Latest / Be A Global Citizen! / 216. GC Talks with Felipe Iwahashi: Harnessing the Complexity of Multilingual and Multicultural Identities

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216. GC Talks with Felipe Iwahashi: Harnessing the Complexity of Multilingual and Multicultural Identities · Be A Global Citizen!

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Hi there, and welcome to Be a Global Citizen, the podcast that
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explores the concept of global citizenship through the lens of
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value creating education. My name is Scott Bauer and I'm
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Ahsoka, researcher and educator. I hope you find the discussion,
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stories and insights on this podcast to be valuable and
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inspiring as we strive to become global citizens who are
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committed to living a contributive life.
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Enjoy. Hi everyone.
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My name is Felipe Wahashi. I am a Buddhist, I am a
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multilingual, I am an educator, and I'm a learner.
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Thank you for joining us today. Hi Felipe, thank you so much for
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for joining me on the podcast. I'm really excited to have you
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and we have been friends for many years now going back to our
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time in Brazil or my time in Brazil, right, which is where
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you're originally from, Felipe. And it's, it's just so wonderful
1:01
to see the different twists and turns of both of our journeys.
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And that and we were talking about this just a little while
1:09
ago. How interesting it was for me
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back in 2016 when I arrived in Sao Paulo to be the, the
1:16
foreigner, right, the one in Brazil and trying to figure out
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my life. And then, you know, several
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years later, there's this interesting reversal where both
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you and your partner came to California.
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And then you've got to experience what it was like
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adapting, although on another level, right?
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Because now, you know, you're very much settled and more
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permanent and gone through the whole immigration process.
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And, and, and I think all of that is to say, you know, it's
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because you have a very important mission in California.
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And, and I know that the work that that you and your partner
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are doing as educators has worldwide implications.
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And I think that stems not only from your past experiences, but
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also just terms of the different cultures that you bring together
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because you're much more than just Brazilian, right?
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And you're, you know, that that multilingual component that you
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talked about is very true. I've never met a more fluent
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person in multiple languages than than you.
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So I'm curious to, to learn about your, your journey, what
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brought you to California, but also what, what sparks this,
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this sense of joy and curiosity about educating others.
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And yeah, just what, what is ahead for you.
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So if you can share some of the milestones of, of your journey
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as an educator, I'd really be interested to to learn more
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about about your background. Yeah.
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No, thank you, Scott for this amazing introduction.
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And yeah, as you mentioned that we were our path we're able to
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cross almost 10 or 11 years ago back in Brazil when I was
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pursuing my dreams back in that time.
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So it's so interesting and funny to see like how our life really
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were able to get like those directions right where I never
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thought about him being the US currently.
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But here I am working then after being able to graduate from my
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master's year. So has been a an interesting
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journey. And I've been trying to enjoy
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all of the milestones that I hopefully will be able to share
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a little bit here. And so I'm very grateful for
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everything. Yeah.
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So just a little bit balmy, basically.
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I would say I usually have this script in mind where I would
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like always say my name is Felipe Kenichi Wahashi da Silva.
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It's a pretty long name where I have the Brazilian heritage plus
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the Japanese heritage really strong in my family.
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So my dad, it's Brazilian, Brazilian who were born and
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raised in Brazil. By my mom's side is my mom's
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family that they immigrated back from Japan to Brazil and she was
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born in Brazil and raised in Brazil, but has physical future
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in as a Japanese. And then throughout my life,
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education has been this big important component.
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And I would say I realized that most recently, I would say like
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four or five years ago, because basically ever since when I was
4:40
a little kid, my, I remember my dad and my mom always encourage
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me. You have to go to university no
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matter what happened. You can't choose anything, but
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you got to finish a college, your higher education.
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So ever since when I was a kid, that was something that I start
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cultivating. And that comes from the
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perspective where unfortunately they were not able to finish
5:05
their higher education. And they always encourage myself
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and my siblings to pursue that. And when I was very young and
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two years old back in, that was during the 90s.
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So a lot of Japanese immigrants that were able to go back to
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Japan and start working because it was the Japanese boom during
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that time. So my parents decided to do that
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when I was two years and a half and they were planning to stay
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only for two or three years, but we ended up staying there for
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almost 15 years. I'm sorry, 13 years when I was
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until when I was 15. So that basically, although I
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was born in Brazil, I was raised in the Japanese context in the
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city full of Brazilian. That was another interesting
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thing. But not only Brazilian, but a
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lot of international people, especially from Peru, from
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Bangladesh, from different Southeast Asian countries.
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And yeah, then when I was 15 years old, my parents decided to
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move back to Brazil specifically because they want us to pursue a
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higher education, right? So I'm the oldest siblings
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between 3:00. So stay in Japan as an
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immigrant. Most of the time it's synonymous
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of working in the factory or in the industry, right?
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It's really challenging to get out from that path, especially
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if you do not study, go to Japanese school.
