QC Public Library’s Nihongo class a surprise hit

MANILA, Philippines — Suddenly many are saying ‘’hai’’ to a chance to learn Nihongo.

A free online course in basic Japanese language offered by the Quezon City Public Library (QCPL) this month has caused quite a stir, attracting more than 9,000 applicants, far exceeding the 15 who came to class in the previous sessions.

“We didn’t expect that many people would be interested,” said Mariza Chico, the assistant city librarian. “Maybe a lot of these people are confined to their homes (because of the pandemic) and are looking for new hobbies or activities that are worthwhile and free (of charge) at the same time.”

Limited capacity

A total of 9,502 people applied for the lessons. But due to the limited number of participants that the QCPL could accommodate, less than a hundred were accepted for the online classes that will start on Thursday.

The public library has been offering Nihongo classes since February, Chico said.

In the last sessions that were conducted before the pandemic, only 15 students participated, she said.

More classes eyed

Those classes were still held in-person with the help of tutors from Jellyfish Education Philippines (JEP), one of the library’s partner organizations.

The QCPL and JEP are now studying ways to accommodate the sudden surge in applications and are considering holding more classes in October, November and December.

This month, 95 students age 18 years and above have been selected to learn Japanese in two sessions lasting two hours each.

They are required to have laptops, desktops or smartphones, a stable internet connection, and Zoom application and account.

Students finishing the short course will receive a digital certificate of completion.