Iwaki High School students experience "Aizu IT Nisshinkan"

On April 24, third-year students from Iwaki High School visited the University of Aizu for a tour of the campus, to receive information on admissions, and to take a sample lecture. For the first time, an "Aizu IT Nisshinkan *1 Experience" was held during this visit to the campus. During this experience-based lecture, University Vice President Shigaku Tei and Professor Shiro Ishibashi gave an explanation of the "Aizu IT Nisshinkan," after which UoA students ran a hands-on lesson on brainstorming.

Participants split into groups of five or six each, and worked to think of ideas related to a theme of "ways to help the community." The UoA students running the lesson gave tips and a demonstration.

The Secret to Creating New Ideas

  • Imagine who are your potential users (age, gender, etc)
  • Try combining multiple ideas
  • Pay attention to creative naming
  • Create an attractive design

Tips for Better Brainstorming

  • Don't reject or criticize the opinions of others but instead work to expand upon those ideas
  • Try to have fun during your group discussions
  • Moderators should try to build an atmosphere where it's easy to share opinions
  • Have someone take down everyone's opinions

While the participants were nervous during their first experience with brainstorming, with advice from the UoA students assisting the session, a lively exchange of opinions soon began.

The participants actively discussed how to convey Fukushima prefecture's appeal, ideas that could lead to post-earthquake recovery, and proposals for foods and other products to introduce Fukushima's special products.
After the lecture, representatives of each group gave presentations. Many new ideas were created during the session, including new special products using Iwaki's marine products, introductions of Fukushima prefecture utilizing IT, and tours to convey the prefecture's appeal.

While the University of Aizu specializes in computers, it has also produced a great number of remarkable new business ideas. Yuichiro Onoue, who took the "IT Nisshikan" course last year, won the Campus Venture Grand Prix (CVG) Tohoku Competition Top Prize and Convention Japan Special Prize.

*1
Aizu IT Nisshinkan: Composed of "Factories for Experiencing Start Up Ventures" on themes to meet local needs. These factories are operated by the University of Aizu, which specializes in IT education, in collaboration with venture companies and municipal governments in the region. Each factory aims to help students to develop solid skills and entrepreneurial spirit by learning the practical production process, such as development of software to meet local needs, while receiving the guidance from managers and engineers in local companies.


Explanations by Vice President Tei (Left) and Professor Ishibashi (Right)


UoA students give tips on brainstorming (Left), Iwaki High School students having a lively discussion (Right)

Examples of Ideas by UoA Students

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