Objectification and stabilisation 159

Since  arrival  in  the  US,  the  students  were  exposed  to  a  new  environment  with  various   stimuli  experienced  at  different  levels  and  varying  stages  physically,  emotionally,  and   cognitively.   Given   the   manifold   of   contextual   factors   to   which   the   students   had   to   adjust   and   familiarise   themselves,   it   was   evident   that   the   students’   attention   and   energy   was   focused   on   coping   with   everyday   life.   Looking   back   at   the   total   flux   of   experience,  some  students  stated  that  they  could  have  forgotten  certain  incidents,  or   would  have  paid  little  attention  to  what  had  happened  if  they  had  not  written  them   down   in   the   reflective   journal.   One   student   particularly   related   the   intensity   and   importance   of   experience   to   the   likelihood   of   forgetting   its   details   because   of   the   energy  infused  with  emotion  into  the  context.  Under  such  circumstances,  the  following   accounts  indicated  that  the  act  of  writing  had  allowed  the  students  to  carefully  recall   their   intercultural   communication   experiences,   helping   them   to   describe   particular   interactions  or  communication  to  reconsider  consciously  in  written  form:    

口で出してたことを書くことで、もう一回再認識するというか。（中略） 意外とどんなに重要なことを言ってて、友達とかが言ってても、それを書 かなかったらたぶん思い出せなかったんだろうな。（けん、帰国後インタ ビュー)  

By   writing   what   was   said,   I   could   acknowledge   it   again.   .   .   .   Surprisingly,   even   if   somebody   said   something   important,   I   don’t   think  I  could  have  recalled  it  later  if  I  hadn’t  written  it  down  probably.   (Ken;  post  return  interview)  

感じるじゃないですか。感じて、何もなかったら・・・すーっと終わっち ゃうんですよ。でも、こう、一回感じて、また普通の生活して・・・あ書 かなきゃいけないっていう場所にまた戻ったときに、もう一回思い出すじ ゃないですか。その思い出す力で、頭の中に残るっていう・・のがやっぱ ある・・・と。（ひろ、帰国後インタビュー）  

You  feel  something.  And  if  there  was  no  follow-­‐up  to  that,  it  would   be   gone.   You   feel   something,   then   spend   the   rest   of   the   time   normally.  But  when  you  come  back  to  the  place  where  you  have  to   write   it   down,   you   remember   what   happened   once   again.   That   power  [process]  of  recalling  episodes  allows  you  to  capture  them  in   your  mind.    (Hiro;  post  return  interview)  

The  accounts  indicated  that  the  opportunity  and  act  of  writing  served  as  a  stimulus  for   the  students  to  focus  on  and  highlight  certain  episodes  which  otherwise  may  not  have   been  drawn  on  for  further  reflection.  The  process  of  recalling  and  reconstructing  the   interactional   contexts   in   writing   proved   essential   for   the   students   as   ‘mentally   revisiting  and  vividly  portraying  the  experience  in  writing  can  be  an  important  first  step’   (Boud,   2001,   p.   14)   to   shift   experience   to   knowledge.   Moreover,   the   importance   concerned   its   timeliness   in   capturing   students’   vivid   reactions   to   their   experiences.   Noriko  and  Takashi  stated  as  follows:  

文字に書き起すことによって、気持ち、思ってるだけだと絶対、後々忘れ ちゃうじゃな・・・、どんなに大事なことでも後々忘れちゃうし。だけど そのときに、もっと深い言葉で、文字に書き起してあると、読んで、ああ あのときこうだったなぁって思い出すこともできるし。(のりこ、帰国後イ ンタビュー)  

If   it   was   just   a   feeling   I   had,   I   would   definitely   end   up   forgetting   it   afterwards…  No  matter  how  important  is  was,  I  would  forget  it  later...   But   having   it   typed   out   with   more   profound   words   [because   of   its   timeliness],  I  can  read  and  remember  what  it  was  like  [vividly  later].   (Noriko;  post  return  interview)  

Many   students   realised   how   emotions   and   memories   are   not   static   and   can   easily   diminish   in   the   course   of   time.   The   process   of   writing   allowed   them   to   put   forward  

their   immediate   reactions   in   response   to   their   intercultural   communication   experiences,   which   would   not   have   been   possible   if   left   over   time.   Timeliness   of   writing  can  be  critical  in  order  for  students  to  be  able  to  apprehend  why  their  reactions   emerge  as  they  do  to  the  experience  of  otherness  (Byram,  1998;  Liddicoat  &  Scarino,  

2013).  