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And in my case, since my parents really wanted to go back
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someday, I was introduced to Japanese school.
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But because we had a lot of Brazilian in my city, they were
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even able to establish some Brazilian school.
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And that's where I did my studies in Japan, but in a
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Brazilian school from my 8 years old until 15, first year of high
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school. Now that's when I, we moved back
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and my journey in Brazil really started pursuing high school.
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And then after a couple of years, that was a really
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challenging time when we moved to Brazil because basically my
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parents had to reconstruct their own life, right?
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Move back to Brazil in their early 50s, late 40s.
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Then in term of career, the income really become a struggle
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for us. So that's when I really had to
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took the life, right. OK, let's how I'm, how I'm going
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to do it. How can I support my family but
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also how can I keep going into the journey of studying?
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So through this encouragement from my mom and my my dad in
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term of studies and I was able to pursue many other things.
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There's so much about your, your story, even just from your
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childhood, how you were raised in different cultures, right?
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Different countries. And I'm sure that it was, it was
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probably very exciting to be in these different like areas
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where, yeah, you had students, young people from different
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backgrounds. But at the same time, Japan is a
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very homogeneous society and one where you probably felt that
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kind of foreigner expat kind of status just even more
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accentuated, right? It was just that much more
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obvious. And I know that, you know, in
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those formative years, we really look to those closest to us for
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some sense of, of grounding. And, you know, given the fact
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that you moved to Japan when you were two years old, you probably
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felt yourself to be maybe more, I don't know, Japanese or like,
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was there a certain like identity that kind of drew you,
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that anchored you a little bit more?
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And then what happened as you were getting older where it
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started to kind of gain new complexity as far as how you
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navigate, you know, the the transition back to to Brazil.
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So yeah, from your own, you know, personal experience, like
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how did that experience go for you?
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Was it? Was it smooth?
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Yeah, right. No, that part of identify
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myself, it was really challenging, right.
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I think as a society, as we know, we always try to put
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ourselves in a box or a label ourself for something and
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through that trying to create a sense of belonging, right?
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And what happened when I was in Japan, it was like I always,
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although I was, I was able to learn Japanese, speak Japanese
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fluently within the Japanese friendship, even though speaking
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like the language, understanding the context, I was always
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treated as a foreigner. Right.
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As a Brazilian or someone who is outsider now in Japanese,
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there's a term that we they they use as a guiding.
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But yeah. And then funny enough, when,
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when when I moved back to Brazil, which supposed to be my
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home, right, my roots, I was also treated as a foreigner
10:47
somehow. Oh, no, you came from Japan.
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You're Japanese. You have a Japanese, a Japanese
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mom, so you're you're Japanese. So until my early 20s, I had
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this really challenge challenging time of the identity
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crisis and. What?
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Is interesting that the first that's like a really personal
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thing that the 1st tattoo that I did, it's basically to reaffirm
11:17
myself what identity that I wanted to pursue during that
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time, right And I ended up doing a South America map with a
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compass and couple of things that identify myself.
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This is who I am. I'm Brazilian and there's no one
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who will tell me that I'm not. But throughout the time right
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now that I'm early 30s now, I've been learning that, you know,
11:49
identity or it's not something that people should tell you who
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are you right? You need to really try to figure
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out. And in my case, I, I was able to
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understand my complexity as a background and I, and it's OK,
12:06
like being able to embrace all the challenges when it comes to
12:10
where I'm from or who am I, It's totally OK, Especially when I
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came to US where I was able to hear a lot of people identify
12:20
themselves, Oh, I am Asian American, I am black American or
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I am Hispanic American. Now being able to probably try
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to encapsulate a little bit of both or three different
12:35
contexts, right? And now I would say I'm able to
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identify myself as a Japanese Brazilian with this sense of
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proud, which I didn't have when I did a tattoo, right?
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But yeah, that that brought a lot of challenges during that
12:55
time. But now I'm able to figure out,
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wow, this is who I am. I am everything.
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I am all the complexity. I didn't know that you had a
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tattoo like that. That's very cool.
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And, and I think it's, it's very fitting in the sense that when
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we're undergoing this kind of identity crisis, let's call it,
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right, we're, we're in an environment where perhaps
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there's this sense of, you know, like you said, the, the people
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around us wanting to put us into a box and then us maybe pushing
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back and then having to reassert, no, this is who I am.
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And maybe it comes from a place of trying to tell the
13:38
environment, you know, this is, you know, me putting it out
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there or in the form of a tattoo where you're really trying to
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like anchor yourself and, and in the understanding of no, this is
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what I want to start off from this basis and to move forward.
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But it's clear from your journey from Japan, Brazil to the US
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that there's so much more fluidity and how you've been
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able to really not just grow, but evolve your sense of
14:09
identity. And now to come to this
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realization that, you know, you not only have the ability to
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find the right kind of term terminology and, and, and the
14:20
voice that comes with that to, to express what that means, but
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also this perhaps openness that it can change still.
