NEWS

APU Dream Camp 2015, an overnight academic camp for 1st and 2nd-year high school students, was held on Monday, August 3 and Tuesday, August 4, 2015.
This year, about 60 high school students from all over Japan came to the APU campus where they played games and engaged in discussions with the aim of acquiring the skills they need to achieve their dreams, such as proactiveness and interpersonal skills.

On the first day, the program focused on the topics of teamwork, empathy, confidence and open-mindedness. In the empathy session, the students considered a case study from each other's points of view, then discussed how they felt. They learned that perspective can change the way you think. "It's important to value other people's opinions without trying to determine if they are right or wrong," one student remarked. Another student said, "I think it's better to look at things objectively rather than subjectively."

On the second day, the program addressed the topics of can-do spirit, time management and goal-setting. In the wrap-up session at the end, the students in each group exchanged written messages about each other's good points and how they grew over the two-day program. Some of the students cried as they read the heartfelt messages from their newfound friends. The students finished up by posting the messages they received on a poster that they can look to for encouragement in their future. One student said, "Working with the other members in my group made me realize what I need to improve." Another student remarked, "I learned things you can’t learn in a typical classroom and came to realize some new things about myself." Yet another student commented, "I plan to keep in touch with the friends I made on the program."

Program coordinator Associate Professor SHIN Kimie (Education Development and Learning Support Center) ended the session with a message of encouragement for the students:

"I think over the past two days you learned what your strong points and weak points are. If you feel like you were able to honestly assess yourselves and find areas for improvement, then I think you can continue to grow going forward. Remember, it's okay if you found some weak areas because over the past two days, you learned how to overcome them, and that is an important skill to have. I hope you will keep trying hard to improve yourselves."