International Christian University

This beginners Chinese course aims to develop the four language skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. It instructs on the basics of the language as well as cultural knowledge to begin communicating in Chinese. Students with some knowledge of the language are welcome. 

The course aims to provide students with:

• Familiarity with the sounds and pronunciation of Chinese; 
• Simple conversation skills about everyday topics, including self-introduction;
• Acquisition of basic Chinese vocabulary, sentence structure, basic grammar, etc.; and,
• Ability to read short sentences

This course includes critical and sociological considerations on various social problems related to contemporary families in Japan. 

It is sometimes difficult to discuss or even think about marriage and family because it is too close, too natural or too emotional. This course aims at acquiring basic skills and knowledge to discuss family issues through lectures and group discussions in class.

Relatively new approaches and concepts including modern family, gender studies, queer theories and dependency theories are expounded to address controversial family problems such as Konkatsu (spouse hunting), Ikumen (active fathering) and Shoushi-ka (fertility crisis), etc.

This course approaches human rights from the perspective of peace. After an introduction, it examines peace and human rights from both theoretical and practical perspectives. 

The course covers the following topics:

• What is Peace?
• What is Human Rights?
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Law
• United Nations and Human Rights
• "Responsibility to Protect"
• Gender, Peace and Human Rights
• Statelessness
• Human Rights in Japan
• Post-Anthropocene Perspectives of Peace and Human Rights: Rights of Nature?
• Why Peace? Why Human Rights?

We are in the midst of unprecedented global environmental change. Rising temperatures and sea levels, unpredictable and increasingly volatile weather events, plant and animal extinctions, and continued human expansion and adaptation are all pressing matters for our current and future lives. How did we get here, what are the implications for human and nonhuman life, and where do we go from here? 

This course draws on anthropological concepts and fieldwork findings to explore the complex and reciprocal relationships between humans and our environments. Students will be introduced to environmental anthropology and its potential for understanding not only nature, culture, and their relationship, but also possible solutions to issues related to life on a changed (and changing) planet. 

Students will be introduced to the past, present, and potential future diversity of human-environment relations through topics including fungal networks, human-animal relationships, nonhuman persons, environmental politics, urban development, and of course, climate change. Through this, students will gain an appreciation for the diversity of human life, the environment, and our ways of being in the world, while also developing critical analytical skills beneficial for personal, activist, and academic success. 

This course focuses on the Eukaryotic cell structure, its basic components, and their functions. Eukaryotic cells are characterized by membrane-bound compartments called Organelles. The class focuses on Organelles, Membrane Structure and Composition, Membrane Transport, Vesicles Trafficking, and Cell Energy, applying these basic ideas to current biological questions. For instance, the class will relate dysfunctions in various cellular processes to human diseases. Furthermore, the course covers methods utilized by researchers to uncover current information about Eukaryotic cells. 

This course is recommended to be taken after FOUNDATION OF BIOLOGY or INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGY. 

This course is designed to improve integrate French-language skills but also to expand cultural knowledge of the French-speaking world. It aims to prepare students for the Diplôme d'Etudes en Langue Française (DELF) exam, to train their French-Japanese translation skills and to provide them with the opportunity to understand the French society.

The course provides the following opportunities:

• Acquire listening skills of B1 level (CECR);
• Develop speaking skills and be able to discuss in French;
• Acquire reading skills of B1 level;
• Have a deeper understanding of French society; and,
• Develop the skills needed to pass the B1 level of the DELF exam

This course provides a comprehensive overview of the nature of second language learning and current theoretical explanations for second language learning. It also considers principles of classroom second language instruction in light of current empirical research. The course also examines various positions towards second/ foreign language teaching that have been developed since the 20th century and considers the relationship between second language acquisition theory, research on second language learning, and second language teaching practice.   

This course explores a specific theme of a broad range of topics in Japan Studies representing humanities, social science, natural science, and environmental science perspectives. The course involves substantial out of classroom work, including fieldwork, interviews, and first-hand observation.

This course approaches history in an unconventional way, namely, through the study of everyday objects. By analyzing thirty objects ranging in time from the ice age to the current times, this course presents history as a kaleidoscope of cultures, languages, and ways of thinking that shows the world as constantly shifting, profoundly interconnected, and unfailingly fascinating. An anonymous and ordinary-looking stone pillar, for example, will tell us the story of a great Indian emperor preaching tolerance to his people; a series of luxury Spanish coins will introduce us to the troubled history of colonization; and an early Victorian tea set will speak to us about the idea of empire.  

The goal of this course is to explain the key stages in global history through the study of everyday objects.  

This course provides readings on Musicological fieldwork theory and practice, considering different approaches to writing musical ethnographies. During the second half of the term, students are expected to participate in several fieldwork trips in Tokyo, later writing up the results as a group project. Students are expected to have taken several music and/or anthropology courses at ICU.