Fail: Why Japanese Children Aren't Motivated to Learn English

One day, on two separate occasions, my students asked their teachers to talk with me in English.  In both instances, the teachers told them it was むり (無理, muri), which means impossible.  I chuckled a little at the time because I understood what they had said and was musing to myself that their kids could probably do a better job speaking with me, but this underscores one of the major problems I face as an English teacher in Japan.  Simply put, there is no motivation, positive or negative, for my students to learn English and even I’m hard pressed to argue it’s useful for them.

Before I go any further, I’d like to reiterate that I live way out in the countryside, on a series of islands that is ultimately connected to the mainland by a single bridge.  I could probably count the number of local foreigners, excluding ALTs, on a single hand.  Unlike the big cities, where tourists are a common sight around the holidays, there are precious few opportunities where knowing and using English is necessary or even helpful.  On some level I feel like all my kids understand this, that English is something that, for most of them, will atrophy like it has with their teachers.  On one hand it’s really frustrating, because I know English education has been around long enough that most, if not all, of my teachers learned it at some point.  On the other, I can’t really blame them for being a product of their surroundings.  I’m sure my Japanese, as horrible as it already is, would be effectively non-existent had I remained in the states and had no need to practice it.

This is only half of the equation, though.  Now I’ve established that at least some of my kids (probably a fairly good number actually) have seen that learning English won’t help them much in the long run, save for getting them into the high school of their choice, but I’ll get to that in a bit.  Are there any other factors motivating them to do so, maybe a short-term benefit or some sort of negative consequence of not learning?  Well, I suppose in the short-term they get to talk with me and while I like the idea that my kids are learning English in order to be my friend, I just don’t think that’s the case.  Certainly some of them seem really excited to talk and spend time with me, but not enough that they’re going to raise their grades just so we don’t have to delve into Japanese as often during our talks.

As for any negative consequences again there don’t seem to be any.  The Japanese education system doesn’t fail students or hold them back a grade.  Remember this point the next time someone tells you that Japanese students have a college level education by the time they finish high school.  While it may be true that the curriculum is that advanced, unless the student is really motivated there are probably a few classes they failed horribly and just weren’t penalized in any way for it.  The worst punishment I’ve seen for failing class is a tongue lashing from the teacher, but for English the worst the kid is going to get is sitting with the failing half of the class after a test and being forced to write lines rather than playing some mildly more interesting games in the advanced class.  If you already don’t like or care about English, you probably won’t care which of these classes you’re in either.

Finally, we have high school entrance exams.  While it’s true that English is a requirement on these tests, depending on what school you’re trying to get into you may not need to know any English at all.  I’ve heard that prospective students can pass the English portion of some tests by successfully writing their name on the top of the page in Japanese.  Granted, these are highly specialized technical schools but when you factor in the number of students who are simply going to work right out of junior high and the number who will want or will settle for a technical school, the end result is a good chunk of kids who ultimately will have no need for English.

A Japan Kinda Christmas III: The Night Before Christmas (Ariake JHS Edition)

Last year I bought a copy of The Night Before Christmas to read to my kids.  I knew it was going to be really difficult for them, but thought they’d at least enjoy the pictures in the book and maybe pick out a word here or there.  After reading it to a few elementary classes that listened with rapt attention, I took it to the junior high.  After reading it to my 3rd grade class, my JTE asked me if I could change the words to make it easier, because the students wanted to understand the story.  I was a little flustered.  I certainly wasn’t going to change the story and ruin the rhyme and meter of one of my favorite Christmas poems, and I didn’t have the wit and energy to create a completely different rhyme.  Eventually, however, I compromised and wrote up a simple version of the events in the story.  We started each class by writing and explaining some key words on the board, such as reindeer and sleigh.  Then I went page by page, reading the easy version, then the real one and hoping my students were listening closely to both.  Here, presented in the same format, and color coded for your convenience, is what my kids got to hear:

It was the night before Christmas.

It was very quiet.

There were some stockings by the fireplace for Santa.

`Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there

The children were asleep.

They were dreaming of candy.

Mamma and I had just gone to bed.

The children were nestled, all snug in their beds

While visions of shugarplums danced in their heads

And Mamma in her kerchief and I in my cap

Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap

There was a loud noise outside.

I jumped up and ran to the window.

I opened the window.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter

I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter

Away to the window I flew like a flash

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash

The moon was bright.

I saw a sleigh and eight small reindeer.

The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow

Gave the luster of midday to objects below

When what to my wandering eyes should appear

But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer

I knew the driver was Santa.

They flew very quickly.

Santa said the reindeer’s names.

With a little old driver so lively and quick

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name

Note: I didn’t translate page 6, telling my kids it was mostly the reindeer’s names.  Some of my quicker students were even able to pick a few of them out.

“Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now Prancer and Vixen

On, Comet! On, Cupid! On Donner and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!”

The sleigh flew up to the roof.

There were a lot of toys in the sleigh, too.

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly

When met with an obstacle, mount to the sky

So up to the housetop the coursers they flew

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too

I heard the reindeer walking on the roof.

I turned around.

Santa came down the chimney.

Then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof

As I pulled my head in and was turning around

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound

He had warm clothes.

They were dirty and old.

He opened a bag of toys.

He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot

A bag full of toys he had flung on his back

And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack

His eyes were bright.

His cheeks and nose were red.

He had a smile on his face.

He had a white beard.

His eyes, how they twinkled, his dimples, how merry

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry

His droll little mouth was done up like a bow

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow

He was smoking a pipe.

He had a big face and a round stomach.

His stomach moved when he laughed.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth

And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath

He had a broad face and a little round belly

That shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jelly

He was large.

I laughed when I saw him.

I knew everything was okay.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread

He worked quietly.

He put presents in the stockings and went up the chimney.

He spoke not a word but went strait to his work

And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk

And laying a finger aside of his nose

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose

He got in his sleigh and flew away.

I heard him say…

He flew to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle

And away they all flew, like the down of a thistle

But I heard him exclaim ere he drove out of sight

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night


A Japan Kinda Christmas II: Photo Friday

Christmassy thunder and lightning gods in Kumamoto!

Christmassy One Piece crew promoting CC Lemon drinks!

Kinda Christmassy Ni No Kuni display at Tsutaya!

Yeah, figured I needed to get these out here before holiday themed entries feel entirely out of date. I got one more ready to go though, so stay tuned for part three sometime this weekend.