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And, and I just think that it's, it's just really beautiful.
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I don't know if you, you, you kind of think about in this way,
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but it just seems like there are these like kind of clear phases
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of your life from the early childhood up until your teenage
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years of really trying to make sense of your identity in Japan,
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right? And experiencing those
14:54
pressures. But then in Brazil, then having
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to reassert your identity as a Brazilian.
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And then now you're in the US where it's like, you know, land
15:07
of of immigrants and still you have to assert like, you know,
15:11
and present yourself. But now there seems to be maybe
15:15
a wider spectrum, right, of the kind of terminologies and the
15:19
understandings of wow, you know, people are coming from very
15:24
unique and complicated backgrounds as well, and that
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maybe there's more willingness to understand or get to
15:30
understand what exactly your background is.
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And I think that's, that's really, that's really beautiful.
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And I know, but I again, like that's kind of like in
15:40
hindsight, we can point out these phases and it sounds great
15:44
and sounds like it was a piece of cake.
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But again, I think that that grappling of like who am I is
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just so important. And, and I think, you know,
15:53
through the throughout that period, right, maybe a through
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line, not just in terms of, you know, the ethnic national
16:00
identities that you're expressing, but you know, also
16:04
your identity as like a student. Sounds like from your, your
16:07
parents write this emphasis on you going to college, you know,
16:11
completing college and using that education to to have a even
16:15
better life. I'm curious about what were some
16:17
of the, the twists and turns as you were pursuing not just high
16:22
school in Brazil, but also your, your undergraduate experience.
16:27
And then you also mentioned that you did your masters in the US.
16:32
And so it sounds like that might have also had some major pivot
16:36
points for you in terms of your journey as a, as a student, as a
16:41
learner. So maybe could you speak a
16:43
little bit to to that? Yes, yes, yes, yeah.
16:48
I would say through this encouragement right from from my
16:53
parents where it doesn't matter. You need to go to the IT doesn't
16:58
matter in a sense of what kind of course that you want major
17:01
that you want to pursue. They really encourage me to do
17:04
something there for higher education.
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And ever since when I was in Japan, something that always
17:12
caught my attention. It was like this an amazing
17:18
world that we leave and amazing diversity that we had that do in
17:23
the city where I was living and how that influenced me to take
17:27
on in terms of what kind of studies that I would make.
17:32
So in Brazil now when I move when I was 15, as I mentioned,
17:37
it was really challenging and especially financially.
17:40
So ever since I finished my high school I really needed to
17:43
support my parents working as I start working full time when I
17:48
was 15. So from 17 years old I always
17:52
had to work full time and juggle studies in the middle.
17:57
So during that time it took me almost three years to getting
18:03
into a university. So in Brazil we have this system
18:06
where most of the big and good university is a public, meaning
18:13
that if you got accepted into a public university and the only
18:16
way to get accepted through an exam base.
18:20
On one day, if you go out on that exam, you got to accept
18:24
that. If not, you got to wait, got to
18:26
study right, prepare yourself for next year.
18:29
So it took me 3 years to get into that university and then
18:35
during and after that I still needed to work full time.
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So I was there for almost 10 years, full time student and
18:44
full time work person. And through that, of course, I
18:51
was able to learn so many things that in the middle in term of
18:55
life, but also I had a lot of challenges in terms of my
18:59
studies. But then what I was able to
19:03
pursue, it was a passion about international relations.
19:08
Now that's what I ended up doing in in Brazil.
19:12
So I study at the Federal University of ABC, which is the
19:18
city of San Bernardo. And that period, man, it was a
19:24
period where I learned to not give up so many things, right?
19:30
In term of studies, dream, specially because my routine was
19:38
really challenging, right? I need to wake up at 5:30 in the
19:42
morning, go to work then at 8:00 and then leave, go to the
19:48
university, which took me like almost 2 hours to commute and to
19:52
the university every day. Then class started 7/7 to 11:30
19:58
PM and then one hour and 30 or two hours to come back.
20:03
So it was like arriving at 1:00 AM to wake up at 5530 and then
20:09
do that again and again. So it was this challenge in
20:13
trying to survive, to be honest during that time.
20:18
But I'm very appreciative now that do that.
20:23
I went through that. I had this dream of living
20:29
abroad, study abroad. I want to go out, I want to
20:33
travel the world and I still remember like.
20:37
When I met you and I was one of the first American that I was
20:41
able to engage. Hey there, let me try to.
20:44
Practice a little bit of my English, right?
