From July 23 to 29, the School of Law hosted a trial online program entitled “Law in Japan Program @ Home”. Three hundred students and community members, including those from our partner schools at the University of São Paulo (Brazil) and Nanjing Normal University (China) participated.
The Law in Japan Program, a short-term summer exchange program held every summer since 2009 where participants learn about the Japanese law system in English, was unfortunately cancelled due to the spread of COVID-19. This time, as part of preparations for taking the Law in Japan Program online in the future, students living abroad participated real-time in online classes being taught mainly at Meiji University. The program included lectures, presentations and discussions in English on the five themes of Japanese law and society, labour laws, economic law, comparative law and forensic anthropology.
On the first day in the seminar of Professor Teruhisa Komuro, School of Law, three groups of Meiji University School of Law students made presentations on policies to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, discrimination, and same-sex marriage and civil partnerships. Afterwards, participants exchanged their opinions with the ones from other countries. They actively raised their hands and made remarks in the Zoom meetings, and comments about the presentations filled up the meeting chat.
The participants also registered in the group on the chat tool Slack Workspace to contact and share information about the program. They shared comments and resources about the subjects of the class and there was active exchange outside of the class as well.
Feedback from the Participants
Keitaro Takahashi, 3rd Year School of Law student who participated in the program (studied abroad for the 2020 spring term at the University of São Paulo. Currently back in Japan)
I was motivated by the students from Brazil and China through this program. I was impressed by their active participation and their wealth of knowledge. I hope this experience serves as nourishment for my future life as a student.
Dianhan Ding, 3rd year postgraduate student at Nanjing Normal University’s School of Law (Planned to participate in the Law in Japan Program 2020)
I was very sad when I heard that I could not go to Meiji University to participate in this summer’s Law in Japan Program. However, holding it online meant that more of my classmates could participate, and we could learn more about foreign law and culture. I heard some things for the first time and was able to understand things that were not clear just through reading.
Ana Julia Lissa Sato Chubaci, 5th year law student at the University of São Paulo
In a situation where many countries have closed their borders, through the Law in Japan Program@ Home, I was able to transcend those borders and discuss many topics that are important when thinking about the various problems the world is facing. It was a very fruitful experience. It was a unique opportunity not only for students to learn about Japanese law, but to exchange knowledge and experiences with the wonderful teachers and students.