Learning  does  not  occur  automatically  from  simply  having  an  experience  even  though   it   may   be   the   foundation   of   learning   (Andresen   et   al.   as   cited   by   J.   A.   Moon,   2004;   Boud,  Cohen,  &  Walker,  1993;  Criticos,  1993).  As  the  students  pointed  out,  the  act  of   writing  had  helped  the  students  to  return  to  experience  and  attend  to  feelings  (Boud,   Keogh,   &   Walker,   1985).   In   other   words,   the   students   captured   and   retrieved   the   situation  and  context  in  a  form  which  they  could  easily  revisit  for  further  reflection  and   learning  (Boud,  2001).  An  active  and  intentional  engagement  to  work  with  experience   is  one  of  the  keys  to  learning  (Boud,  Cohen,  &  Walker,  1993;  J.  A.  Moon,  2004),  and   written   texts,   or   linguistic   objectification   (Berger   &   Luckmann,   1966),   served   as   an   important   means   for   the   students   to   capture   their   intercultural   communication   experience  as  a  first  step  to  make  meaning  out  of  it.    

On   the   other   hand,   pedagogical   challenges   remained   insofar   as   there   were   students   who   could   not   keep   the   reflective   journal   regularly   for   several   reasons.   Makoto   mentioned   the   challenge   of   securing   time   for   reflection   as   he   had   juggled   various   course   materials   and   requirements   while   being   eager   to   experience   as   much   as   he   could  while  in  the  US.  He  emphasised  how  actively  he  had  spent  his  time  away  from   his  room  as  follows:    

そのとき生きるのに精一杯（笑）（中略）そのときやりたいこと、たぶん アメリカ行く前にやりたいことっていうのがいっぱいあるんですよね。そ れを一個一個解消すると、毎日毎日がサバイバルというか。どう生きてい こう、みたいな。やりたいこと（中略）外に出たいじゃないですか。（中 略）寮にいてできることっていうのは日本にいてもできることなんですよ ね。なんでギリッギリまで外にいたい。（中略）・・・でパソコンを開く っていう時間がなかったのかな。でそれが、サバイバルって感じ。（まこ と、帰国後インタビュー）  

I   was   trying   hard   to   live   my   life   to   the   fullest   (laughter).   .   .   .   There   were   many   things   I   wanted   to   do,   including   things   which   I   had   wanted  to  do  before  arriving  in  the  US.  Every  day  was  about  survival   as  I  tried  to  achieve  those  things  one  by  one.  It  was  like,  how  can  I   deal  with  daily  life  while  doing  all  of  these  things  I  want  to  do?  You   know,   I   really   wanted   to   go   outside.   .   .   .   Things   I   would   do   at   the   dorm  were  also  things  that  I  could  do  back  in  Japan.  So  I  wanted  to   stay   out   as   much   as   possible.   .   .   .   and   I   had   no   time   to   open   my   laptop.  That’s  what  I  meant  by  survival  [fighting  with  time]  (Makoto;   post  return  interview).      

Another   student,   Takashi,   also   mentioned   the   difficulty   in   finding   time   due   to   the   active  socialising  activities.  To  be  able  to  sit  and  reflect,  he  needed  to  secure  a  quiet   time;   however,   he   could   not   ignore   his   friends’   invitations,   which   resulted   in   some   dissatisfaction   on   his   part   in   his   degree   of   engagement   with   reflective   writing.   Furthermore,   Hikari   reported   a   different   challenge.   She   attributed   the   difficulty   of   writing  to  her  personal  trait  insofar  that  she  preferred  oral  narratives  to  writing.  She   explained   how   she   had   felt   the   pressure   to   write   properly   as   some   others   did,   and   never   enjoyed   the   task   of   writing.   These   students’   challenges   relate   to   the   factors   which   are   influential   in   determining   the   approach   to   learning   or   the   framing   of   a   learning   task   (J.   A.   Moon,   2004).   The   way   in   which   these   students   perceived   and   enacted   the   learning   process   of   writing   was   affected   by:   1)   the   perceptions   of   the   demands   of   the   learning   task   as   well   as   the   emotional   orientation   in   terms   of   self-­‐

management   and   time   constraint   (Makoto);   2)   the   experience   of   the   situated   environment   where   socialising   activities   overwhelmed   the   student   (Takashi);   and   3)   relevant   learning   habit   as   well   as   the   emotional   orientation   to   the   task   from   the   perspective  of  confidence  in  writing  (Hikari)  (J.  A.  Moon,  2004).    

Nevertheless,   during   the   post-­‐study   abroad   phase   and   afterwards,   those   who   put   minimal   efforts   into   their   writing   commonly   regretted   that   they   should   have   taken   advantage  of  the  reflective  journal  as  an  opportunity  to  capture  their  experience  in  a   visible   form.   As   mentioned   earlier,   many   students   realised   how   detailed   experience   could   be   lost   in   memory   and   time,   and   they   valued   the   written   source   for   further   reflection   after   coming   back   to   Japan.   A   relevant   finding   is   also   drawn   on   in   section   5.1.3  (reading  one’s  own  writing  for  better  understanding  of  self),  and  the  pedagogical   implications  of  this  realisation  will  be  discussed  in  the  Conclusions  chapter.