Dogs and Demons, Land and Environment

While I was reading Dogs and Demons, I decided to Google Alex Kerr and see if he had any Youtube presence. Sure enough, I found a TEDx presentation he made about the houses he has renovated in the remote area of Iya Valley, on the island of Shikoku. The title of the talk is "Sustainable Tourism".

It's clear from the video, and from reading Dogs and Demons, that Kerr is very much concerned with the environment and with how Japan has modernized. In chapter one of Dogs and Demons, he writes about the state of Japan's construction industry and how Japanese government policies at the local and national levels have promoted an out of control "construction state". He says that Japan's government has no "brakes" for policies that don't work anymore, and although Japan's technology in certain fields has modernized, Japanese people are still stuck thinking like people in a developing nation, rather than a developed nation. Technology has advanced while cultural advancement has lagged.

He asks the question, "What happens if developing countries never become developed countries?" (P29) As proof that the Japanese have not acknowledge their status as those living in a developed country, he writes,

Japan suffers from a severe case of "pave and build" mentality. "Pave and build" is the idea that huge, expensive, manmade monuments are a priori wonderful, that natural surfaces smoothed over and covered with concrete mean wealth, progress, and modernims. Nakaoki Yutaka, the governor of Toyama Prefecture, summarized this attitude when he argued, in September 1996, for the construction of a new railroad line to rural areas, although there was no apparent need for it. Building the new line, he said, "is needed to develop the social infrastructure so that people can feel they have become rich."

In fact, there are some westerners that similarly feel that Japan is richer when they look at construction projects.

In my own experiences traveling around Japan, going to Kagoshima, Kyoto, Osaka, etc., I've found a rather large amount of construction. Although I have at times felt the rivers and streams to be quite odd, to my eyes, I never considered them especially ugly, but that may be because I didn't have a chance to see then before their makeover by the Construction Ministry.

When it comes to Kerr's thoughts on Japan's destruction of nature, I have often felt he was exaggerating. That is especially true when he describes Japan as a land of extremes most accurately portrayed in anime and manga. Although many people in Japan may maintain some rather third-world views of nature, my feeling is that the aesthetic problems Kerr writes about are bad, but not necessarily as bad as he makes them out to be.

However, when it comes to his observations on the government quite mind-boggling. He paints a picture of systemic corruption, crony capitalism, and backwards-thinking. He often compares Japanese policies to American policies, something that he has been criticized for by some people reviewing his book. I agree, partially, that Kerr perhaps uses the US too much as a model for Japan to follow, but I certainly wouldn't defend the policies or corruption within the Japanese government. The issue of crony capitalism is a reoccurring theme throughout the book, and it often mirrors what happens in the US as well.

Perhaps more disturbing is what Kerr writes about when it comes to the environment in chapter two, because it is there where Japan's political corruption becomes most apparent. There have been multiple, infamous examples of the Japanese government and industry working together to cover up incidents of pollution that caused severe damage to the health of many people, turning a blind eye to illegal dumping of waste, simply letting industry off with almost no penalty at all, or even downplaying the severity of certain cases of pollution.

The government and big business colluded to hide the pollution that caused itai-itai disease and Minamata disease for 40 years. In order to hide it, they hired the yakuza to threaten and even injure people that brought attention to the problem. The government took away government grants from professors that spoke out about it. Eventually, victims sued, and had only a tiny victory. The government was found not guilty of any kind of negligence, and only a small group of the people that sued got a tiny award in the case. Again, the theme here is crony capitalism. The "rich country, poor people" strategy employed by the Japanese government at the beginning of the Meiji restoration has continued, sacrificing not only the people's money (through subsidies for wasteful government spending), but also their health and the health of the environment.

Dogs and Demons

Recently I finished reading Dogs and Demons by Alex Kerr. Kerr writes about what he calls Japan's "cultural malaise". While Kerr talks at length about government corruption and ineptness, outdated laws and ways of thinking, failed policies, problems in the educational system, the stagnant Japanese film industry, and the Japanese government's lack of true "internationalization", at its core, Dogs and Demons is a criticism of the Japanese culture itself. Japan's government and citizens, he says, are both stuck thinking like people in a developing country in spite of the fact that Japan has long since caught up to other economically advanced nations. Modern Japan is a land of extremes that is more accurately portrayed in anime (Japanese-style cartoons) and manga (comic books) than it is by the rest of the Japanese film industry.

To a certain extent, I find his observations of the government's relationship with big business to be interesting and perhaps mirroring in many ways the relationship between government and big business in the US. Japanese bureaucrats provide themselves or retired bureaucrats with nice contracts for work in industries that they once regulated is similar to how former bankers have become Treasury Secretaries in the US. The Japanese government's level of corruption and intervention in the economy is perhaps more advanced, but I get the feeling that the US will follow a similar path in the future. There are some influential people like Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman that advocate that the US government increase spending on infrastructure spending using large amounts of debt, so Americans may see the US become a construction state like Japan in the future.

Just the local government letting people know that this nature trail going up Mt. Ponpon is made of concrete.

Although I appreciate the information and opinions he provides when it comes to government corruption, bad policies, etc., while reading Dogs and Demons I often felt that he was probably exaggerating certain aspects like the extent to which the government has paved the countryside with concrete. Of course, I have not traveled extensively around Japan, and I have not had a chance to feast my eyes on something like the Orochi loop highway in Yokota, so I haven't really formed a strong opinion on the matter. I have done some traveling around the Kansai area and even to Kagoshima by Shinkansen, so I have had a chance to see the Japanese countryside, but although I have at times felt that it was a bit ugly, it never seemed to appear the way Kerr portrays it in his book.

Power lines in Kyoto.

 

This picture was taken in Kyoto, near Kinkakuji.

I have to also strongly disagree with his proposed solutions to problems. Given that I am an anarcho-capitalist, it's not surprising that I would disagree with Kerr when he proposes that the Japanese government change their zoning laws to neatly divide certain regions into agricultural land/residential land, rather than allow people to have farms in the middle of residential areas. Instead, I would advocate getting rid of the zoning laws altogether and letting the market decide the best use for different kinds of land. Then again, I'm a bit of a nut!

I'll write more in-depth on what Kerr wrote and give some of my thoughts as well. At this point, I'll say that it was informative, but there are some disagreements I have with Kerr.

