Communication Seminar | Faculties and Departments

Developing communication and presentation abilities

The ideal type of education is individualized and in line with each student’s personality and qualities. At the University of Nagano, the Communication Seminar, which is required for 1st year students in all departments, consists of small classes around 16 students each.

Experiencing new ways of learning and gaining reliable academic skills

Tomokazu Baba, associate professor

Unlike education through high school, which focuses on acquiring knowledge, university students must search for inquiries on their own, gather information and knowledge, output this in text and presentations, and discuss and consider it. The Communication Seminar helps them master these new skills in small classes of students from multiple faculties and departments.

Maika Ogihara, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

In this class, students play leading rolls in thinking about various themes and gaining the ability to communicate about them. I learned that it is important, and enjoyable, to actively express my thoughts.

Mai Shinohara, 2nd year
Department of Global Management Studies

Because the classes are small, this is an ideal environment for discussion where it is easy to share opinions with others. We can hear about different values and ideas and are able to perceive things from a broad viewpoint.

Expressive, highly diverse education using dramatic phrases

Naoki Yamamoto, associate professor

In my seminar, I carry out expressive education using dramatic phrases and gestures to explore communication techniques in various situations. By performing in these scenes, students improve their expressive abilities as individuals and in groups.

I hope to understand others and improve my expressive abilities so others can understand me
Shota Ogura, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

The Communication Seminar made me realize that I have been communicating with others in a perfunctory manner up until now. I want to improve my self-expression skills so I can be active in Japan and abroad, and become the kind of person who cherishes my bonds with others.

I want to cultivate big dreams at this university, a place where I can study what I truly wish to learn
Minami Enokida, 3rd year
Department of Child Development and Education

I learned that it is surprisingly easy, and also enjoyable, to recognize diversity. It is fun to learn about the different ways of thinking that people have. I want to be able to accept individual qualities and communicate with different people so I can take steps to achieving my future dreams.

Students gain the ability to actively think and communicate while learning about company- and finance-related laws

Hyonson Kim, associate professor

The Companies Act and Financial Instruments and Exchange Act are my specialties, so I teach students how to study at the university based on introductory information about these. I hope students will experience the freedom they are given at the university and cherish the four years of time they spend here.
Profound learning greatly changes their perspective and way of looking at society.

We explore based on own interests, rather than being passive
Hitoya Sato, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

The Communication Seminar gives me a sense of the importance of expressing myself. I think this will be an important skill in any job after joining the workforce. We develop the ability to think deeply so we can consider and express ourselves, rather than just understanding. We also learn skills to accurately share information with other people. I realized that this type of learning at the university is founded on communication between students and teachers.

Do what you can, one thing at a time, to achieve your future dreams
Mayu Takano, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

My dream is to establish a wedding venue company at the age of 35 and help with regional revitalization. To that end, I wanted to learn about company-related laws and develop my human skills so I can earn the trust of other people, even at our first meeting. I gave a presentation about my thinking regarding companies that are trusted by customers in the Communication Seminar, on the theme of “starting my own company.” Then, the students all voted on this plan to evaluate it. This class has helped me take a major step forward towards achieving my dream.

Learning about the regional qualities of Nagano, a prefecture of history and culture, will help students make contributions to the region and do business in the future

Yasuko Nihonmatsu, associate professor

Nagano Prefecture had many thriving, affluent castle towns around some of Japan’s foremost fortresses including Matsumoto and Ueda Castles. Through profound studies on this regional culture, I hope students will conduct reliable research and consider their topics so they can express themselves, which will help with their future business and regional contribution activities.

I want to develop my communication skills, volunteer, and broaden my horizons
Yo Kiriyama, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

I felt it is important to start by presenting in front of small groups, rather than large numbers of people, and become used to sharing one’s views with people around you. In the Nihonmatsu Seminar, students pick their favorite castle town in Japan and present on it. We think about the many options, research them, organize our thoughts, and give a presentation. I am sure these communication skills, which allow us to boldly share our views in front of many people, will be very useful in the future.

By learning about the region, I hope to think about the future for children
Mei Matsubara, 3rd year
Department of Child Development and Education

You can see Matsumoto Castle from my high school, so I chose to study this castle town culture in the Nihonmatsu Seminar. I wanted to learn communication skills and master the ability to convey my thoughts in an easy-to-understand manner. In the future I want to become a child care provider who can create relationships between the region and its children. I hope to utilize the many good qualities of the region so children feel excited to attend school.

Let’s develop new, innovative opinions through group discussions

Daeyoung Yoon, professor

Stating one’s opinion develops the ability to think logically. Listening to the views of others also improves your discussion skills. We fully learn these basics and conduct fieldwork on major topics, such as local industries, to discover issues that lead into concrete research and come up with suggestions for improvement.

I am attracted to the freedom of being able to decide what I want to do, and then carry it out
Yutaro Yamamoto, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

The small classes make it easy for each student to speak about their views and communicate. Listening to others’ opinions leads to new discoveries, and you also get a sense of how difficult it is for others to understand you and of correctly conveying your opinions. Through the Communication Seminar, I want to master the skill of accurately expressing my views, and to gain the ability to find positive, new options and carry out discussions that lead in better directions.

Actively taking part in class leads to liveliness and enjoyment
Fuuka Miyao, 3rd year
Department of Global Management Studies

I love Nagano Prefecture, and in the future I want to do a job in which I can revitalize and invigorate the area. I also want to volunteer for animal rights to help reduce the number of animals that are killed. To that end, I believe I will need the skill of thinking and finding solutions on my own. I also want to develop the ability to apply my knowledge in society. I hope to see and hear many things, think, express myself, and broaden my perspective.