20:47
And then it was a time when I was Start learning English now
20:51
doing some classes with this in mind of one day I will I want to
20:57
go now study or travel. So that was able to happen now
21:03
during the pandemic now. So after six years of amazing
21:08
journey in the in the university for my bachelor and I was able
21:13
to graduate with my double major in humanities and international
21:17
relations. And then after that, I decided,
21:20
OK, now it's time to do my master's and I decided to go to
21:26
Soka University in Japan in Tokyo, but it was doing the
21:31
pandemic. Luckily I was able to be
21:36
accepted. And then one year,
21:38
unfortunately, I had to do through Zoom their online
21:41
courses. But the next year, the second
21:44
year of my master, I was able to go to Japan and pursue the
21:49
amazing master's degree that I really enjoy that being in that
21:54
amazing university, which how should I put it, where I was
22:02
able to really engage in the global citizenship aspect.
22:06
So many diverse student body that we had and so many life
22:12
lesson that I was able to have that during the course of two
22:16
years and three years ago now after graduating from Seoul
22:25
University in Japan, I decided to immigrate to US to stay here
22:34
with my now my wife met during the time my girlfriend and
22:39
fiance. So but in order to come to US,
22:42
the best way that we thought during that time, it was maybe
22:46
coming as a student. So that's when we decided, OK,
22:49
let me try to apply for one more master's.
22:52
So I applied and I was able to be accepted and after two years.
22:59
That time I pursued my master's in education educational
23:03
leadership at Soca University of America and had this amazing two
23:09
years of experiencing SOCA education here in the in the US
23:15
context. And finally, last year during
23:18
May 2025, I was able to graduate and now I start working in the
23:24
educational environment. Wow, thank you so much, Felipe.
23:29
It's, it's, it's so encouraging and inspiring to hear your, your
23:35
journey and how it relates to the struggle that that you had
23:39
to go through because finishing your undergrad in, in Brazil,
23:45
It's so noble that you really committed to that path and that
23:50
you had this like urge, right? This this desire to, to see what
23:55
is beyond just the this immediate environment in Brazil.
23:59
I would imagine with so much of your studies in international
24:02
relations and learning about other international systems or
24:07
ways in which they approach their policies or how they, you
24:11
know, conduct different, like, you know, diplomatic ventures,
24:15
all of those things relating to, you know, international
24:17
relations. It got you, you know, maybe it
24:20
activated a certain side of your past, you know, life in Japan.
24:25
And, and then also some of the people that you were then
24:28
meeting on the street, like me, right from the US and being
24:32
like, wow, you know, like here I am in Brazil, able to
24:37
communicate with people in Japanese and Portuguese and now
24:41
in English. I mean, what better way than to
24:45
actually, yeah, start exploring in this proactive sense of you
24:48
going out rather than them coming to you and and and build
24:53
your own sense of yeah, the what what is the world around me
24:56
rather than just what is the world via visa vie A textbook.
25:01
And and I think it's really wonderful.
25:03
Like you, you had this exposure to study at not just one Soca
25:10
University, right, but both Soca universities.
25:13
So I'm, I'm curious, could you maybe share a little bit more
25:16
about, well, from those two experiences, what did you kind
25:21
of end up walking away with in terms of like what is Soca
25:24
education meant for you? And and then you also brought up
25:29
global citizenship when you were in, in Soca University, Like how
25:34
does that connect with global citizenship as well?
25:37
I'm curious. So it's a kind of big questions,
25:39
I know, but you know, maybe like from whatever angle you can
25:43
find, like how can how can you kind of share out those main
25:47
takeaways from your time at Soca University?
25:51
Yeah, I know. Yeah.
25:54
I mean, first, right, I, I really need to recognize my
26:00
privilege, of course, in being able to live in the context of
26:03
Japan and then being able to learn as much as I could during
26:07
that time. And then when I moved back to
26:10
Brazil, I was able to live this different context, which it was
26:15
this life learn experience and not being able, not giving up in
26:22
terms of my dreams. And I was able to have this
26:25
amazing friends and community where push myself like, you
26:30
know, even though it might be hard right now, now you're
26:33
adjusting as a whole family here.
26:36
Do not give up in your. Dreams and my dreams during that
26:39
time was like basic thing, trying to pursue a higher
26:42
education, trying to travel around the world, trying to make
26:46
friends throughout the world. So whenever I was able to meet
26:50
people like you or people around the world, I felt like, you
26:54
know, I want to do this for my life, like trying to meet many
26:59
people as possible and really felt the importance of being
27:02
able to master like the language as much as possible.
27:08
So English was really this big monster for me, which I was
27:17
like, wow, how can I learn this? But throughout the time I'm very
27:24
proud of myself and being able to do that.
27:27
And right now being able to express myself in the language
27:31
that it's not that I do not grew up with, I feel that Soca
27:36
education really translating to be happy as a student, as a
27:44
learner, no matter the context where you are being able to
27:49
really, truly feel happy in learning.
27:53
And I think that was my experience.