今からの挑戦 ・ Challenges from here on out

日本に来る前に、すごくワクワクしていたけど、来た後、何となくそのワクワクの気持ちがなくなった。なぜかといえば、日本に一年間の留学をするためにいろいろ頑張ったけど、その夢を現実にした後、次の挑戦を考える必要だろう。次の挑戦を発見する前に、なんか怠ける気持ちがあった。それに、学校の授業はそんなに面白くないので、勉強する気が出なくて、逆に勉強したくない気が出なかった。なので、「迷っている」という気がした。

でも、もちろん、この最後の学期、卒業する前に、就職活動をしないといけないだろう。それは挑戦じゃないかといっても、あまり面白い挑戦ではない。ただの「挑戦」ではなく、新しい「夢」が欲しがっていたと思う。「英語の先生になるのはマイカの夢なんじゃないか？」といえば、確かにそうだ。僕の夢だ。でも、日本に来た後、一人で考える時間が多くて、結局、一生に英語の先生として働かないということに気づいた。ん、すこし違う。一生、英語を教えることしかしたくないって言ったほうが正確だと思う。実は、「本当の仕事」をしたくないと思う。心の中に、一番求めていることは「自由」だ。ほかの人の意思を従うなんて、僕にとって嫌だ。自由になったら、「本当のマイカ」はついに生まれる気がする。

これからやることはたくさんある。就職活動を成功させて、日本で英語を教える仕事を見つける。就活する同時に、真剣になって、僕の写真撮影と動画撮影の能力、英語を教える能力や日本語能力を上達し続ける。その上、日本に関していろいろなことを研究して、写真と動画と執筆で発見したことを他人に教える。

本当の挑戦は今から。いよいよ、本当のマイカは登場。

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Before coming to Japan, I was really excited, but after I got here, for some reason that feeling of excitement went away. If I ask why, I'd probably say it's because although I worked hard on lots of different things in order to study abroad in Japan for a year, after I made that dream come true, I needed to think of the next challenge in my life. Before discovering the next challenge, I just felt kind of lazy. On top of that, my classes in school weren't very interesting, so rather than feeling a desire to study, I actually felt a great desire to not study. So, I felt "lost".

But, of course, on this, my final quarter of college, before graduating, I need to look for a job. Even if you say that that's a challenge, it's not really an interesting challenge. I wasn't looking for just a "challenge", I was looking for a new dream. "But isn't being an English teacher your dream, Micah?", you ask. That's true, it is my dream. But, after I came to Japan, I've had a lot of time alone to think, and in the end, I realized that I won't work as an English teacher for the rest of my life. Hmm, that's not quite right. It's more accurate to say that I want to do more than just teach English all my life. The truth is, I don't think I want to have a "real job". Deep down, the thing I want most is freedom. To me, following someone else's will doesn't feel right. When I become free, I feel that the "real" Micah will finally be born.

There's a lot of stuff I'm going to do going forward. I'm going to successfully find a job teaching English here in Japan. While doing that, I'm going to get serious about continuing to increase my abilities in photography, videography, English teaching, and Japanese. On top of that, I'm going to research stuff related to Japan, and teach others what I discover through photography, videography, and writing.

The real challenge starts now. The real Micah's time has come.

金曜日の実験はうまくいった ・ Friday's experiment went well

金曜日、友達と一緒に英会話の教室で「本当の会話」の実験を行った。授業を開始する前に、友達は「危険な実験をやってみよう」と僕に言った。友達は自由に話させるのが危険だと思っていたけど、僕は完全に落ち着いていた。あ、まあ、新しいメンバーは２人がいたので、その２人はどうなるかちょっと緊張していた。

とにかく、実験、つまり会話は開始した後、安心して、いい会話ができた。時間のたつが早くて、一瞬のように授業が終わった。その後、友達と感想を交換した。彼は驚いたと言った。一方、Lang-8で英語を勉強する主婦が多くて、僕たちの授業のメンバーは話したがるみたいだったので、僕は驚かなかった。主婦の話す能力を舐めないほうがいいと思う。 笑　（書いた時に、その言葉を女性差別にするつもりはなかったけど、再読したら、そう聞こえるな…笑　まあいいか、そのままにする。）　友達は中学生に英語を教えることに慣れているので、主婦であるメンバーを中学生のように扱っていたけど、主婦と中学生は全然違う。

これから、僕たちは全部の授業が会話中心になろうと決めた。将来に、もっと複雑な会話をしてみるけど、世間話から進める。

あるメンバーは「授業は開始する時、ワームアップとして英語の歌を歌ってみたい」と言ったけど、ほかのメンバーも歌いたいのかな？それは子供っぽくないんじゃないかと思うけど、主婦の考え方と僕のような独身男性の考え方は違うから、どうすればいいのか分からない。

＊＊＊

On Friday, I conducted a “real conversation” experiment in my English class along with my friend. Before beginning, my friend said something to me. He said, “Let's try this dangerous experiment.” He thought that letting people speak freely was dangerous, but I was completely relaxed. Well, actually, there were two new people there that day, so I was a little nervous about how they'd do.

In any case, after we began the experiment, or in other words, after we started talking, I relaxed and had a good conversation. Time went by quickly, and in a flash the class was over. Afterward, my friend and I talked about how the class went. He told me that he was surprised. I, on the other hand, knew that many housewives study English on Lang-8, and it seemed to me that many of the ladies wanted to talk, so I wasn't surprised. I don't think you should underestimate the ability of housewives to talk. Lol (When I wrote that, I didn't mean to sound sexist, but it does sound that way after reading it again. Whatever, I'm leaving it that way.) My friend is used to teaching English to middle school students, so he was treating members of the group, all of whom are housewives, like middle school students, but housewives and middle school students are completely different from each other.

From now on, we decided to make the class conversation-centered. In the future, we'll try encourage more complex conversations, but for now, we'll just start with small talk and work our way from there.

One of the ladies said that she would like to try singing songs as warm up before beginning, but I wonder if others want to sing, too? I think it's kind of childish, but since housewives and dudes like me think differently, I don't know.

