Dear Language Enthusiast,
Welcome to the Japanese newsletter. As fall approaches, we
are all feeling the pull of the back to school season. Even if we do not have children
boarding the bus, the smell in the air, the change of season and the end of summer
vacation still remind us of school.
That is why we have dedicated this issue to education. We thought you might be interested
in seeing how Japan differs in its approach to education. We believe that knowing about
the culture gives you an insight into the language. We have also included some tips for
JapaneseNow! and Power Japanese users, news about our web site and a new product
announcement. We hope you enjoy it.
Sincerely,
Transparent Language
www.transparent.com
In English:
Sakura saku
The cherry blossom, Japan's national flower, blooms on trees across Japan in late March
and early April. The national news enthusiastically reports the whereabouts of this pink
tsunami as it washes across the land, starting in Kyushu, and cleanses the land with the
hope and beauty of spring all the way to the northern tip of Japan. The cherry blossoms
are not just a national flower. They are a national passion. Thousands of poems and haiku
have been written about these delicate blossoms, called sakura. In the past, the frail
blossoms were a metaphor for the brief but beautiful life of the samurai, and then in
World War II, the blossoms symbolized the soldiers who gave their lives for Japan. In
peace time, they represent the beginning of school year.
Every year, on an April morning, proud parents take pictures of their reluctant children
under the cherry trees in full bloom. On the first day of school, six-year-old children
say good-bye to their innocent childhood, and step into the most disciplined education in
the world, and sakura is always there to witness this bittersweet farewell to childhood.
Once school starts, children are under the heavy pressure of a hard curriculum. Even
Saturdays are not holidays for Japanese students, as most teachers and students go to
school for at least a half day. This one-day weekend continues for six years in elementary
school, three years in junior high school, three years in high school, and four years in
college. Only the first nine years of education are compulsory in Japan, but almost
everyone seems to go to high school today, making Japan the country with the highest
literacy rate in the world.
On the first day of elementary school, young students learn that a very important rite
must be performed: kiritsu-rei-chakuseki, or stand up, bow, sit down. In Japan, students
bow in unison to their teachers at the beginning and end of every class; otherwise class
never starts or ends. As you know, in Japanese culture, bowing is extremely important in
all aspects of society including business, martial arts such as judo and karate, and
family relationships. The first bow to one's teacher of Japanese is the beginning of a
long journey toward the mastery of 50 hiragana, 50 katakana, and 2,000 kanji.
During junior high school, two more things are added to their already packed school life:
uniforms and English. Some people insist that all Japanese should start learning English
earlier so that Japan does not fall behind the international community. In fact, English
education is rather lacking in Japan because it just teaches students how to read and
translate, not to speak English. If you are studying Japanese, you will probably
understand the significant differences between Japanese and English, and you will
understand how the Japanese have to struggle to fill the gaps between classroom English
and conversational English.
Even though Japan is a homogenous and egalitarian society where over 95 percent of entire
population believes it belongs to the middle class, a college education is considered
imperative to get a white-color job. This creates an incredibly harsh competition called
juken-jigoku, or "entrance exam hell." For those who want to go to some of the
top colleges, a normal high school education is not enough. So, special preparatory
schools called juku thrive. The stiff competition creates a great number of ronin. This
word, originally meaning a samurai who has no master to serve, now signifies the large
number of high school graduates who have no college to attend. According to some
statistics, the number of former ronin comprises 65 to 75 percent of the student body at
some competitive universities in Tokyo and Kyoto.
So, do Japanese students study furiously for an entire sixteen years? No. Once they are
accepted to a college, they don't have to study as hard as American students. Finally
their hard years of preparation have earned them some freedom. They start drinking (in
Japan, college students can drink alcohol even if they are legally a minor), and finally
learn what is called shakai-benkyo, or social study, which has a high priority for most
Japanese college students. And that's what society expects them to learn before entering
into the real world. For most Japanese, the most relaxing time in life is usually college.
However, the "dolce vita" doesn't last forever. At 9:00 AM April 1st, just as a
ceremony in April accompanies one's entrance to school, so does an April ceremony mark
one's entrance into the work world. Proud parents may not be there this time to mark the
new beginning, fragile and beautiful as always, but the cherry blossoms are.
Tips for JapaneseNow!
Don't be overwhelmed by a Title! You don't have to work with all the text at once. Focus
on a paragraph, a page, or even a single sentence - however you feel comfortable. For a
quick summary and some background information about any Title, choose Help / Author
Introduction while the Title is open. It's a good way to get an idea of what the text is
about.
Numbers are a handy thing to know in any language. Many Titles contain numbered lists. The
sound for these numbers is recorded, just like any other word, so you can learn to count
out loud in the foreign language by double-clicking on the numbers.
Power Japanese tips:
Take your favorite Power Japanese charts and exercises with you so you can use them
anytime! You can print pages from Power Japanese to study when you're away from the
computer. To do so, choose File / Print Pages and select the printing options you prefer.
You can hold your mouse over many of the underlined words in Power Japanese to see a quick
definition. This feature is handy if you need to quickly refresh your memory of grammar
terms.
Want to test your Language Proficiency?
We have developed online proficiency tests for you to assess your language skills. Go to
http://www.transparent.com/tlquiz/proftest/index.htm
on our web site to see how you do. It's a fast, easy & fun way to get some feedback on
your progress.