27:56
So those six years that I had in Brazil, it was really
28:02
challenging. I couldn't enjoy learning,
28:06
right? I was surviving like the test,
28:10
surviving in the writing. And then and that of course
28:15
reflect now in term of a grades or GPA and everything that we
28:19
do, right. And myself esteem was really low
28:22
because I couldn't achieve something that would be like
28:26
very meaningful. And yeah, but then when I was
28:32
really, when I got accepted for Japan, was able to study even
28:38
through Zoom, I felt like this sense of happiness in being able
28:44
to learn different things and not learning because you have an
28:49
exam or because you have an essay to write, but learn to.
28:54
Put in your life. Right, so classes that I had,
28:58
right? It was this life learn
29:02
experience as a student. So I really felt the the
29:07
treasure in being a learner and trying to explore something that
29:12
I wanted and being able to, you know, how should I put it like
29:21
become a student where you can just worry to learn.
29:30
So that that's in both context in Japan and also here in the
29:35
US, but in a different scenario, right?
29:38
In SUJ, which is at Silk University in Japan, basically
29:43
my cohort was really big compared to the US where we were
29:50
in like 14 different friends and different nationalities.
29:56
And compared to that, here in the USI was only with six.
30:01
So one thing that I learned through soca education here in
30:07
the US context is because we are the smaller cohort, the sense of
30:14
family that we had before each other, it was something that I
30:20
never felt somewhere else in Brazil or in Japan.
30:23
So we had to work together, struggle together and win
30:28
together. So that was very unique.
30:31
And yeah, I was able to experience that that because of
30:37
this soca context. Yeah.
30:41
And then in term of global citizenship, man, in the
30:46
beginning when I think the context of doing a masters,
30:52
right, it's come from, OK, are you interested in that specific
30:59
topic? So just go and try to learn more
31:01
about it. And for that context of global
31:06
citizenship, what I was able to learn and something that I
31:10
really tried to put in practice is how can I try to translate
31:14
all of those big challenges that we have in the world in context
31:21
of the student. So most of the teachers and the
31:25
professors that I was able to have, they always try to bring
31:29
that perspective of, OK, we have the global warning in terms of
31:34
environment. We have war happening in the
31:36
world. We have this so challenging
31:40
political scenario in different contexts in the world.
31:43
But how can that be translated into your context?
31:46
Philippe, how do you, how do you see that?
31:50
How do you feel or how is in Brazil?
31:54
That was those first time where I was able to feel confident
32:00
enough to talk in the classroom that in in Japan and in in the
32:06
US because different from the undergraduate experience where
32:11
we had 8050 people in the classroom raising my hand.
32:17
It was something that I couldn't do it that inside of that big
32:21
class, but in those small groups that I felt the safe environment
32:29
where I could express my perspective in my opinion.
32:33
And because of that, that I was able to feel OK, I have
32:39
something to contribute here. I'm not an invisible person,
32:42
right? There is something in my story
32:45
that I can share and how valuable that is.
32:49
So those were something that I was able to experience as a
32:52
student and learn as a student and now as an educator, as a
32:57
practitioner. I try to translate it, translate
33:01
that into my classes or as a profession.
33:07
Beautifully said. Thank you so much, Felipe.
33:10
There's so much that I just wanted to touch upon because I
33:14
feel you shared a lot just there.
33:16
And so when you were talking about your, your experiences at,
33:20
at soca schools, I think it's, it's, it's really wonderful that
33:23
you have this basis of comparison in your studies at
33:27
Federal University in Brazil and then these experiences abroad in
33:34
Japan, in the US at Soca institutions where it was this
33:40
big shift. But I, I am, I feel like in a
33:43
way, you know, when you were talking about like this, the
33:46
joys and of being a student and not being happy while learning,
33:50
that seemed like that was a really important aspect of it.
33:54
It's almost as if because you had struggled and gone through
33:58
like the just the the difficulties of like, you know,
34:02
working full time while being a student full time, that yeah, it
34:06
really accentuated just how special the, the soca, you know,
34:11
education experience was to the point where, I mean, it would
34:15
have been maybe a different take away if you had just immediately
34:19
been in the soca environment, right?
34:22
I think again, like in life, we, we kind of need to experience
34:26
both, both sides to then kind of land at where, where we stand in
34:31
terms of what, where the the value is.
34:33
But I mean, either way, I think what you said about like
34:37
understanding, like the treasure of, of being a learner, I think
34:42
that's how you phrased it just really resonated with me.
34:45
Because I find that in the world that we live in, more and more,
34:49
we find this the sense that education is just a means to an
34:55
end of getting a job. And that getting that job is
34:59
really just to support yourself and your family.
35:02
And, and you're just kind of locked into that for, for a
35:06
career where you're approaching this from the Soca perspective
35:10
of like, well, I mean, the job is important and the job will
35:13
come. But at the same time, like what
35:16
an incredible moment it is to step into the shoes of, of a
35:19
learner of a student. And then beyond that kind of a
35:23
broader context, a learner, right?
35:26
So I think that those are some really important takeaways that
35:28
you're articulating from your time at Soca University.
