What rst triggered Sudo’s interest in the developing coun-try’s education eld was actually his experience in India, as a second-year high school student. Witnessing the issues caused by poverty made Sudo wonder what he could do to help. This is what set him on his present path and prompted him to choose the Department of Education at Sophia for his undergraduate studies.“As an undergraduate, I went to Cambodia and Thailand for research into education systems, and for my graduation thesis in International Education Development, I chose the topic of primary education in East Timor. There has been a lot of research done on the education systems of other Asian countries, but as for East Timor, such research was still in its infancy. Also, I personally love working with small children, so chose to focus on primary education.”When Sudo returned to East Timor in 2017, to undertake re-search for his thesis, he discovered educational challenges were affecting the country. “The ofcial languages of East Timor are Portuguese and Tetum, and these are the languages of instruction in schools. However, as over 30 are spoken nationwide, teaching in the two ofcial languages has only been adequate for certain districts, such as those in the capital Dili. Many children living in rural areas have to start elementary school being taught in a language they know nothing of, causing delays in their graduation with many nally dropping out altogether. As I learned of this reality, it made me want to study the situation more.”Now studying for his master’s, Sudo plans to pursue his doc-torate from next spring instead of taking up the option to work for an international organization, like the United Nations or an NGO, in order to gain more experience in his eld. Already having work experience in the development sector as an un-dergrad intern at the NGO, CARE International Japan, and through his current position as a part-time research assistant at the JICA Research Institute, he has chosen to pursue a doctorate to become more of a specialist in East Timorese education.“NGOs may be able to tackle immediate issues through ad-vocacy. Government or UN agencies, on the other hand, can East Timor gained independence in 2002, making it the youngest nation in Asia. The Society of Jesus opened the St. Ignatius of Loyola College there in 2013, to support the edu-cation of children from the country’s poorest families. Sudo, who is currently researching education in East Timor for his master’s degree, rst visited the country as a second-year undergraduate student. It was the summer of 2015, not long after the school had opened. “Prior to enrolling at Sophia University, I attended the Jesuit Rokko Junior and Senior High School. When planning my rst trip to East Timor, I remembered that at Jesuit Rokko our used desks had been donated to schools in that country.”“For that reason, I was able to get in touch with the princi-pal of St. Ignatius College, a Jesuit Father, and he quickly agreed to host my visit. While there, I helped to label books in the school library while getting to know the institution and its students, but at that time I didn’t think at all to get seriously involved with East Timor itself.”Aiming to Become an Education Specialist for the Sake of Local KidsRei SudoEducational Challenges in East Timor24Student
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