英語教育協議会に行った ・ I went to an English education conference

火曜日、兵庫県立大学の英語教育連絡協議会に行ってきた。日本の英語の教育はどうなっているかという理由で、午後に公開中・高・大学の授業を見に行きたかった。一緒に英語教室をしている友達は大学の授業の学生だった。中学校の授業が行っていた時、彼と一緒に座って、少し感想を言ったりした。

鳥帽子中学校の授業を見ていた時、ほとんどの授業時間は「Intake Reading」という活動として、いろいろなランダムの設定された表現を覚えたり、文法を覚えたりすることで使われていたことを僕は気づいた。グループ活動をする前に、教師は「次の活動はメインです」と言って、15分にしたけど、15分だけで「メイン」と言えないじゃないかと思った。他の活動はそのグループ活動の準備だったかもしれないけど、１５分が足りないと思った。

その中学校の授業は本当の会話など含まれていなかった。なので、その中学生たちはコミュニケーションができるかどうか不明だけど、できない可能性が高い。それに、その「Intake Reading」の活動の目標が分からない。ウオーミングアップするためのかな？教師が時間をいつも気にかけていたことに僕は気づいた。いろいろな活動をしたので、しょうがないな。でも、やっぱりコミュニケーションを練習する時間がなさそうだ。

僕は中学校に行かなかったので、アメリカの中学校の外国語の授業と比べられないけど、推測したら、グループの活動はかなり違うと思う。鳥帽子中学校の授業で、学生はグループに分かれて、先に練習した表現で、定数の先生について互いに尋ねた。学生たちは「先生は男性か女性ですか？彼・彼女は○○が好きですか？○○しますか？○○がありますか？」というような質問を相手にした。最後に、「○○先生ですか？」と聞く。その過程を何回繰り返す。

アメリカの中学校だったら、先生より、学生同士に「お名前は何ですか？何が好きですか？何をしますか？」と聞く。そういうことで、文法だけじゃなくて、少しコミュニケーションの練習にもなる。

明石西高校の授業は中学校の授業とかなり違った。ほとんどの授業時間は会話で使われた。でも、２つのテーマがあったため、会話を２つに分かれた。だから、１つのテーマについて深い会話ができなかった。それに、会話の内容も設定されて（例えば、「この物事の賛否について話してください」と言われた）、会話が始まる前に、先生は「一番年下の人から順に話しましょう」と言った。その後、学生たちは英語で先生にグループの考えた賛否を発表した。

ということは、discussionに似ていたけど、そのdiscussionは反対意見とか言って、相手を納得させたり、一緒に問題を話し合ったりされることではなかった。時間がなかったし、学生は順に進んだので、本当の英語のdiscussionと違った。でも、学生たちはかなりうまく意見を発表できたと思う。もちろん、間違いをしたけど、ほとんどの学生の英語が分かった。（少し気になったけど、完成した文章で意見を言う学生はいなかったから、なんか変な感じがした。）　ある学生の英語の発音がハーフか、家庭教師がいるかと思ったほど上手だった。

大学の授業は全部発表だったので、感想を書かなくてもいいけど、全部の「授業」は演出された気がさせた。それに、友達と一緒に中学校の授業を観ていた時に、グループ活動について「あれは日本でdiscussionと言われる。普通な学生はそんなに積極的にしない」と友達は言った。ということは、それらの授業は普通な授業の代表のように見えられない。大学の授業は普通な授業に似ていたと思うけど、兵庫県立大学の英語の授業の発表を見たことないので、分からない。

しかし、中・高校の授業は演出に過ぎなかったと思う。高校の授業の教師はフェースブックで学生に誇りを表現して、その授業が「全くいつも通り」だと言った。それはそうかもしれないけど、本当のdiscussionじゃなかったことが変わらないと思う。でも、彼の学生は英語に興味がありそうだから、教師の使っている教え方がいいところがあるはずだと思う。

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On Tuesday, I went to a conference on English education at my school here. I wanted to see what English education in Japan was like, so I went to see some open/model middle school, high school, and college-level classes. The friend that I teach English with was part of the college-level class. While the middle school class was being conducted, we sat together and talked a bit about the class.

When I watch the middle school class, I noticed that most of the class time was spent on practicing grammar or on an activity called “Intake Reading” wherein they memorized a random selection of words and phrases. Before doing a group activity, the instructor said that the next part was the main part of the class, and then spent 15 minutes on it, but 15 minutes can hardly be considered enough time to be considered “main”. The other activities were likely preparation for the group activity, but I don't think 15 minutes was much time.

That middle school class didn't really include anything like a real conversation. Because of that, it's unclear whether or not the students can actually communicate, but there is a high chance they can't. On top of that, I'm not sure I know what the point of the “Intake Reading” activity was. Maybe for warming up? I noticed that the teacher was very conscientious of the time. I guess since she was doing several different activities she had to be. But, really it didn't seem like there was much time to practice any real communication.

I didn't go to middle school, so I can't really compare the foreign language classes in American and Japanese schools, but if I were to guess, I would say that the group activity would be significantly different. At the Japanese middle school, students were divided into groups and then, using expressions they had just practiced, would ask questions about a set number of teachers. The students would ask each other things like, “Is the teacher a man or a woman? Does he like …? Does he play …? Does he …? Does he have …?” Then at the end, they would ask, “Is it so-and-so?” They repeated that process several times.

If it were an American middle school, rather than talk about teachers, the students would ask each other things like, “What is your name? What do you like? What do you play?” By doing so, they would no only practice grammar, but would also act as communication practice a bit.

The high school class was quite different from the middle school class. Most of the class time was spent on conversation. However, there were two topics of discussion, and the conversations were divided between those two topics. So, they couldn't have any deep conversation about just one topic. On top of that, what they were suppose to talk about was set (for example, they were told to talk about the pros and cons of a certain thing), and before the conversations started, the teacher said, “Begin talking starting with the youngest student.” Afterward, the students presented their groups ideas to the teacher.

In other words, although it appeared to be a discussion, it wasn't something where someone could present a counter argument and convince their conversation partners of something, or discuss a certain problem together or anything like that. Since there wasn't much time, and since the students were told to go in a certain order, it wasn't really a discussion in the English sense of a discussion. But, I think the students were pretty good at presenting their opinions. Of course, they made mistakes, but I understood most of what they said. (One thing that bothered me was that they didn't present their ideas as complete thoughts or sentences, so everything they said felt a little off.) One student's pronunciation was so good that I thought he had an English speaking parent or a tutor.

The university class was just a bunch of presentations, so I don't feel it is worth writing about, but I felt that all of the “classes” were choreographed. Furthermore, when I was watching the middle school students with my friend, he said that what they did is normally called a “discussion” and that students normally don't act so enthusiastically. So, I'd say that the classes can't really be seen as representative of typical classes in Japan. The college class may be close, but since I've never seen an English presentation done at the University of Hyogo, I'm not sure.

