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Key Points Regarding Cooperation

NAKAI Akihito (Sendai National College of Technology, Natori)

Today I’m going to talk about my experience abroad. Last March, I went to The Republic of Singapore. The purpose of my visit was to participate in a project. The project was a workshop about Japanese traditional work craft, that is automata also known as Karakuri craft.
15 students gathered from NCTs in the Tohoku and Hokkaido districts as leaders in the workshop. So, who were the participants of the workshop going to be? They were going to be students of a Polytechnic, known as “Kousen in Singapore.” Polytechnic is a vocational college. Students learn about a specialized field in several departments. The learning system resembles ours. That is why I mentioned that it is called “Kousen in Singapore.”

On the first day, when we arrived at the polytechnic, all students gave us a warm welcome. And our workshop kicked off on the first day.
At the beginning of the workshop, a Japanese automata artist Mr. Takahashi Minoru gave us an introduction. He brought an automaton that can bring a cup of tea. He also showed and explained how this was achieved. He told us that the essential part of making the automata is its link.
The link functions as a connection of several parts.
And the link can make the automata flexible and able to be extended.
The link was obviously the key point in making an automaton.

Fifteen Japanese students were divided into four equal groups. In the workshop, all groups produced two automata based on the theme of “Environmental problems in Singapore.” In the workshop it took 2 whole days to achieve two automata with group cooperation. On the third day, after the workshop, each group had to hold a presentation of their achievement. Here is an outline of the automata workshop.
I have learnt 2 important points regarding cooperative work concerning the problems which occurred in the workshop.

There was an initial problem in the phase of making an automaton. One concrete problem was the base theme. Japanese students were familiar with automata, but not with environmental problems in Singapore. The reverse was true for us. Therefore, we had to discuss Singaporean environmental problems and automata first.
However, this discussion unconsciously helped us to communicate smoothly. We had never met before, but we were able to open up to each other within the space of only one hour.

I learnt from this problem about the effects of discussing a common theme. Usually we tend to have some problems in communication with unknown people. At that time, it is a good idea to decide on a common theme with those people. A common theme lets us start a conversation smoother than without one. And a conversation is the first step towards establishing a friendship.

Secondary, the biggest problem was the diverse background of the people.
My group had 3 Japanese members including me. The other 2 Japanese members belonged to The Mechanical engineering course. But, I did not have any knowledge of mechanics. As for me, this situation seemed a big problem, and I lost a vision of my outcomes. I felt like I am standing on a dark street. In the end, however, our group obtained 2 out of 3 awards for our cooperation. Certainly, I found a dazzling light in the dark street.

Do you have any idea what on earth happened?
I learnt from this experience that cooperation does not always mean struggling with the same topic together. When the proper person takes charge of his or her own special field, things go better than all members just struggling with the same topic. Accordingly, I have been working on a concept and a story for each of the automata we were going to make, and acted as the main presenter at the final presentation.

The important point of this division of work is connecting our special fields into one piece, this time an automaton. So, how can we connect these fields? The key point of connection is “Links” with your teammates. Links must make a flexible team and you can extend the outcomes. It is commonsense that links occur within a good relationship. And a good relationship is built on good communications. Communications start with conversations. Therefore let us start a conversation on a common theme with a friend. There will be links. I firmly believe that the links between you and your friends will be a dazzling light in the dark street.
This is what I learnt from cooperative work in Singapore.