My Japanese lessons generally include practices to develop skills of speaking, reading, listening, writing, interacting and constructing and performing students’ own dialogues by pairs/groups or by oneself. The learning include the language and cultural skills to be used in travelling or living/working in Japan and general understanding upon Japanese culture. For speaking practice, I sometimes uses pictures, information, concepts/ideas or topics from the brochures of Japanese newspapers, the ads, Nichigo Press and other Japanese monthly magazines.

For Hiragana teaching, I use flash cards of Hiragana words and the pictures that the words signify. A big set of flash cards, “Hiragana 48 Minutes” is always used during the course to hep students make connections with each Hiragana letter and the pronunciation of the letter with an example of any well used word in English which has the very similar pronunciation to the one in Hiragana.

 

Magazines and fairy tale stories of children are also used for Hiragana reading, grammar (including differences of use of particles, -wa and -ga) and value/culture teaching. Most of the weekly homework given (exercise sheets) is for script learning and writing that are with Japanese words, name or simple sentences plus pictures.

For traveler’s Japanese, I use a textbook with its cd, which has vocab for traveler’s needs and survival skills in Japanese society and traveler’s situations based dialogues. Situations and function used are esp. for self-introduction (including the introduction of one’s family), shopping, at restaurants, at railway stations, and making bookings for hotels/ryokans, asking the way on a road, etc.

 

 

Regarding news on Japan, NHK TV news (shown on SBS) recently reported how much whole Japan was in one of the highest and hottest anticipations and euphoria for its soccer team to win the World Cup in Russia, though eventually the team lost to Belgium.

Prior to the above match with Belgium, some companies even finished their business/working hours early, so that the staff could go home and watch the match that was broadcasted during the middle of the night. Some other workplaces began working hours early and finished early. After the defeat to Belgium, so many were in a totally sad state and were crying (even the players of the team too).

On the radio, 2GB, Sydney, a radio program presenter praised the above Japanese team that he had heard that after the team had finished everything and left the used room for the match in Russia, the room was totally and impressively clean/neat. I thought it is typical Japanese. Even being at a defeated situation, they ensured they were learning, disciplining and humbly appreciating for the opportunity they could have fought best in their capacity, enjoyed and experienced/realized their best record as the Japanese soccer team in the World Cup. Partly very samurai-minded, again in my view!

Nihon -no chiimu, omedetoo gozaimashita. (Congratulations to the Japanese team!) Sugokatta desu ne. (It was tremendous!)

 

The following is a bit old news, but it must be interesting report, so I mention it.

It is from Nihon-keizai-shimbun, i.e. Nikkei, evening newspaper of 18.5.18, p. 1.

It says Japanese, 30 big corporations from the industries for domestic products (ones used at homes), ones used for cooking, foods, pharmaceutical products, cosmetics, etc decided in agreement to use the sales methods esp. for overseas tourists, as their innovative approach. That will provide tourists full information of each product in other languages. The new method will explain details of products in English, Chinese and 2 other foreign languages, from this summer onwards. The step to be taken to use this will be: overseas tourists can download the particular application concerned and take the picture of the bar code and connect to the language preferred by the tourists. Tourists will be able to read various information and instruction in their language. That will include ways to use the products, ingredients of foods or any other relevant products, allergy and calorie related information and medical components.

The industries as the network, is intending to apply such similar method to their products which will be exported to overseas market in future as well.  –  Excellent innovation as a whole.

 

Also, above newspaper (p.1) states the following report from the government agency that in the past 3 years, the graduates from universities in Japan recorded the 3 years’ continuous rise of employment figure in April this year. That is, 98% of university graduates got employment. (Japan has the 2^nd biggest number of universities in the world, after the US.)  The lowest employment record for university graduates during the last decade was in 2011, which about 91%.

 

The article says the number of university graduates who got employed earlier this year was 419,300 that was 3,200 more graduates than last year.

 

As other things related to the above topic, normally in March, all organizations conclude their new recruitment decisions. Then, at the start of April, all new full-time employees attend the ceremonies at their organizations; ceremonies are called nyuusha-shiki 入社式; likewise, formal ceremonies, nyuugakushiki 入学式are held for all new students and pupils for their new enrolment ceremonies at the schools and universities national wide!  Japan is an expert of consistency for things and practice that if they regard as important, worthy, meaningful, necessary, honourable, universal value added, and high motivation and trusting relations creating, they will stick to that by their maximum efforts, wisdom, intelligence, energy (genki), nature of cooperativeness, patience, creativeness, passion and belief for group-nism, and value for community’s benefits.

 

The earlier mentioned newspaper says that the data collected from all high schools around the nation reported that at the end of March this year, as for employment record of high school graduates, it was 98.1% that was 1% increase than last year. That is continuous increase of employment of high school students in the last 8 years. That is great news that Japan should be happy with. And that continuous upward trend of employment of such youths is the first time since 1991.  –  In particular, due to the US President’s recent, big, very unpopular import tax rise to major trading nations, including Japan and its major corporations that have been heavily/extensively exporting and investing to the US markets and economy, there are deeply concerned sentiments in the society and industries, however, the above “happy” reports and analysis are really great and should be noted.   –  Congratulations.

 

Toshiko Jackson (Japanese teacher), 6 July, 18