But, I don't think the middle or high school classes were anything other than performances. The teacher for the high school class said how proud he was of his students and that it went completely as usual. That may be so, but it doesn't change the fact that what they did wasn't a real discussion, in my opinion. However, since his students seem interested in English, there must be something good about the teacher's teaching method.

英会話のバイト ・ Working part-time as an English teacher

２週間前、英会話のバイトを２つ始めた。１つは教室の中に１０人ぐらいに教えるバイト、そしてもう１つは１対１の英会話だ。今まで、教室に来る人は全員女性だった。１時から２時半までの授業だから、主婦しか来れないな。１対１の英会話を一緒にする人は中国人の男性だ。彼はもう社会人で、ラーソンで働いている。

教室の英会話では、僕がリードしない。大学院生の友達は「先生」のように教材を準備したり、教室を管理する。僕は彼に少しアドバイスやおすすめをするけど、教材のテーマとか、彼に任せる。彼は全然固くないので、先生の雰囲気をしない。それでいいと思う。みんなは英会話で遊びに来るので、「先生」のように見えなくてもいい。

今週の金曜日、少し実験をしてみる。今週まで、ほとんどのクラスの時間は友達の講義を聞いたり、教材で設定された表現を練習したりしていたけど、今週、一緒に会話やフリートークをやってみる。僕はそうしようと勧めした時、友達は少し考えている顔をしていたので、やはり反対しているということで、「どう思う？」と僕は聞いた。彼は中学生に教えることに慣れているので、中学生の態度、つまり、話さない傾向に慣れている。だから、フリートークの時間に、友達は誰も話さない可能性が高いと思っていた。しかし、主婦と中学生は全然違うだろう。前のレッスンに来たメンバーの中に、話したがる人が多かったと思った。もちろん、みんなのレベルは違うので、友達の講義を聞きたい人もいるけど、話したい人がいるので、友達の講義をずっと聞いたら、退屈になると僕は思った。

それで、彼は「会話に対して私が考えている日本人のステレオタイプを変えてください」と言った。今週の実験の効果を楽しみ。

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Two weeks ago, I started two part-time jobs as an English teacher. One of them is a class where I help teach about ten students, and the other one is a one-on-one lesson. Up until now, the people that have come to the classroom have all been housewives. Since the class is from 1 to 2:30, I guess only housewives could ever really come. The person I have the one-on-one lesson with is a Chinese guy. He has already graduated and is working for a company that runs convenience stores across Japan called Lawson.

In the classroom lesson, I don't lead the class. Instead, a friend of mine who is a graduate student at the school I'm going to acts as the “teacher”, preparing learning material and managing the class. I give him a bit of advice and recommendations, but I leave the work of deciding themes for the learning material up to him. Since he doesn't approach the class too academically, he doesn't really give the impression of being a teacher. I think that's okay, though. People just want to come and enjoy speaking in English, so it's okay if he doesn't seem like a real “teacher”.

This Friday, we're going to do a little experiment. Up until this week, most of the class time was spent listening to my friend's lectures or practicing some set phrases that he prepare as part of the learning materials, but this week, we're going to try giving the group more time to just talk. When I recommended we try that, my friend seemed a bit hesitant at first, so I asked him what he thought about the idea. Since he is used to teaching middle school students, he's used to their attitude and general lack of enthusiasm for talking. So, he thought there would be a good chance that nobody would talk even if given the chance to do so. However, middle school students and housewives are completely different. Many of the ladies that came for the last couple of lessons have wanted to talk. Of course, everybody is at different levels, so there are some that would like to listen to my friend's lectures, but since there are people that want to talk, I think that they'll get bored listening to him talk the entire time.

So, my friend said, “Please change my stereotype of Japanese people.” I'm looking forward to see what happens this week.

教師は口を開けないほうがいいか？ ・ Should teachers keep their mouths shut?

世界の中にでも、教師は勉強したくない学生だの普遍的な挑戦がある。勉強する興味がない学生は少なくないだろう。なぜかあることを勉強しなくてはいけないのか分からない学生がいる。他は勉強したいと思っているけど、何となく勉強する方法に足を引っ張られているだろう。あることに興味があったけど、そのことについての授業を取ったら、興味がなくなる学生もいるんじゃないかと思う。とりあえず、勉強の興味不足は勉強の邪魔になる。

じゃあ、教師はどうすればいいのか？ドナルド・フィンケルは「口を開けないで教え方」という本の中に、言うことをやめて、探すことをやってくださいと書いている。講義は本当の勉強に無効だ。学生は先生に依存してはいけなく、先生は学生の期待にかなわないといけないと思うべきではない。他の人から知識をもらわないといけないということを思わないで、自分で知識を探したら、学生は本当の学習ができる。先生と学生と一緒に知識を探すと、すでに持っている知識、経験、考え方などを組み合わせ、互いに学ぶ。人間関係の問題などは明らかな解決する方法がない。しかし、それらの問題を一緒に考えて、解決する方法を探したら、「真の方法」ということを見つからないかもしれないけれど、いろいろな方法や考え方を見つかるんだろう。そうすると、本当の学習ができる。

もちろん、学生が探すために、まず探す興味が必要だというわけで、最初の挑戦に戻る。フィンケルは学生の興味を刺激できる環境の様々な作り方を紹介する。フィンケルの方法は一瞬で勉強をしたくなる学生を作る魔法ではないけれど、彼の方法は学生に勉強を自分に適当にする可能性が高いので、学生の興味を刺激する可能性も高いと思う。

しかし、フィンケルの方法は日本で使用できるのだろう？日本人の学生は彼の方法に合うのだろう？「文化の違い」ということは越えられない壁を立てるのだろう？「日本式」の方法が必要なのだろう？という質問がある。

フィンケルの方法を使用することを邪魔している文化の壁が存在していないと思う。興味不足の学生はどこにでもいるでしょう。日本人の学生のように勉強に興味がないアメリカ人の学生も多い。アメリカで就職しているドクター・Vという教師はフィンケルの方法が学生の興味に必要とするので、自分のブログでフィンケルの方法について反対の意見を言う。「もし学生は興味がなくて、話す気がなく、さらに話す気があっても自分の本音ではなく、他人の意見や本で書いていることを言い繰り返す気しかなかったら、どうすれば口を開けずに教えられるのだろうか？」と書いている。ということで、ドクター・Ｖはアメリカでも勉強に興味がない学生によくあったことがある気がしないか？同様に、勉強に興味がない日本人の学生も多いでしょう。フィンケルの方法はアメリカ人でも日本人でもある問題を取り組む。

