Two Monroe County Community School Corporation (MCCSC) teachers were honored at the Indiana Foreign Language Teachers Association (IFLTA) Fall Conference held on Saturday, November 8 in Indianapolis. Michiko Owaki, Bloomington High School North Japanese language teacher, received the 2025 Rising Star Award by the Association of Indiana Teachers of Japanese. Hongzhi Wang, Chinese language teacher at Bloomington High School North and Jackson Creek Middle School, received the Tom Alsop Distinguished World Language Publication Award.
“Congratulations to Michiko Owaki and Hongzhi Wang on their recognition. Their engaging, student-centered lessons help students truly enjoy learning, and this award reflects their dedication to the classroom,” said MCCSC Superintendent Dr. Markay Winston.
In addition to receiving an award, Owaki presented “Bringing Comprehensible Input Instruction into the Japanese Classroom” at the IFLTA conference. In her presentation, she shared engaging activities that help students improve their Japanese comprehension through the Comprehensible Input method. These activities immerse students in material that is interesting and slightly beyond their understanding, allowing them to gain confidence while building their vocabulary.
“The most important thing I can do as a teacher is to cultivate the love of learning, and to foster a community in each of my classes, where students feel safe, fun, and supported for their learning,” said Owaki. “Students learn best when they are intrinsically motivated, participating in activities out of sheer enjoyment and interest.”
Hongzhi Wang is an active contributor to the world language education community. She published a bilingual children’s book, A Kaleidoscope of Chinese Ethnic Groups, featured in the anthology Multilingual Funds of Knowledge Stories. Later this month, Wang will co-present on the topic “Multilingual Parents as Authors and Global Curricula Creators” at the Indiana Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages conference in Indianapolis. Wang has previously published a Chinese language lesson plan as an Open Educational Resource through her participation in the 2023 Indiana University World Language Festival Virtual Academy.