35:31
But I also would say that as a result of going through what you
35:35
did in Brazil, you're just, I think you're able to make those
35:38
points just land even more powerfully.
35:42
I find that it's, it came from this, you know, courage to not
35:46
only find your voice, but to really use your voice to, to
35:50
make contributions to to others. And I find that that really is a
35:56
very revolutionary idea in the times that we're living in.
36:00
Because I think so much of what we see, especially now in the
36:04
kind of social media digital realms, there's this maybe tend,
36:11
I don't know if it's a tendency, but the so much of social media
36:16
invites comparison. And by comparison, we then
36:19
think, well, so many other people are saying it, right?
36:22
Their voices matter more than mine.
36:24
And then we kind of land in this more passive state when to enact
36:29
change and to contribute in meaningful ways to pursuits that
36:33
are important to us or to our dreams.
36:36
It can't come from a passive stance.
36:38
It has to be proactive and it has to be dynamic And so well,
36:43
one, do you agree with that? And, and how is it that like
36:46
from, you know, now your understanding of using your
36:49
voice as an educator also in, in a more academic tone as well,
36:55
like through writings? I know you've you've attended
36:57
some conferences recently, but how are you more explicitly
37:01
bringing forth that sense of global citizenship into your
37:04
work in the classroom as well as into academic circles?
37:08
Yes, yes, I still remember like one of the first classes for my
37:14
master's. I was so worried in term of a
37:18
first. Am I going to be able to really
37:21
translate my perspective on specific point And then if worry
37:28
in how I'm going to be judged based on that opinion because as
37:34
you're mentioned, right, the experience that I was having
37:36
throughout my life, it was like this either in high school or
37:40
even in. In the bachelor degree where
37:45
sometime your voice, it doesn't matter and the most important
37:50
thing is how what the teacher are trying to teach you, right?
37:54
And even if you have a simple question in back in my mind, I
37:58
was like, maybe that's irrelevant or maybe that's maybe
38:04
it's something wrong with me that I didn't get it.
38:07
Always trying to doubt about myself, but then the professors
38:13
net in the the master's environment really create a
38:16
space where there's no right or wrong perspective.
38:21
We just want to try to hear your opinion about specific topic and
38:27
we're going to discuss. Of course, sometimes we had this
38:30
heated moment right where I do not agree, I disagree.
38:34
But that also was an experience where I personally was able to
38:40
learn a lot now about the content for of course, but I
38:44
also as a person. Oh wow, that's so interesting.
38:49
I never heard about this perspective.
38:51
Oh wow, I do. I do understand you, but I think
38:57
this way wax one Z. So definitely I totally agree.
39:02
Being able to practice your voice no matter where you are,
39:07
especially in in a classroom, it's something very powerful.
39:14
And now that I'm reflecting right, I think that's what I
39:19
really tried to do currently as a practitioner.
39:24
So ever since August of last year, I was able to start
39:30
working in a charter school here in Costa Mesa in the California.
39:37
And it's really an interesting school where we, it's an
39:41
International School where we teach three different languages
39:47
for all the students, English of course, Spanish every day, but
39:52
the student need to choose either Japanese or Chinese,
39:56
right? And not only that that my
39:59
responsibility is to teach one subject called Project Based
40:04
Learning PBL. And basically in the school,
40:08
throughout the year, we have 6 different big projects.
40:12
So from goal setting to multiculturalism to peace and
40:19
peace and human rights environment.
40:23
And then the classroom that I'm taking care of right now, it's
40:27
specifically for that class. It's 6th to 8th graders
40:32
students, so middle school and to be honest, in the beginning
40:37
was really challenging for me because I didn't know how to do
40:42
it right. I didn't know how to manage the
40:48
class or to do a work as a teacher.
40:52
But then throughout the time, I was able to really understand
40:56
that the most important thing as a teacher is how can you create
41:00
trust with your student and that trust come with dialogue, one O
41:08
1 conversation, being able to see that student as a person and
41:15
as as someone that can also teach you so many things.
41:20
Once I was able to really understand that not only as my
41:26
duty as a teacher that I needed to, you know, show the content
41:30
or only class management or ETC. More of a really valuing the
41:37
person student that is 11 years old or 14 years old as the same
41:43
as adults. That's the when the shift start
41:47
happening and practical things that I really try to do right in
41:52
term of classroom. It's trying to hear all the
41:57
students in the classroom, even if it is one small thing,
42:04
please, I always encourage there is no right or wrong.
42:08
Your voice is really important. So share with us in the
42:13
classroom, right? So that's what I really tried to
42:16
do or pair pairing up with in a group.
42:21
So do a partner sharing and then as a whole class share what we
42:25
were able to discuss. And those were simple things
42:29
that professors were doing in my class and I felt so comfortable
42:34
in sharing my perspective and that really gave me confident
42:40
that my voice is really meaningful to be here heard.
