participants exhausted. Though I could understand very little English, I helped many of them by physically pushing them on uphill sections, sharing my food and drink, and encouraging them by repeating “fight! fight! fight”, and so on. To my big surprise, through this non-verbal interaction, one American girl from California told me she liked me! She was a tall beautiful girl with shiny blonde hair. I absolutely did not know how to respond, but of course there was no reason for me to refuse her. From then on, we fell in love with each other. I struggled to communicate with her with the very limited vocabulary I memorised for my failed entrance examination for Ritsumeikan University. By the end of this 2-week event, we could exchange some easy words or phrases in English. It was such a romantic moment for me with the first foreign person I’ve ever met in my life.

Unfortunately however, a bitter end came to this romance shortly after. Right before she departed for California, she told me that it was not realistic to keep this relationship across the huge Pacific Ocean separating our countries. I was very sad and disappointed, but accepted her suggestion to stay good friends with each other. I went back to Yamagata with a broken heart. Although the romance ended like this, my sweet memory of her had triggered a strong interest and curiosity in America as a country. I started studying English like crazy. By the end of my second year in Yamagata, my English improved well enough to be admitted into some American universities. I then quit Yamagata University and transferred to the University of Minnesota to study international relations. After I graduated from the University of Minnesota, I went on to a graduate school at another university in America.

Here I am now teaching English at Ritsumeikan University where I had once failed to enter some 35 years ago. Looking back on these 35 years, I really feel that life is so mysterious that you never know how things in life would take you to what destinies. So I’d like to suggest to all my fellow Ritsumeikan students not to be afraid of following your inspiration and embarking on a new adventure to the unknown, that is to say, “go beyond borders!”

Photo credit: Buro Millennial @pexels

Quiz

Q1. Why was the bike journey so tough?

a) It was long and hot.

b) None of the participants could speak English.

c) The route was uphill.

Q2. What was one result of the writer’s break-up with his girlfriend?

a) He decided to meet his girlfriend in America.

b) He quit university.

c) He studied English very hard.

Q3. What is the writer’s advice?

a) Study as much as you can.

b) Visit Beyond Borders Plaza.

c) Follow your inspiration.

Scroll down for answers.

A1. a

A2. c

A3. c

In the spring of 1986, I started my college life with deep disappointment. I failed in the entrance examination for Ritsumeikan University and ended up going to Yamagata University so far away from home. Most of my high school friends passed the exams to enter good universities in the Kansai area, and none of them came to Yamagata with me. I deserved this because I did not study as hard as I should have. All I was doing in high school was swimming and biking. I was very active physically, but extremely lazy intellectually.

However, there were two things I really wanted to do at the university: 1. making a long bike trip around the entire country of Japan, and 2. doing something for world peace. Back then, nuclear competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union was so severe that the world community was seriously worried about the outbreak of a Third World War.  So after I entered university, I started reading a lot of books about world peace and conflicts.

During my first summer vacation in Yamagata, I joined an anti-nuclear movement planned by the YMCA. It was a campaign by a group of cyclists of Japan and the U.S., in which they would bike from Osaka to Hiroshima, appealing for an immediate stop to the insane nuclear competition. After biking more than 100 km a day for 5 days, all participants would attend the Peace Memorial Ceremony in Hiroshima on August 6.

For me it was a lucky combination of biking and the peace movement, both of which I was deeply interested in. Indeed, in the first preparatory meeting at YMCA, I was designated as one of the cyclist leaders in charge of assisting other participants because I was a tough and experienced cyclist. And then came the day of the welcome party of American participants. I was overwhelmed by more than 50 American participants of my age who were very open, friendly, and cheerful. It was my first encounter with so many Americans. Many of them tried to talk to me in English, but I could not understand or speak a word of it.

Photo credit: Roman Pohorecki @pexels

Quiz

Q1. Why did the writer go to Yamagata University?

a) Most of his friends came from that area.

b) He did not study hard enough.

c) He wanted to join the cycling club in that university.

Q2. The writer wanted to do something for world peace. What was his first step towards that goal?

a) He made a long bike trip.

b) He joined the anti-nuclear movement.

c) He began to read a lot about the subject.

Q3. Why was the protest event perfect for the writer?

a) He could assist other participants.

b) He wanted to meet a lot of foreigners.

c) It combined two of his interests.

