CITL-ScienceTokyo

CITL conducted the practical training program “Clear Speaking and Vocal Techniques by an NHK Foundation Announcer” on October 21 and 28, 2025, as part of faculty and staff development (FD/SD) initiatives. This program has been offered annually since AY 2022, aiming to learn the fundamentals of clear communication through lectures and hands-on practice, recognizing the importance of effective information delivery in daily work. For the first time since the university integration, this year’s sessions were held at both Ookayama Campus (October 21) and Yushima Campus (October 28). The program was conducted in person, with four sessions split between morning and afternoon on each day. A total of 48 faculty and staff members attended: 23 on October 21 (12 faculty and 11 staff) and 25 on October 28 (21 faculty and 4 staff), with some joining at campuses other than their own.

Before the training began, the purpose of the program was explained, and the instructor, Tsuyoshi Matsuo, executive announcer at NHK Communications Training Institute, was introduced. In the first half of the session, participants learned about their own speaking styles, the basics of vocalization and pronunciation, and how to structure a talk, using their self-introduction speeches as examples. In the second half, participants applied the techniques learned in the lecture to deliver a one-minute speech on a pre-assigned theme. Each participant chose either “Introduce the appeal of Ookayama/Yushima Campus to colleagues from other campuses” or “Explain your work/research to people from a different field.” Speeches were recorded on video, and participants reviewed their recordings together to identify improvement points they had not noticed before. The instructor provided not only objective assessment of each speech but also practical advice for improvement, answered questions, and explained key points for clear communication in detail. Each session fully utilized the scheduled two and a half hours, and some participants stayed afterward to ask additional questions, reflecting their strong interest and enthusiasm for the training.

A post-training survey (45 respondents, 94% response rate) showed that 100% of participants rated the program as either “very meaningful” or “meaningful,” and similarly, all respondents felt they could apply what they learned to their future work. Free comments included:
“It was a rare and valuable opportunity to see my speaking style from a third-person perspective through video.”
“Recording a one-minute presentation and reviewing it with commentary helped me clearly identify areas for improvement.”
Another participant shared:
“I immediately tried applying what I learned during my regular lectures. I feel I was able to speak more calmly, with better pacing, making it easier for students to follow.”

The lecture portion of the training will be made available internally for a limited time as recorded video for faculty and staff.

Instructor Matsuo giving a lecture

One-minute speech practice

A session at Yushima Campus

Program Details

Dates and Times:

Tuesday, October 21 and Tuesday, October 28, 2025

Each day had two sessions:
Morning Session: 9:30 a.m. – 12 noon
Afternoon Session: 1:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
(The same content was offered for all sessions.)

Venue:

(October 21) Room 213, 2nd Floor, West Building 9, Ookayama Campus (CITL Training Room),
(October 28) Seminar Room 4 for Faculty of Dentistry, 6th Floor, Building 7, Yushima Campus

Training Program:

1. Orientation and Purpose Explanation
2. Lecture
   • Self-introduction: Understanding your speaking style
   • Key elements for improving speaking skills, basics of vocalization and pronunciation, and intonation in standard Japanese
   • Speech blueprint: How to organize information and structure a talk
3. Practical Training
   • One-minute speech practice
   • Viewing the recordings and reviewing the speech
   • Q&A and wrap-up