日本人の大学生は授業で話せないという噂も信じない。ある兵庫県立大学の英語教師は学生を話させる授業がある。僕もその授業に参加して、学生たちはよく話せるなと思った。その英語教師の方法はフィンケルが勧めている方法に似ている。

フィンケルは「オープンセミナー」という活動について書く。オープンセミナーとは教師が口を開けなくて、学生たちがクラスを管理させてあげる。そして、学生たちは先に紹介されたテーマについて相談する。誰かが教師に質問しても、何も言わない。フィンケルは学生がオープンセミナーに慣れるまでに、学生と教師も居心地が悪い可能性が高いと書く。

教師は何も話さなくて、クラスを管理しなかったら、日本人の学生はどうするのだろう？一時間に黙るか？まさか。誰か話すでしょう。最初に誰か友達にささやいたり、何となく言葉を出したりするでしょう。そして、誰か答える。最初に答えは単純かもしれないけど、だんだん興味深くて複雑になるだろう。学生は互いに意見や情報を交換できるようになる。それで、学習する。

もちろん、いろいろな問題が発生する可能性もある。学生は何もしなかったらどうなるのか？やっぱり話すのは嫌だと思う人がいたらどうなるのか？学生たちは一緒に会話しなかったら、どうやって学習できるのか？

そんなときはフィンケルの他の方法の出番だ。まず、大きいグループで相談する前、教師は学生たちを小さいグループに分かれて相談させることができる。それは大きいグループで話すプレッシャーを下げる。また、学生はその相談の効果で評価されないので、話すプレッシャーはないだろう。強い学生は大きいグループの会話を独占しても問題ない。結局、自分で書いた日記や記事に基づいて評価される。

フィンケルの方法が使われても、何も学習しなかったら、今の教師・講義中心の方法で学習のかと聞かなくてはいけないだろう。学生は勉強に興味がなかったら、何も学習しないんじゃないかと思う。教師は無理やり学生の頭の中に知識を詰めないだろう。それは学生の仕事だ。そして、学生は試験を受けるために勉強したら、試験が終わったら、その知識を忘れるでしょう。一夜漬けで合格できるかもしれないけど、本当に何も覚えないだろう。

しかし、フィンケルの方法のほうは教師・講義中心の方法より、学生が学習の興味を刺激すると思う。教師に目標が決まって、その目標を達成するために引っ張らせられない。学生は自分の目標を決めて、自分のペースで進む。もちろん、教師はある技能を教えたいけど、結局、その技能は学生を自分で勉強できるように準備してくれる。学生は無理やりに学習させられなくて、他人に期待を抱かれなかったら、いつかなぜ自分はその授業を取っているのかと考えせざるを得ない。その時、そのクラスを自分に合わせるか、今の学生のようにさぼったりするだろう。

誰にも目標が決まっていない状況で、内省するのを避け難くなることは教師・講義中心の方法とフィンケルの方法を区別する特徴だと思う。フィンケルの方法で学習は自然だ。教師は植木屋、学生は種のようになる。それは今の工事の組立ラインのような教育制度と比較するだろう。日本人の学生は人間だ。人間は自由になったら、真の潜在力を実現すると思う。

***


Teachers everywhere face one universal challenge: student disinterest. Many students just aren't interested in learning. Some don't understand why they need to learn some things. Others are interested, but something about the learning process seems to hold them back. Some students who have had an interest in something lose that interest once they start taking a class. Whatever the case may be, lack of interest makes it difficult for students to learn.

So what can teachers do? In Teaching With Your Mouth Shut, Donald Finkel says to stop telling and start inquiring. Lectures are ineffective at producing real learning in students. Students shouldn't be dependent on teachers, and teachers shouldn't feel obliged to live up to the expectations students have of them as teachers. Students truly learn once they stop relying on others to give them the answers, and instead seek the answers out themselves. When students and teachers work together to seek answers to questions they have, they pool their knowledge, life experience, and ways of thinking together and enrich each other in the process. Some problems, like those dealing with the human condition, have no clear answer. But, through the process of inquiring together, though they may not find the answer, they will probably find some possible answers, and will also achieve real learning.

Of course, in order for students to inquire, first they must be interested in the inquiry, bringing us back to that universal challenge of student disinterest. Finkel proposes several different methods teachers can use to create an environment suitable to the task of gaining their students' interest. While Finkel's methods aren't a magic potion that will instantly produce classes full of students eager to put on their thinking caps and head to school, I believe his methods are more likely to make the class relevant to them, and thus inspire interest in the subject.

My question is, can Finkel's methods be applied in Japan? Are students willing or able to adapt to the methods he proposes? Do "cultural differences" create a barrier no student or teacher can overcome? Must some other "Japanese" method be used?

I don't believe there is any cultural barrier preventing the use of Finkel's methods. For one thing, the challenge of student disinterest is truly universal; American students are just as likely to be disinterested in a subject as Japanese students. In his blog, Dr. V, a teacher in the US, is critical of Finkel's methods because they rely on student interest to be effective. He writes, "How do you teach with your mouth shut to students that have very little interest in talking, and when they do talk would prefer to simply repeat what was in the book or something someone else said?" It sounds like Dr. V has seen his fair share of unengaged students in American schools. Similarly, Japanese students don't hold a monopoly on being "shy". Lots of American students don't like to talk in class either. Finkel's methods are meant to address issues that are universal to American and Japaneses students alike.

I also don't believe that Japanese students are incapable of discussing things in class. An English teacher at Hyogo University has classes where students talk for most of the class. I've participated in his classes and have found that students were capable of talking in class. That teacher uses methods similar to that suggested by Finkel.

Finkel suggests one class activity called "open seminar". In an open seminar, the teacher keeps his mouth shut and lets the students take control of their own learning by discussing a topic brought up by the teacher. The teacher stays quiet even when the students ask questions. Finkel says that seminars can often be uncomfortable for the students and the teacher alike until the students become accustomed to it.

