Problems of English Education in Japan <Summary and Views>
Problems of English Education in Japan <Summary and Views>
This is a summary and my point of view on a Youtube video titled Problems of English Education in Japan. This video directly talked to what I was wondering about. It made me push my thoughts forward and opened doors to new questions. I’ve written my point of view after each summary of the part.
Japanese suck at at English
>Summary
The biggest reason for this is that there is not much problem living in Japan without using English. However, students learn English for 10 years total including college and there are a number of books and private English Schools. According to the EF English Proficiency Index 2020, Japan scored 487, which is the lowest among other 5 Asian countries.
>My View
I am also not satisfied with the results of Japanese English education. Honestly, I don’t even know where it is heading. Without knowing its goal, it’s hard to say whether it’s successful or not but when I see a lot of Japanese people saying, “ I can’t speak English,” after all the time and effort spent in school, I have to think something is not right.
Textbooks
>Summary
English textbooks in Japan are unnatural and impractical. One big reason is that they are written by Japanese authors, not English Natives.In school, learning English is focused most on grammar and vocabulary and lacks context and real global issues.
>My View
I totally agree with all the points mentioned. On top of that, Japanese English textbooks seem to try to put everything in it; vocabulary, grammar, dialog, Japanese curriculum, social topic, reading, writing, listening, speaking etc. As a result, something with no focus or aim is made. It becomes so textbook; impractical, uninteresting, inauthentic.
Japanese Education
>Summary
Japanese education in general doesn’t require much expression or creativity. The pressure of being correct is strong and students are afraid of being embarrassed in front of their classmates. The learning style is mainly passive in the classroom; teachers speak, students listen. TOEIC, the most common English Assessment in Japan, also focuses on the passive skills, listening and reading abilities, whereas TOEFL and IELTS require all 4 skills of listening, reading, speaking and writing.
>My View
This one is big. This is rooted so deep. Especially with middle school and high school, competition and learning becomes strongly connected. Students start taking tests, and are ranked. This is the secret of having so many students in one classroom. When ranking becomes so important, having “the correct answer” is a priority. Under that circumstance, students will simply go after the correct answer, not generating one on their own. This is how the demand and supply of absolute answers is made. In a system where 1 point of a test score makes a difference between passing or failing, there is no space for something ambiguous as creativity or self expression. There’s less importance, if any, of how the teacher or the student feel about what they are learning. This competition is connected to university exams. Grades do not tell what the students are able to do but more about how well they can compete.
Japanese English
>Summary
Kataka, a way of re-pronouncing foreign words in Japanese, makes it hard for Japanese learners to achieve accurate English pronunciation. Having the wrong pronunciation helps Japanese to feel more afraid of embarrassing themselves. You can see English everywhere in Japan but a lot of it is used incorrectly. Instead of a tool of communication, English is rather thought of as something cool.
>My View
This part, I didn’t agree with so much. I do understand that the Japanese Katakana culture can interfere with learning English but that doesn’t explain why other non-English speaking countries do better than Japan even though they have their own ways of pronunciation. I do agree with the point that inside Japan, English words are used more to attract Japanese rather than foreign speakers.
Teachers
>Summary
In reality, there are a lot of English teachers who cannot speak English sufficiently. A lot of English teachers just get by with what they do and most of the time are not trained or taught how to teach students so that they can use the language. Along with that, Japanese teachers are busy with other work such as club activities, they have little time to develop their professional skills. It’s not rare that you come across a teacher teaching like it’s just a job and plainly trying to get the curriculum done where motivating students to learn more is not the priority. There are passionate teachers around but sometimes good teachers have to choose to teach English because everybody has to learn English despite their own interest.
>My View
Honestly, this is the biggest problem. In this country, teachers who let students into university are more valued than teachers who can produce well in English. In other words, a Japanese English teacher only needs the ability to teach what’s in a Japanese English textbook, which is already mentioned how impractical and non-authentic it is. They can get away with not engaging with anything outside Japan. Now that’s weird isn’t it?
Early English Education Starting
>Summary
To raise the English level of Japan, English education in elementary school is starting but that doesn't seem to be a solution if the way it’s taught remains the same. It could even have a bad effect by interfering with the child's Japanese abilities.
>My View
I do support the idea of educating a global citizen mind at an early age. When you do that, English is inevitable. I believe Japan is successful in elementary school education. The holistic approach enables students to reach a basic academic level. Only a few students get left behind. Competition is not much of a matter and there’s a lot more space for self-expression and creativity there. However, as said in the video, if it just means starting early what happens in middle school, it will be a disaster.
Foreign Teachers
>Summary
Treatments of foreign English teachers should improve. The work term is too short to establish something and creates instability. Salaries often get reseted when you change your job which leads to getting less salary.
>My View
I can imagine it could be hard to build something in just 3 years so yes, environments for native teachers should improve. I do want to point one thing here. Teachers, not just native teachers, need more communication with each other. This, I think, is the biggest reason, native teachers cannot take advantage of their abilities. When this happens the only certain curriculum teachers have in common is grammar and vocabulary. Even if a native teacher changed schools, it wouldn’t be much of a problem if everyone knew what to do. As a side effect, it would certainly help Japanese English teachers to improve their practical English skills as well.
Is English Necessary?
>Summary
With the internet connecting people, globalization is in progress and it’s just a matter of time that people realize its necessity. Currently, Japan makes a lot of money by tourism and improving English can be quite beneficial. Even though Japan has been successful in creating an environment that doesn’t require much English, acquiring global information first hand is important, which is usually in English. On the other hand, not everyone may need English as a tool of negotiation or communication. People who want to improve their English can benefit more by focusing the resource on them instead of having everyone improve English.
>My View
That’s a good question. So far I can conclude that we don’t need it. Maybe in the future, where the majority have to use English to live, then it’s necessary. So far from what I’m seeing, that mandatory 4 to 6 hours a week times 6 years is not for everybody. I agree with the idea of focusing more resources on those who want it. I think it’s more beneficial to develop a system where it becomes easier to have access to those resources or programs when the learner becomes motivated in learning English.
