I was delighted to find a gem of creative education in busy, competitive Hong Kong in June 2018. While attending the Belt and Road Summit on 28th June 2018, I met with Susanna Yuen, Co-founder and Director of Todaimae Language Centre (Ma On Shan, On Chun St, A93 Shop No. A93, G/F, Hong Kong Centre, 1), and was invited by her and her husband, Jack, to their new centre, the second facility placed in Hong Kong. These two facilities are unusual. They do not deliver English language training, as might be expected. They teach Japanese! Ms Yuen, along with her co-founder, who both attended the University of Tokyo, have established a very active and vibrant pair of language centres dedicated to accelerated language learning. One thing I noticed about Director Yuen is that her mind is always engaged in generating ideas directed towards change. The staff is currently busy developing original materials for students: books with graphics supporting vocabulary acquisition, games and competitions. One thing I had never seen before was a pen that when passed over words on a page generates audio of the corresponding word in Japanese, kind of like a hand-held Google translator. I don’t believe we have that kind of technology in Australia. Todaimae seemed to have so many ways to keep students engaged, making pure learning the top priority and main driver of the operation.
Brian Ursich, ACTET Director