CCHS Overnight/Out of State Field Trip Proposal Final School Committee Approval Request

Trip Name CCHS 2020 Japan Delegation

Trip Leader & Department David Nurenberg, English Department

Communications Plan Approved Superintendent Approval

Trip Destination Japan

Estimated cost per person $3500

New or recurring trip Recurring

Date of this request 11/23/19

Brief Description of Trip (purpose, target audience, expected outcomes)

Concord Carlisle High School has enjoyed a twenty-five year long sister-school relationship with two schools in Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido. Every autumn for the last 20 years, students, teachers and other citizens from Nanae visit Concord, and in 2003 the Shiroishi Symphonic Wind Ensemble played a joint concert with our own CCHS Concert Band at Boston Symphony Hall, and again in 2008. In turn, our own Concert Band visited Japan in 1998, 2004 and 2007, 2010 and 2019. The Scifi Club was along in 2007 and 2010, and had their very own trips in 2009, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018. Throughout all this time, students at CCHS have maintained pen and video pal relationships with their Japanese counterparts, learned Taiko drumming and more.

The goals of the April 2020 trip are:

1. To introduce students to first-hand, hands-on exploration of Japanese society, culture, history and literature, and to do so through the means of cultural immersion, homestays, museum visits, and interactive experiences with Japanese students and teachers. There will be specific emphasis on Anime and Manga, genres which Japan has helped define on a worldwide scale for over 30 years.

2. To maintain and reaffirm the twenty-five year old sister-city/sister-state relationship between Concord/Massachusetts and Nanae and Sapporo/Hokkaido, which has benefited both communities in a variety of political, social and educational ways.

Estimated Departure April 12th Estimated Return April 23rd Date Date

Estimated # of 26 What Grade levels can 9-12 students participating participate?

Estimated Cost per $3500 Number of adults 3 chaperones Student chaperoning 1 nurse 1 translator/facilitator

Number of school 5 Number of nights 12 days missed away

Other adults attending:

Robin Cicchetti Jeff Block Emily Boysen (pediatric nurse @ Boson Children’s) Mino Endo (Concord resident, native-born Japanese)

Vendor contact Info (if We do not use vendors since it is an exchange trip. All using) Use additional pages arrangements are made by the hosts in Japan. for multiple vendors

Website

Vendor/s services being provided n/a

Vendor Insurance We purchase, as a part of trip tuition, trip insurance through Certificate attached? AIG.

Current Projected Budget $3500/student

Minimum/maximum number of students and 26 adults for this budget

Budget Supt. Review Reviewed

How is the proposed trip related to school district objectives for students?

The core mission of CCRSD includes that students become “responsible contributors in our increasingly diverse global society.”

The district vision of student learning includes “with hard work, I will be prepared for higher learning, the work world, and knowledgeable citizenship in my community and the wider world.”

One of the district strategic initiatives from 2018-2019 (the year the trip was planned) was “3.3 Increase culturally responsive curriculum and students’ knowledge and understanding of a wide variety of perspectives.”

Is the field trip used to build group identity and/or culminate or celebrate group work? Please explain.

Building group identity and collective responsibility is a core element of the trip; small chaperone-led groups are not only for keeping track of students on the trip but also serve as forums for twice-daily discussions in which students process the learnings they have had on the trip. Group activities in the style of Johnson & Johnson’s Teaching Students to Be Peacemakers and Linda Baloche’s The Cooperative Classroom are employed before and during the trip to build group-cohesion and to help students develop and practice cooperative learning mechanisms.

Does the field trip enhance extracurricular activities? Please explain.

The trip is centered around the Science Fiction club, although students from beyond the club’s roster are also able to participate.

Please describe any fundraising that is planned, of applicable, for purposes including reducing trip costs for all participants and/or those requesting financial assistance?

Student run bake sales, donations from previous participants and their families (we have about $5000 available in scholarship funds as of this writing)

Any additional information or comments?

This trip was already approved by the school committee in Spring of 2019.

Attach Curricular Tie-In Documents (If applicable)

Links to related documents:

The CCHS World Literature curriculum includes a unit on contemporary Japanese Literature, and the Freshman curriculum includes teaching the book Hiroshima by Jon Hersey; as someone who teaches both these courses, I create explicit links in the sections I teach and the trip as “plug ins” for students who have taken those courses. While I have heard anecdotally that some social studies teachers include a Japan unit in World Cultures, there are no explicit links between the trip and these lessons yet.

Trip itinerary: (provide a day-to-day expected itinerary; include locations, activities, accommodations, modes of travel, and anticipated risks)

Note: This itinerary is not yet in its finalized form.