42:44
Therefore I am a person to be valued to that.
42:48
That's how I tried to translate into my work context currently.
42:56
That's that's so wonderful and it, it sounds like you are able
43:02
to pay forward like what you were able to receive at both
43:07
programs at Soca University. And and it's it's something that
43:12
I think in theory, we think, Oh yeah, I can do that.
43:15
I can, I can make, you know, everyone's voice be heard and
43:19
matter. But in actual practice, we start
43:22
recognizing how the classroom is this, oh, man, there's so many
43:27
different emotions and so many different feelings that that
43:30
come into play. And there's also, I think the
43:32
inevitable doubt as a teacher of like, what does this even mean?
43:38
I've had, you know, we've all had many teachers in our lives,
43:40
but how many of those teachers really left him a lasting
43:43
impression? And, and, and then are we up to
43:47
the task of stepping into that, that important role where we can
43:52
see the, the importance of, of, of that like influence?
43:58
And yet we kind of see there's this gap between maybe where
44:01
we're at when we're starting off and where we would like to be.
44:05
But when you would, you really focused on the important aspect
44:09
of just building trust with your students.
44:13
I think, you know, that's just so beautifully put because IIA
44:16
100% agree with you think, you know, where teachers maybe find
44:21
themselves in a difficult spot is when they think they're the
44:24
authority and that they know everything and that this is this
44:28
is how it has to happen. And you're just dragging, you
44:31
know, students in a direction without really communicating
44:34
with them by this direction. And then also really
44:38
understanding them. Like how can we better connect
44:41
so that we can all move together and that togetherness, you know,
44:46
you, you put it beautifully with the SUA Masters program about
44:51
the sense of family, right? That you work together, you
44:55
struggle together and you win together.
44:57
Like why, why don't we apply that as teachers to each of our
45:01
classes, right? Where we have, you don't have to
45:04
necessarily call them a family, right?
45:06
I understand how people can have different understandings of what
45:10
family means, but just work together, right?
45:13
Or study together. Maybe it's another substitute.
45:15
There will be struggle in terms of the debates of like, you
45:18
know, different people voicing their opinions or grappling with
45:22
difficult content. But the last one about winning
45:25
together, I think that's, you know, paying that close
45:29
attention to maybe, you know, the win comes from a student who
45:33
has been very, very shy, who never wants to speak.
45:36
And yet one day they raise their hand and they they ask a
45:41
question and then ask the teacher to have that sensitivity
45:46
to realize that was the win and to really like properly praise
45:51
the student where they feel, wow, this is the safe
45:55
environment and this is the beginning of a much longer
45:58
journey of them. Not only speaking more and
46:02
discovering their voice, but also I would say in becoming
46:07
global citizen, right? Because again, this ties back to
46:09
what you were talking about, like it's the courage to use
46:12
one's voice and then apply that towards their own mission.
46:15
And so I just think that it's, it's just so, so fantastic that
46:20
you find yourself being able to draw from all of these past
46:22
experiences, right? The good, the bad, the ugly
46:27
right of, you know, you yourself being in that situation of I
46:30
don't think I can ask a question to now saying, wow, you know,
46:33
here's here's the class that I'm responsible for, but like, let's
46:37
let's win together. No, totally, totally why.
46:41
And then I think this conversation is really making me
46:45
reflect that this wow, the journey that I had and now how
46:50
that influence. I feel that sometimes when we
46:53
are just working, it's so difficult to reflect, you know,
47:00
experiences and things that we learn while we're doing this.
47:04
So wow, thank you that that's totally make a sense.
47:07
One thing that I always try to put when I try to engage in
47:11
difficult topic or subject that we have to teach the students is
47:17
like, how can that specific topic be meaningful for them?
47:22
Always trying to use the framework wow.
47:25
And through that things start to be a little bit more easy there
47:30
to apply just a simple, simple thing, right?
47:34
It was we were having this project based learning about
47:38
peace and human. Rights.
47:41
And it's very broad, right? Concept what is peace or what is
47:45
in human right? So the way that I was able to
47:49
structure is OK. We live in the city of Costa
47:52
Mesa and then question of what does it mean to become an active
47:57
citizen. So through that the student had
48:00
to elaborate on a project where they needed to threw out that
48:05
this sick four to six weeks. Look into your neighborhood, try
48:11
to realize your own problems that you think that is important
48:15
to your neighborhood. And let's discuss research and
48:20
try to find propose some solutions.
48:23
So we had student talking about speeding problem in my
48:27
neighborhood or stray cats problem in my apartment complex
48:33
things that I wow, that's so fantastic and really unique and
48:38
important that for the local context.
48:41
And then through that one activity that we did as a class,
48:46
it was like, OK, we it was in December net in the beginning of
48:50
December, we have a last City Council meeting happening in the
48:54
city of Costa Mesa. What do you think everybody in
48:58
going to the City Council and some of you go and speak in the
49:05
podium, right, because we have the public hearing time.
