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Kanda Gaigo Group which has been working in foreign language education for Japanese from 1957, has made since its founding an emphasis that "to be able to equally communicate with foreigners, it is necessary to learn not just the language, but also their culture".
In the Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages teaching of practical English, the employment of many foreign teachers has started since the 1970s, and the students were provided with the opportunity to talk with foreigners and have contact to their values. It also conducted overseas language training in Canada and the United States to provide the opportunity of experiencing different cultures through exchanges with local people, in addition to learning the foreign language. On the other hand, the institute also urged the foreign teachers to learn about Japanese culture such as through theater and calligraphy, and prepared the environment to learn the culture for both students and faculty.
We must note that from that time was launched the education policy "culture is the key to open the communication with foreigners". Subjects such as "Literature and Arts" were included in the curriculum of Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages, and it became compulsory for the Japanese students to learn Japanese culture. Also in the mentioned overseas training students were encouraged to bring things like Yukata (Japanese summer kimono) and Judogi (Judo uniform), and to communicate with the local people by introducing the Japanese culture.
In order to pursue the field of education for intercultural understanding, Kanda Gaigo Group established The Kanda University of International Studies in 1987. While including major foreign languages such as English, Spanish, Korean, and Chinese, the University incorporated into its curriculum subjects related to intercultural understanding as specialized mandatory credits. In addition, as a research institution it established "Intercultural Communication Institute" and "The Research Institute for Japanese Studies" with its own budget, and performed research activities and exchanges beyond the framework of a university.
In 1989 Kanda University of International Studies founded ELI (English Language Institute). Currently, about 63 native English teachers belong to ELI as of May 1, 2015, and if the students go to the established SACLA (Self-Access, Communication, Learner Autonomy) lounge in ELI, they can interact with the resident foreign teachers.
Kanda Gaigo Group founded the international training facility "British Hills" in Fukushima Prefecture in 1994. In an environment reproducing a medieval village in Britain, the facility offered services and language training by native English speaking staff. Moreover, in 2008 was established the MULC (Multilingual Communication Center) in Kanda University of International Studies, providing the students with facilities that reproduce buildings in Asia and Latin America. Kanda Gaigo Group has improved environments in which to be able to interact with foreigners and experience different cultures, and has challenged the promotion of intercultural understanding education in Japan.(3/4)