In a classroom where the teacher doesn't talk or lead the class at all, what would Japanese students do? Will they stay quiet for an entire hour or longer? Not a chance! Somebody is going to say something, SOMETHING! It may start as a whisper between two friends, maybe one student will uncomfortably squeeze some words out her mouth, praying nobody will hear her. Then somebody will hear and respond. The responses will be simple at first (especially if the English skill of the students is low), but they will eventually grow more complex and thoughtful. The students will participate in a genuine exchange of ideas. They'll learn.

Of course, the possibility remains that some other problems will pop up. What if students don't ever become engaged? What if some people just aren't comfortable talking? How will students be able to learn from each other if they don't talk?

That's where Finkel's other methods come in. First, the teacher can break the large group into smaller groups for discussions before bringing them back together. That takes some pressure off that some might feel in large groups. Second, students aren't evaluated based on their participation in class. They are evaluated based on diaries or essays they write about the class. They aren't forced to say anything, so there is absolutely no pressure for them to speak at all. If some strong members of the class dominate large-group discussions, that's okay. In the end, they just need to demonstrate some learning in their writing.

And if the students never really learn anything using Finkel's methods, the question is, would they have learned anything using the traditional lecture/teacher-oriented class format? If students aren't interested in learning, no method can force them to learn! A teacher can't stuff a student full of knowledge--the students have to do that. And, if the students are learning in order to pass a test or otherwise please the teacher, then they will simply forget what they learned after the test is over. Cramming may get the grades, but it doesn't produce any real learning.

However, using Finkel's methods, I believe students are more likely to become interested in learning. They aren't given a goal to reach by the teacher, pulled along at the teacher's pace; the students make their own goals, and they set their own pace. The teacher, of course, would like to teach some skills to the students, but ultimately those skills are meant to help students teach themselves. When students aren't forced to learn, when there are no expectations set for them by someone else, they must eventually ask themselves why they are taking that class. It is at that crossroad in their lives that they either find a way to make the class relevant to themselves, or they'll continue on as students do now.

It's that element of Finkel's method, the self-reflection that is inescapable when nobody is forcing their own goals and expectations on you, that distinguishes Finkel's method from the status quo. The learning is organic--the teachers are gardeners and the students are seeds--and stands in stark contrast to the factory assembly-line style of the current system of education. Japanese students are people, and I believe that when people are set free, their true potential for learning is unlocked.

学期が始まった ・ The Semester has started

兵庫県立大学の後期、エバグリーン大学の秋の学期が月曜日に始まった。今の気持ちは６か月前の気持ちと全然違う。すでに日本の大学に慣れているし、これから、どうするかは分かっているので、全然不安なく前に進める感じがする。

これから、日本語と英語教育の勉強に集中する。なので、異文化コミュニケーションとゼミの授業を取らないと思う。いろいろな英語の本を読まないといけないので、それに専念して、将来英語の先生になるために必要なことを考えながら進む。

今読んでいる本は「日本の権力構造の謎」だ。著者は日本の政治やビジネス界を細かく説明しながら、いろいろな批判をしている。かなり興味深い。できれば、この週末に読み終わって、その本について書こうと思っている。

＊＊＊

The last semester for the year at Hyogo University, and fall quarter at Evergreen began on Monday. I feel different this semester compared to six months ago. I guess I used to the school and feel like I know what I need to do this quarter, so I can keep going without being anxious or worried about anything.

From now on, I don't think I'll be taking the intercultural communications or seminar classes I took last semester. I need to read a bunch of English books, so I'm going to focus on that and move forward while thinking about my future as an English teacher.

The book I'm reading right now is called The Enigma of Japanese Power. The author is critical of Japan's government, business world, etc. and goes into detail explaining them. It's quite interesting. If I can, I'll finish reading it this weekend and write about it.

英語のレッスンの計画 ・ My plan for an English lesson

先週、ボランティアとして、小学生たちに英語を教える二回目のレッスンを行った。だいたいうまくいったけど、ある男の子はあまり勉強したくなさそうなので、困った。その男の子の元気さを生かして、みんなでゲームをするほうがよかったと思った。だから、今週の金曜日のために、ゲームのことを考えた。先生にいいことを教えてもらったので、計画を書いた。次の文章はその計画。

金曜日、最初に、みんなで「Hello」の歌を歌う。

子供から踊りも教えてもらう。(^_^)

次、みんなの名前を英語で書く。

その後、簡単な表現を紹介して、みんなと一緒に声に出して繰り返す：

1. Hello
2. How are you?
3. I'm fine, thanks.
4. What's your name?
5. My name is ***.
6. Everyone
7. Sit down.
8. Stand up.
9. Up
10. Down
11. Left
12. Right
13. Spin around
14. Jump
15. Touch your ***.
16. Repeat after me.

行動も一緒に練習する。僕は例として○○さんに「Sit down」と言って、○○さんは座ったら、意味が子供たちに分かりやすくなる。○○さんに合わせて、みんなでする。

次、みんなでHead, Shoulders, Knees, and Toesという踊りをする。

次、Simon Saysというゲームをする。知っている？ある人は「Simon says」とある行動を言って、

他のみんなはその行動をするゲーム。例えば、○○さんは「Simon says 'Everyone, touch your toes!'」というと、子供たちは自分の足指を触る。「Simon says 'Asuya, sit down!'」、「Simon says 'Leo, Jump'!」、「Simon says 'Soutarou, touch your eyes!'」ということを言ったら、みんなは座るか、跳ぶか、目を触る。いいポーズをしましょうということを励ましたら、みんなは楽しくすると思う。

みんなはそのゲームをしながら、僕は写真を撮って、ゲームが終わったら、みんなに写真を見せる。一番いいポーズが入っている写真を、みんなと一緒に選択する。

時間があったら、「感情」の単語を紹介する。

1. Happy

2. Sad

3. Mad

4. Surprised

5. Afraid

6. Disgusted/sick

***

Last week, I had my second lesson as a volunteer teaching English to elementary school kids. It went well overall, but there is one boy that has a hard time focusing, so it was a bit of a problem. I thought it would have been good to take advantage of his energy and play games with everybody. So, for Friday this week, I thought about games. I was taught something good, so I decided to write my plan for this week.

On Friday, we'll begin by singing a song called "Hello".

We'll also learn the dance from the kids.

After that, we'll introduce some simple expressions and repeat out loud together.