Day 1: Sunday 4/12 - Concord/Boston Dress Code: Comfortable for travel

8:00am – Gather at CCHS Cafeteria with all luggage packed 9:00 – Depart CCHS 9:45 – Arrive Logan airport, go through check-in and customs. 1:20pm – JL 007 departs, terminal E

Breakfast: At home Lunch: Logan airport or on the plane Dinner: On the plane Day 2: Monday 4/13 – Tokyo/Sapporo Dress Code: Comfortable for travel

4:00pm (Japan time) – Arrive Tokyo Narita, Terminal 2 Go through customs and immigration, then ticketing & security again Get to Terminal D as quickly as possible 6:40pm – JL 3049 departs for Sapporo New Chitose. 8:30pm – Arrive Sapporo New Chitose 9:00pm – Take bus to Sapporo International Youth Hostel 10:30pm - Arrive Sapporo International Youth Hostel Quick evening meeting 11:30pm – Bedtime

Breakfast: On plane Lunch: On plane Dinner: Vendors at Tokyo Narita airport Day 3: Tuesday 4/14 – Sapporo Dress Code: Formal but with good walking shoes

7:00am - Wakeup 7:30 - Breakfast at the hostel 8:00 - Morning meeting 8:30 - Leave, take subway to Hokkaido Jingu Shrine 9:00 - Explore Shrine 10:30 - Leave Shrine, take bus to downtown Sapporo 11:30 - Arrive downtown, have lunch near the State Government 1:00 - Courtesy visit to State Government 2:30 –Walk/subway to TV tower 4:30 - Take subway back to Sapporo Youth Hostel. 6:00 – Dinner at Sapporo Youth Hostel with Otaru University students 8:00 – Evening meeting 10:30 – Lights out

Breakfast: Sapporo Youth Hostel Lunch: Downtown Sapporo, restaurant to be determined Dinner: Sapporo Youth Hostel

Day 4: Wednesday 4/15– Sapporo Dress Code: Formal (but with comfortable shoes)

6:30am - Wakeup 7:00 Breakfast at the hostel 8:00 Morning meeting 8:30 Take bus to Hitsujigaoka 10:00 – Bus leaves Hitsujigaoka, “Boys be ambitious” statue (maybe passes by Sapporo dome for a quick look) 11:00 – Visit to Anime School (includes lunch) 1:00pm – Depart, walk to Clock Tower 3:00 -Bus pickup at Clock Tower, head for Atsubetsu 4:00 - 5:30 - Atsubetsu high school visit 5:30 Bus pickup- return us to Sapporo Youth Hostel 6:30 At youth hostel, change clothes 7:00 – Go out to dinner in plaza/shopping center nearby 8:30 – Return to hostel 9:00 – Evening meeting 10:30 – Lights out

Breakfast: Sapporo Youth Hostel Lunch: Anime school Dinner: Shopping mall plaza Day 5: Thursday 4/16 – Sapporo/Noboribetsu/Nanae Dress code: Nice casual

6:00am Wakeup 6:30 Breakfast 7:00 AM – Morning meeting, get suitcases all packed and rooms made neat 8:30 AM Nanae bus departs Sapporro Youth Hostel 10:00 AM Arrive in Noboribetsu, lunch and walk around (explore live volcano!) 1:00 PM Leave Noboribetsu (rest stop at Mt. Usu) 3:30 PM Arrive in Nanae, visit Nanairo Nanae 4:30 PM Visit Konbu Seaweed Museum 5:45 PM Arrive at Bunka Center, meeting in #201 6:30 PM Welcome potluck party, meet host families, speeches 8:30 PM Party ends – go home with host families

Breakfast: Sapporo Youth Hostel Lunch: Noboribetsu “Hell Valley” Dinner: Potluck at Nanae bunka center

Day 6: Friday 4/17 – Nanae / Hakodate Dress code: Nice casual

8:30 AM Meet at the 1st floor entrance of Bunka Center 8:45 AM Morning meeting 9:30 AM Visit Hakodate Morning Market 10:30 AM Explore/shopping time in Motomachi Area Get lunch. Dr. Nurenberg will lead an expedition to Lucky Pierrot’s for those who dare. 1:00 PM Gather again at the Cable car station Cable car up to the top of Mt. Hakodate, group photo 2:30 PM Back to the bus 3:00 PM Visit Goryokaku Tower (site of Samurai rebellion “last stand”) and explore in the park 4:30 PM Leave Goryokaku 5:00 PM Arrive at Bunka Center, evening meeting 5:30 PM Go home with host families

Breakfast: Host families Lunch: Hakodate market area Dinner: Host families

Day 7: Saturday 4/18 Dress code: Nice casual

Full day with host families

Breakfast: Host families Lunch: Host families Dinner: Host families Day 8: Sunday 4/19 – Nanae Dress code: Formal