49:09
One of the student man, he raised his hand.
49:12
I want to do that an amazing like this person that was the
49:18
first, the first student to raise his hand for the past two
49:22
years. He was in a speech program
49:25
because he couldn't speak properly in a really challenging
49:30
the reading or expressing his opinion.
49:34
But he was the first one to raise his hand and we both
49:38
together created the speech. And then he delivered
49:43
beautifully in the City Council meeting.
49:47
And that was like one of the field trip that we did that some
49:50
of the student went to the City Council together, saw him and
49:55
then right, right. Even now we can watch in the.
49:58
YouTube. So it was this.
49:59
Memorable moment that where I tried not to translate into
50:05
something more meaningful for their local contacts on their
50:09
own life too. So, yeah, totally agree with
50:12
you, man. Well, thank you so much for for
50:16
sharing that, that anecdote of, of what is clearly a tremendous
50:20
win, not only for that individual, like, you know,
50:24
that, that student, but even the whole class, because there was
50:28
this, you know, not only you and, and the student going
50:31
there, but also other students who wanted to support.
50:34
And then, you know, having it be recorded.
50:37
Maybe either the sense of pride of let me share this like
50:39
YouTube link with like other people.
50:42
And it's just ripple effect after ripple effect.
50:44
And again, it's just, it resonates with everything that
50:48
you've been sharing about really understanding that.
50:51
Well, one, we need to trust our students by listening deeply to
50:55
them and then creating this space, right for them to to
51:02
apply the from the questions actual like research and then
51:07
action. And and then I think, you know,
51:10
that becomes golden memories for them as they continue in new
51:14
pursuits, right? New projects encounter new
51:18
people and, you know, ultimately grow into capable global
51:23
citizens. So I, yeah, thank you so much
51:26
for sharing that. And, you know, this, this
51:28
conversation has just been really wonderful for me as well
51:31
because I find, you know, the experience each each person's
51:35
experiences are so rich. And I find, you know, the way
51:37
that you've, you've told your story, it, it just seemingly
51:41
it's just kind of building and building this tremendous kind of
51:44
foundation and that now you're really able to apply that in
51:48
such a meaningful way at the school that you're at.
51:51
But it's still, you know, just the beginning.
51:54
And, and I think in that sense, there's this excitement of wow,
51:58
you know, I'm, I'm going to continue to impact more and more
52:01
students, but I'm also, you know, for myself.
52:04
And then I would imagine you would agree for you still
52:08
growing, still evolving and still trying to make sense of
52:11
not just the identity, but also the deeper mission of my efforts
52:16
are leading towards a certain certain dream.
52:19
So, you know, we were approaching the the tail end of
52:23
this conversation. I do have one more question that
52:26
I wanted to ask you. Do you have any book or movie
52:29
recommendations for our listeners?
52:34
Yeah, OK. I mean, first of all, thank you
52:36
so much. It was amazing.
52:39
Thank you for inviting me. It was really this, as I
52:42
mentioned, a moment to reflect about myself, about my journey,
52:47
but also reflect on things that I've been doing right now as a
52:51
career. So it was such a meaningful
52:54
time. Yes, it's a recent movie that
52:58
was released. It's actually an animation that
53:02
I really like a lot. It is the Zootopia 1 and
53:08
especially the two. I really like that the way that
53:13
they put it, because it's connected with immigration, it's
53:18
connected with labeling certain group of people.
53:25
It's connected with most important thing for me, the
53:28
friendship. And how can we try to create
53:32
meaningful connections based on friendship, right?
53:38
So Zootopia one and two, Amazing.
53:45
Thank you so much. I've seen Zootopia, the first
53:47
one, have yet to see the second one.
53:50
So this is yes, this is a sign for me to to watch it.
53:53
So thank you so much, Phillipe. You know, I wanted to give you
53:58
the last word and this could be like any final thought or final
54:01
send off you'd like to share with the listeners.
54:04
So anything at all that comes to mind?
54:06
Got it. Yeah.
54:08
I mean, I'm in this process of learning and learning and
54:13
learning, and I will be keeping learning.
54:15
I know that I'm still in the beginning of my educational
54:19
career or educational practitioner career.
54:23
And this is a commitment where I wanted to share where I will be
54:27
always become an educator where I can inspire student and also
54:33
become a person who can learn that throughout experiences and
54:41
knowing that identity or experiences, it's not a static
54:46
thing that as we were able to discuss, it evolves.
54:51
So who knows who I'm going to be in 10/20/50 years.
54:57
Maybe I will be defining myself as OK.
55:00
I'm everything. I'm from the world and that's OK
55:04
too. So if there's anything that I
55:09
can help you, please you more than happy to connect my e-mail
55:15
isfelipe.iwahashiiwahashi@gmail.com and thank you so much for this
55:24
privilege.