1. Hello
2. How are you?
3. I'm fine, thanks.
4. What's your name?
5. My name is ***.
6. Everyone
7. Sit down.
8. Stand up.
9. Up
10. Down
11. Left
12. Right
13. Spin around
14. Jump
15. Touch your ***.
16. Repeat after me.

We'll also practice the actions together. As an example, I'll say "Sit down" to my assistant and then the assistant will sit down, making it easier for the kids to understand what to do. We'll follow the assistant's lead and do the exercise together.

Next, we'll do the "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" song and dance together.

Next after that, we'll play a game called Simon says. The assistant will say "Simon says" and then some action after that, at which point everybody else does the action. For example, if the assistant says, "Simon says 'Everyone, touch your toes!'", then everybody will touch their toes. If the assistant says, "Simon says, 'Asuya, sit down!'", "Simon says, 'Leo, jump!'", "Simon says, 'Soutarou, touch your eyes!'", then everybody, or the one whose name is called, will do that action. I think it would be fun if the kids are encouraged to make interesting poses while playing the game.

While everyone is playing the game, I'll take pictures, and then once the game is done, I'll show everyone the pictures. Together we can choose which ones we think are the best.

If there's time, we'll also introduce emotions.

1. Happy

2. Sad

3. Mad

4. Surprised

5. Afraid

6. Disgusted/sick

英語を教える冒険 ・ My Adventures in Teaching English

金曜日、僕はボランティアとして小学生たちに英語を教えた。二週間前、僕のゼミの先生はこのボランティアの機会を紹介してくれたけど、一週間後に子供に教えるようになるなんて考えなかった。

早かったので、早く準備しないといけなかった。子供に英語を教えたことがないので、教える方法とか、子供の注意を引き続く方法とかを調べた。でも、子供たちはどんなに英語が分かるのか知らなかったので、準備は難しかった。子供を知るようになるために、最初のレッスンでみんなの好きなことを聞いて、ゲームや歌もした。やっぱりゲームは一番楽しくて勉強になった。

一般的に、この子たちに教える目標は二つある。一つ目は英語を紹介して、英語を勉強する情熱を発見させたい。もちろん、みんなは英語が好きで、情熱に勉強するわけないけど、そういう子がいたら、その子を支援して、勉強する時間を楽しくしたい。僕はこの子たちの初めて会った外国人かもしれないので、外国人に対していい第一印象をしたい。

その二つ目の目標はアメリカの英語の発音を教えること。学校で子供は文字の書き方や文法を勉強するので、そんなことを教えたくない。今、僕しかできないことは発音や簡単な単語や簡単な表現を教えることだ。子供は学校でアメリカ人のＡＬＴや先生がいない可能性が高いので、正しい英語の発音を聞く機会が少ないと思う。それに、カタカナの英語の発音は違うので、早くいい発音を教えたらいいと思う。例えば、バナナとbananaの発音は違うので、その意識をさせた。

最初のレッスンはよかった。何となくうまくいって、いろいろなことを知った。やっぱり子供の注意を引き続くのが難しい。みんなはポケモンが好きだ。レベルが予想以上に高い子供はいたけど、まだ数字とかあまりできなかった子もいた。僕の話をあまり理解できなかった。

今週は休みなので、準備する時間がある。頑張らないと！

＊＊＊

On Friday, I taught English as a volunteer to elementary school kids. It's crazy to think that two weeks ago, my seminar teacher informed me of this volunteer opportunity, and then a week later I had my first class.

It happened so fast, so I had to prepare fast. I've never taught kids before, so I need to look up methods for teaching kids, keeping their attention, etc. However, I didn't know how much English they understood, so preparing was difficult. In order to get to know them, for my first lesson I asked them what things they like, and also played a game and did some songs. As I thought, games were the most fun and educational.

In general, I have two goals for teaching these kids. My first goal is to introduce English and help the kids find a passion for learning English. Of course, not everyone will like English, and won't study it passionately, but if there is a kid like that, I want to support him/her and make studying English fun for them. I might be the first foreigner that these kids have met, so I want to make a good first impression as a foreigner.

My second goal is to teach American English pronunciation. In school kids learn how to write letters and they learn grammar, so I don't want to teach stuff like that. Right now, the thing that only I can do is teach them correct pronunciation and simple vocabulary and expressions. There is a good chance that the kids don't have an American ALT or teacher, so they probably don't have very many chances to hear correct pronunciation. On top of that, katakana English pronunciation is wrong, so it's best to teach good pronunciation early. For example, the pronunciation for バナナ and banana are different, so I want to make them aware of that.

The first lesson was good. It went well somehow, and learned a lot. Keeping their attention was predictably difficult. Everybody likes Pokemon. There were some kids that were higher-level than I expected, but there were also some that had difficulty with numbers. They couldn't understand most of what I said.

We have a break this week, so I have some time to prepare.

"Open" and "Closed" Classrooms

I said in my previous entry that I consider Brian Bresnihan's classroom environment to be "open" and explained that in one sense, it is "open" because students are free to disagree, to be "impolite". It is open in another sense as well that will be easy to understand if I compare his classroom environment to other "closed" environments.

A typical lecture-hall classroom.

Students studying English. They are creating a story on the fly.

A student concentrating intently on what another student is saying.

After 20 or 30 minutes creating the story together, the students write the story down, adding their own ending.

I wonder what she's writing?

The lecture hall above is probably familiar to many students in college across the US. While I have no pictures of a high school classroom, from what I've seen depicted in countless school-life anime and have confirmed with college students in Hyogo University, in middle and high school, students just sit in front of the teacher, stare, and listen to him/her talk. There is little student-teacher or student-student interaction in-class. Class participation for most students consists of showing up and staying awake. This might sound familiar to many American students because many classrooms in the US are the same.

Now look at the picture of the students sitting a circle, creating a story in English together. Where are they looking?

This week, I had a very enlightening experience. In a seminar-style class, I gave a presentation in Japanese about a book the class had read. At the end of my presentation, I did something I expected nobody else in the class would do: I asked questions. They weren't just simple yes/no questions; they were open-ended questions. As I suspected, my classmates didn't rush to be the first to answer. My attempt to create a more Evergreen-style seminar environment quickly failed. The teacher predictably asked some students directly to try answering the questions I asked.

Then something interesting happened.

The students, responding to my question, looked at the teacher and sheepishly answered the question. The teacher told several students to look at me since they were answering my questions. Some found it very difficult to do, and most of the time only looked down or stared into the distance, occasionally making eye-contact with me (or more often, with the teacher).