8:30 AM Meet at Room #101 in Yakuba 8:45 AM Morning meeting 9:00 AM Tour of Yakuba 3rd floor, Group shot @ tree (mayor or vice mayor), Concord Street 10:00 AM Visit Horinji Buddhist Temple for Zazen meditation session 11:45 AM Lunch (kaiten conveyor sushi!) 1:30 PM Leave Restaurant for Bunka Center 2:00 PM Arrive at Bunka Center, evening meeting, home with host families Cultural activities Group A:Tea Ceremony/ Group B: Kimono 4:30 PM Visit Nanae Historical Museum 5:15 PM Evening meeting at Bunka Center #201 5:30 PM Home with host families

Note: Tonight, please pack up as much of your suitcase as you can. Prepare a “go bag” with your two trip t-shirts and whatever you’ll need for our 3 ½ days in Koyoto and Tokyo

**6:30 PM Dinner with town officials (chaperones only) 8:30 PM Dinner ends Day 9: Monday 4/20 – Nanae Dress code: Formal

8:30 AM Meet at Bunka Center First floor Gallery – bring suitcases 8:45 AM Morning meeting- leave for Onuma 9:30 AM Arrive in Onuma 11:00 AM Leave Onuma 11:30 AM Visit Nanae High School Attend classes, sports, and cultural activities, lunch with students 4:30 PM School ends, back to Yakuba 4:45 PM Evening meeting at Bunka Center#101 Change clothes, pack away everything in your suitcase that is not going in your “go bag.” Suitcases will be shipped out right afterwards to Narita Airport 6:00 PM Home with host families

Breakfast: Host families Lunch: Nanae High School Dinner: Host families Day 10– Tuesday 4/21 – Nanae  Tokyo Dress Code: Trip t-shirts

8:00 AM Meet at #101 of Yakuba 8:15 AM Morning meeting 8:30 AM Depart Nanae for Shikabe 9:30 AM Shikabe Geyser 10:30 AM Leave Shikabe for Hakodate airport (coast line drive) 12:30 PM Arrive at Hakodate airport Check in, have a quick lunch 2:00pm – JAL 2124 departs 3:35pm – Arrive Tokyo Haneda 4:00pm – Bus pickup 5:30pm – Arrive Nikko – settle into hotel/Nikko Lodge

Breakfast: Host families Lunch: Hakodate airport Dinner: Nikko Lodge

Day 11 – Wednesday 4/22 – Nikko

6:00 AM – Wakeup 6:30 AM – Breakfast 7:30 AM – Day in Nikko 5:30 PM – Farewell dinner and meeting

Day 12 – Thursday 4/23

9:00 – Arrive Tsukiji Fish Market 10:30 – depart Tsukiji Fish Market, head to Asakusa 11:30 – Arrive Asakusa – shop, have lunch 2:00 Depart Asakusa 3:30 Arrive Narita 4:00 - arrive Narita airport * Find luggage - Repack, change clothes *Go through ticketing and security. If time, get dinner 6:10pm - JL 008 departs 6:00pm EST – Arrive in Boston (yes, before you lef t! Timey-wimey, wibbly wobbly stuff and all that) 7:00pm – Bus departs back to CCHS 7:45pm – Arrive back at CCHS

Anticipated Risks:

Personal safety: While no country is crime-free, Japan ties with Iceland for the safest country in the world in terms of crime.

Getting lost/separated: Japanese cities are very densely populated. As a precautionary measure for students who may get lost or separated from the group, every student at all times wears a photo name badge with a message in Japanese printed on the back that reads, “I have become separated from my school group, please call the following number” in order to help reunite them with the chaperones, two of which will have mobile phones. Students also wear bright, highly identifiable T-shirts to help them be easily found in large crowds (Japanese fashion tends to dwell in whites, blacks, and tans.)

Natural disasters: While Japan is more prone to volcanic events, earthquakes and tsunami than Massachusetts, such incidents are still extremely rare. Hokkaido, where most of the trip takes place, has comparatively low risk factors for all of these types of events, and in any case Japan has perhaps the most highly organized disaster preparation and response system in the world.

Medical incidents: We always travel with both a trip nurse and a translator/facilitator to help us with medical incidents should they arise. Japan’s health care system is one of the most advanced in the world.

This document is for purposes of final School Committee approval through the Principal and Superintendent, Communications with the Principal and Superintendent for guidance and administrative approvals will be ongoing as necessary. Also see School Committee Policies (https://z2policy.ctspublish.com/masc/browse/concordcarlisleset/welcome/root) and CCHS Trips and Exchanges links at https://sites.google.com/concordcarlisle.org/cchseducationaltripsexchanges/home. 10.31.19