Scroll down for answers

A1. b

A2. c

A3. c

The Japanese TV variety show, "プレバト" (Prebato) has recently become popular, and the haiku segment is one of the most highly regarded.

Haiku are written not only in Japan but also around the world. Many people use words to sketch scenes and convey emotions in a short 5-7-5 phrase along with a seasonal word (Kigo).

In Japanese, it is easy to count the number of sounds in a word. In English, the 5-7-5 patterns must be counted using syllables. It is important to point out that in English haiku, the use of seasonal words and 17 syllables is not required, although recently, a 3-5-3 syllabic pattern has become widely accepted.

One of my best friends, an American who publishes under his full name, Stephen J. DeGuire, is also fascinated by haiku. He seems to spend his life constantly trying to create haiku, sharpening his senses throughout his everyday life.

Here are three of Steve’s original haiku, one of which was acknowledged in a haiku contest.

1  One flower fallen

    the whole field diminished—

    an unsettling sun

    (Asahi Haikuist Network, 2006)

2   Basho’s road

     throughout Tohoku

     hope remains

     (Asahi Haikuist Network/L.A. Times, 2011)

3  Summer moon

    awakens sleeping

    Moonflowers

    (Itoen Haiku Contest N. America, 2016)

Can you visualise the scene of each haiku?

The following is Steve’s explanation:

“The first haiku holds a special place in my heart. It was the first haiku I ever wrote; it was also my first attempt at publication and it became my first published haiku. It is also my only published haiku that, at 16 syllables, comes close to the traditional 5-7-5 syllabic pattern. Everyday haiku words (flower, field and sun) were used to hide a deeper “unsettling” or disturbing meaning. It was written after a breakup with a girlfriend and after reading numerous articles regarding bullying and child suicide. On one level I am the “fallen flower”. More importantly, every lost child or “fallen flower”, is a loss for all mankind and all adults, who are responsible for nurturing the “whole field”.

The second haiku, also dear to my heart due to the subject, was written days after the 3/11 disaster. It refers to Basho’s “Oku no Hosomichi”, the tale of Basho’s wanderings through Tohoku, and relates it to the areas and people affected by the disaster. I longed to see a light at the end of a dark tunnel. So much was lost, both people and places, but “hope” remains.

The third haiku utilises two common haiku themes, the moon and flowers, to turn a very common experience, waking and sleeping, upside down. People and flowers usually wake up with the sun and sleep at night. The moonflower, asleep during the day, blooms in darkness as the moon rises.”

Could you picture the scenes in your mind?

In Japan, we are fortunate to have a wonderful culture and beautiful art forms like haiku. We should continue to proudly pass on these wonderful cultural and artistic treasures to the world.

Photo credit: Suzie@Pexels

Quiz

Q1. What pattern is often used in English haiku?

Q2. How many syllables did he use in his first haiku?

Q3. When did the poet start writing haiku?

Scroll down for answers.

A1: 3-5-3

A2: 16

A3: 2006

I have two major passions in life. One is English education, and the other is baseball. These two passions cross paths quite often, but never more than in one particular individual: Shigetoshi Hasegawa.

If you do not recognize the name, let me introduce him a little. He was born and raised in Hyogo Prefecture and graduated from Ritsumeikan University several decades ago. After being drafted by the Orix BlueWave (who are now the Buffaloes) and having a successful pitching career in Japan (Rookie of the Year, All-Star), he spent nine years playing Major League Baseball for the Anaheim Angels and Seattle Mariners. Because his name is so difficult for many non-Japanese to pronounce, he was given the nickname “Shiggy” which I will use the rest of this article.

Shiggy actually did not go to the major leagues because of his baseball aspirations. He went there because he had a fascination with America, and wanted to live there and experience the culture. During his time there, he gained proficiency in English, but also deepened his understanding of the national culture. As such, he was able to understand his own culture better, too. In fact, he has written several books about his experiences in America, plus his methods of learning English. I have not read all of Shiggy’s books, but what I have read, I have thoroughly enjoyed.