While I've met some 20-something year-old students in the US that had difficulty expressing themselves in large groups, I've never been in a classroom where the students felt so unusual discussing a topic with each other. American students, in my experience, are generally ready to give their opinions on just about anything, even if they know little about the topic. The way the students acted was how I would expect young kids to act, not adults having an adult conversation.

My presentation plus two questions took up the rest of class, so my presentation partner didn't have a chance to do her part. While my presentation was probably three times longer than other presentations in the past, the fact that so little class time was provided for the activity says to me that the teacher was unprepared for any class discussion. As Rohlen said in Japan's High Schools, students and teachers alike are not very experienced with class discussion. While the ゼミ (seminars) at Hyogo University were described to me as "Evergreen style seminars", they don't even remotely resemble any seminar I have been part of at Evergreen.

Polite Society and the Classroom in Japan

I've been in Kobe for two months now, and every week I have participated in the Tuesday afternoon English classes that Brian Bresnihan teaches. On Tuesdays, he teaches an advanced English class, and then a seminar class which is also advanced. I've observed the way he teaches and how students react to the class assignments, and I find his classes to be much more "open" than classes taught by Japanese teachers.

Students are talking and recording their conversation on their smartphones.

Students are talking and recording their conversation on their smartphones.

After recording their conversation, they were asked to transcribe the conversation.

What do I mean by "open"? For homework yesterday, students read a certain passage and discussed the passage in pairs. The topic was about politeness. The passage said that some people think that politeness means letting others do whatever they want, but such a way of thinking is wrong. Sometimes we must upset individuals or whole societies. While discussing that passage with a student, we talked about politeness in classrooms.

In Japanese culture, generally people tend to follow the will of a group, which is normally the will set by one member who has seniority, authority, or the respect of the rest of the group. This behavior is first learned in classroom environments where classroom presidents/leaders are selected and teachers enforce school policy by encouraging classmates to monitor and "correct" each others behavior. Students learn that it is difficult to disagree with a group because they may be bullied or ostracized by the group. Instead, they conform. This is where the forming of honne (one's real opinion) and tatemae (one's public, "safe" opinion) first begins and continues into adulthood.

Upsetting a group is considered "rude", and reaffirming the group's position is considered "polite". If one upsets the group, one upsets the "harmony" of the group, the 和 (pronounce "wa") of the group. Japanese leaders promote group harmony starting from the classroom all the way to national politics. Thus, one can say that Japanese society is "polite" society, otherwise the harmony of society is disrupted.

In that context, the passage students discussed yesterday implies that sometimes the "harmony" of a group needs to be disrupted. One student said that she thought that American society is better in this way because it is more "open", whereas Japanese society was more "closed". Although she thought it was important for people to be polite, she believed that being true to oneself is more important. In other words, she doesn't like the honne/tatemae culture.

I explained what the author of the passage was saying to one student who didn't understand and then I asked how she felt. She agreed. I mentioned that disagreeing with a group is difficult, using the example of the classroom environment. She said that it was hard and that there is bullying in classrooms related to being "polite". She said that she had a friend that was trying to bully another student, but that she stopped her from doing it. Although it was hard at the time to upset her friend, in the end it had a positive outcome. Upsetting individuals or groups is hard at the time, but in the long-term, it is better for someone to be upset.

So in the sense that one is free to disagree in the classroom environment in Brian Bresnihan's class, it is "open". However, there is another sense in which is it open, but that is more easily understood by comparing it to a "closed" classroom environment, which I'll write about next.

Japanese Higher Education as Myth

Brian McVeigh's Japanese Higher Education as Myth paints a bleak picture of universities in Japan. He writes about an educational system that has "been designed for the catch up phase of Japan's development--structured to produce a large number of workers of a standard quality and to emphasize the selective function of examinations" (page 46) With education thoroughly in control of the government, in concert with large businesses, perverse incentives are created for students, teachers, and administrators alike to engage in what McVeigh calls "simulated learning". He writes, "Examinations have their effect [of linking nationalism, statism, and capitalism together] not so much because students are tested on the specifics of Japanese nationalism, statism or capitalism.... Instead, the practices of preparing for and sitting for examinations function as a testament of one's loyalty" (page 87), and Japan's system of education is entirely centered on examinations. Worse yet, the horrible truth is that there is little hope for any true reform.

Politics and crony-capitalism play a lead role in creating the examination-oriented education system in Japan. As a result, students don't learn how to learn, they learn how to take tests. When they begin going to university, they are freed from the examination hell of their high school years, but continue the bad habits that they have spent nearly their entire lives learning in government schools. Teachers, recognizing the role of universities as not places for education, but for preparing students for entering the workforce, see little benefit in actually changing the way they teach. The corruption within the system of higher education in Japan caused by political and business interests is reflected in the bored and apathetic stares of students, in bullying, in the frustration of teachers with the students and administrators, and the low standards administrators have for receiving passing grades. Students, teachers, and administrators feel the gaze of government officials and employers alike, and are forced to conform to their desire for moral citizens and hard workers, not thoughtful citizens and innovators.

While reading this book, I was reminded of a TED speaker named Ken Robinson. He has given several extremely popular talks about education in the industrialized world and how it kills creativity in children, is based on creating good workers in an industrialized society, and doesn't allow children to learn and grow organically. He says in his TED talk entitled Bring on the learning revolution!, "Many of our ideas have been formed not to meet the circumstances of this century, but to cope with the circumstances of previous centuries." He later says that we are hypnotized by certain ideas about education and that we need to "disenthrall" ourselves from them. He says that we have a fast-food model of education based on standardization, and that instead we should see education more like farming. Humans are organic. We don't grow all at the same rate at the same times and do the same things. We need to revolutionize our educational system and create an environment that is not linear, but instead creates the ideal circumstances for children to grow in their own way, in the same way a farmer creates the right circumstances for his crops to grow, although he can't force them to grow.

Everything that Ken Robinson says that is wrong with the US's educational system is magnified and taken to its logical extreme in Japan. Many times I saw parallels between the American system and the Japanese system, but the intensity of the problems in the Japanese system are magnified to a frightening degree.

After reading Japan's High Schools and Japanese Higher Education as Myth, I feel like I need to learn more about modern circumstances and ask Japanese students, teachers, and former teachers alike about the system. I need to formulate some questions to ask so that I can draw out some honest answers.