URUMA, Okinawa Pref. -- At first glance, it looks like the typical English conversation school found throughout Japan -- students armed with pencils and notebooks listening to a Western instructor drill them in grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.
But the teachers here in the nondescript building at Camp Courtney are U.S. Marines, soldiers on a mission to provide free lessons to the Okinawan community.
On one evening, the students -- young women, housewives and local businessmen -- chat with several marines under the guidance of a Japanese instructor who hands out practice drills and keeps the class moving along.