A book called {素晴らしき！メジャーリーガーの人生}. is a collection of the monthly columns he wrote for a Japanese newspaper while he was playing baseball in America. He also has one called {メジャーリーグで覚えた僕の英語勉強法}, and most recently, he put one out called {好かれる英会話}. In fact, last year during the pandemic (and online classes for many of us), he did an exclusive “webinar” for Ritsumeikan students and staff based on this book, which is about how to really enjoy speaking English. The webinar was truly enlightening and helped me see that Shiggy has transcended nationality and culture in his life. He is able to objectively see America for what it is, and the same is true of Japan.

This nation of ours (Japan) has a lot of TV shows that focus on how foreigners view Japan. While I enjoy programs like “YOUは何しに日本へ？” It feels a little superficial at times. It also comes across (to foreigners) as Japan tooting its own horn. The show seems to be declaring, “Look at how awesome the world thinks we are!” Shiggy kind of does the opposite in his writing: how does Japan view America? What I enjoy about Shiggy and his writing is that he does not put his own country OR his adopted country on a pedestal. He promotes understanding and acceptance while encouraging people to learn and love English. Oh, and of course, he loves baseball, too.

I highly recommend that you check out Shiggy’s books and aim to emulate one of your fellow Ritsumeikan graduates.

Photo credit: Pixabay

Quiz

Q1. Which baseball team did Shiggy not play for?

a) Orix BlueWave

b) Orix Buffaloes

c) Anaheim Angels

d) Seattle Mariners

Q2. Why did Shiggy want to play Major League Baseball?

a) He wanted to live in America

b) He wanted to challenge his baseball abilities

c) He wanted to teach Japanese to his teammates

d) He wanted to write books about learning English

Q3. What does the writer of this blog appreciate about Shiggy?

a) He loves Japan so much

b) He loves America so much

c) He can see Japan and America without bias

d) He watches TV shows like YOUは何しに日本へ?

Scroll down for answers

A1. b

A2. a

A3. c

When Matsumoto supermarket opened 20 years ago in my neighbourhood in Kyoto, the store played marching band music to perk up the customers.  It used to annoy me to no end because it was so loud. I’d shop in a hurry just to escape the noise. The other day though I heard a new type of music there.  It was the song “Dynamite” by BTS, but a poor, digitised copy that made it sound like an elementary school playing their keyboard harmonicas.  Even so, I recognized it as my university student daughter’s favourite K-pop dance song. It’s a lot of young people’s favourite song around the world because it is made of positive vibes, energy, hope and love – a feel-good song during the Coronavirus pandemic.  Why do so many people like BTS?

The K-pop superstars from South Korea are loved not just because of their music and dance videos. The Seoul government signed them up as tourism ambassadors as they are the most influential celebrities of Korea.  And the United Nations loves them too: BTS has raised $3.6 million dollars (¥404,113,000) since 2017 with the UN children’s agency, UNICEF, to fight violence, abuse and bullying and to promote self-esteem in young people. On September 20, 2021, BTS made a speech at the UN urging people to “choose kindness”.

The fans love their lyrics that inspire them to be positive and happy. The seven idols are unique because they are very upfront about mental health and their own personal struggles. In the 2016 album Agust D, member Suga talks about depression and self-hate. On the same album, “So Far Away” talks about pain and loneliness. On the 2014 album Skool Luv Affair, “Tomorrow” expresses the hardship of the young generation today and how they are afraid of tomorrow. And finally there are the songs “Answer: Love Myself”, “Not Today” and “On” that are healing to fans because they address self-doubt and encourage them to have more self-esteem.

For a K-pop band to be the messenger of goodwill and hope, they are extremely successful.  Their tour “Permission to Dance” in Los Angeles, California in December 2021 sold out with tickets being sold for thousands of dollars. It is no wonder that even a supermarket likes the idea of piping in their music to lift our spirits, capitalising on their positive energy that is truly global...and cool!

Photo credit Marcello Chagas@Pexels

Quiz

1. Why did the United Nations ask BTS to give a speech?

a) They are tourism ambassadors

b) They raised millions of dollars for UNICEF

c)  They believe in kindness

2. What issue for the young generation is BTS concerned with?

a) goodwill and hope

b) raising money for charity

c) mental health

3. Why did the supermarket choose to play a BTS song for its customers?

a) They can pipe in their music

b) They have positive energy

c) It is a digitised copy

Scroll down for answers

Answers

A1. b

A2. c

A3. b