Join UVM’s School of World Languages and Cultures in celebrating Senior Lecturer Kazuko Suzuki Carlson (Suzuki-sensei)! Last November, she was awarded the 2024 American Association of Teachers of Japanese Outstanding Teacher Award. The AATJ Teacher Award is the highest teaching award in the field and recognizes educators for their excellence in teaching, advocacy, leadership, and contributions towards Japanese education, locally and regionally.

The following January, Suzuki-sensei was invited to the Boston residence of Consul General Takahashi of Japan. She was recognized and celebrated for her award. “It was an honor to meet Consul General Takahashi again, many Japanese teachers from New England, and all the affiliates,” says Suzuki-sensei. She had the opportunity to see former student Zoe Nugent, who works at the Consulate-General of Japan in Boston. “It was so heartwarming to see her at work and that she is surrounded by so many wonderful colleagues there!”

Suzuki-sensei promotes Japanese education inside UVM and beyond its walls. She does outreach to inspire new Japanese students and grow UVM’s Japanese program. Once students are in the program, many of them want to teach English in Japan, so she organizes service learning events in order to help her students gain experience. She also creates an online language exchange to give students the opportunity to practice their speaking skills. Suzuki-sensei doesn’t limit her expertise to the classrooms of UVM. She works with the Japan-America society of Vermont (JASV) and helps to create community events for all of Vermont’s Japanese speakers. Last September, she helped organize Matsuri, a Japanese culture festival. This January, she received a commendation award from JASV for her exceptional professional achievement and contribution to the society.

Language education has been a passion for Suzuki-sensei ever since she was a child. When she was in elementary school, her class was visited by a teacher from the United States. Her love of language learning was sparked by the teacher calling on her out of all the students in the room. When she started English education in 7th grade, she practiced pronunciation by memorizing songs from American Top 40 and listening to DJ Casey Kasem’s English. She worked hard to test into a high school with an English program taught by native speakers, and eventually studied abroad in Vermont! She went on to earn her master’s at St. Michael’s College before being offered a position as a Japanese lecturer at UVM.

Suzuki-sensei’s care for her students extends beyond the classroom. She noticed that students often need a space to belong. After Covid, a couple of her students told her it was hard to make friends at UVM, so she created a “Fun Zone” as that space. She provides books, crafts, and snacks, as well as an opportunity for low-stress Japanese speaking practice. The Fun Zone fosters cross-class interactions between students of all ages, giving beginners the opportunity to interact with advanced students.

Her teaching philosophy is that, “if students are not learning, then I am not teaching.” She puts feedback time into each semester in order to understand her students and change her ways of teaching, such as how to present more effectively and give additional support.

Suzuki-sensei’s favorite thing about teaching Japanese is watching students gain global competencies, mutual understanding, and learn how to value different cultures and different views – most importantly, to value each person.

“UVM has amazing students. They are so eager to learn,” Suzuki-sensei says. “UVM students listen and understand our common ground values. Faculty doesn’t feel afraid to talk to them about those values.” She believes that being an educator means being a part of raising a human being, not just teaching them about a particular subject. “I want my students to respect people and behave kindly towards others. Sometimes people are excluded because they are perceived foreign or different from one particular culture.” By learning a foreign languages, different cultures, and human values, Suzuki-sensei believes her students will go on to contribute towards diplomacy and world peace, bringing kindness wherever they go. She is honored to change the way young people see and interact with the world.