The Lack Of English Proficiency

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Based on the unit- "Language and Identity"

Samiul Laskar

Candidate Number: 000790-031

Words: Abstract: 291

Written Task: 906

Total: 1197

November 2013

Table of Contents

Rationale

The lack of English proficiency in Japan and how it can be solved without making English the official second language of Japan is the topic of discussion. This task relates to part 1 of the course, as it will be discussing the development and impact of English in Japan. In this blog, the main issue that will be discussed is the quality of teaching in Japan and how such teaching is restricting Japanese people from speaking fluent English. Making English Japan’s official second language will not benefit the country if the quality of teaching is not improved. Instead, it could have detrimental effects on Japan in particular the economy. Whereas simply improving quality of education in English would not be as costly and be more beneficial in improving proficiency in English.

I will discuss why ‘good’ English is needed in the modern world and what impacts this will have on the economy. I am writing an online blog to inform and persuade people on this issue, particularly individuals that think making English the official second language of Japan will solve this issue. I will discuss my personal views on this matter. Making English the official second language of Japan will mean that Japan's government will have to spend increasing amounts of money on various materials such as the training of current and future government officials. There is also a reluctance to adopt English as a second language in Japan because of their rich Japanese speaking history.

Finally, I will discuss how this issue can be solved. I will discuss how to improve the current system of teaching English in Japan and conclude how this is will increase the English proficiency of Japan in a more desirable fashion to the Japanese people.

[291 Words]

English Proficiency in Japan

Today, I was watching a Japanese TV show and I realized something has to be done about English proficiency in Japan. In my opinion, making English their second language will not help. English has become one of the most widely spoken languages in the world after mandarin. It is the native language of more than 350 million people. [1] In recent years, English has become the international language of diplomacy, business, science, technology, banking, computing, medicine, aviation, engineering, tourism, Hollywood films and the best pop and rock music in the world. [2] However, in Japan the level of English proficiency are at extremely low levels. I was surprised to notice that the average score of Japanese candidates sitting for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) [3] ranked lowest among all Asian nations.

Table 1: TOEFL Results [4] 

In 2000, the Japan Prime Minister Keizō Obuchi proposed making English Japan’s official second language. Would this have helped improve English proficiency?

I was reading through a few articles on the internet and I was surprised to find out that an average Japanese person receives five to six years of English teaching throughout their schooling life. [5] The problem with Japan is the quality of teaching. Most of the teachers in Japan that teach English are themselves Japanese and have a poor proficiency of English. If the teachers themselves don’t know how to teach English properly, how are the students going to learn the correct English required?

Perhaps Japan should employ native English speakers from overseas? But that would cost a fair bit of money. However, it wouldn’t cost more than making English Japan’s official second language. If the Japanese government were to that, they would have to spend an abundance of money on various elements in their country. Some of these include: dual signs and documentation (One in English, one in Japanese), the training of current and future government officials, introducing English into all educational institutions and other expenses. Perhaps the best solution would be for the Japanese government to assess the situation and come up with the most appropriate solution. Japan may think that making English their official second language would be more appropriate but in my opinion it would be must easier and cheaper to fix the quality of English by improving the teaching the English in Japan.

A main reason that Japanese Prime Minister Keizō Obuchi proposed to make English the second language of Japan was to stay at the forefront of technology and achieve world-class demands. The economy of Japan is the third largest in the world; it has been around that level for decades. [6] A few decades ago, English wasn’t Japan’s official second language but they still managed to maintain their economy. Even though economy in the 21st century is largely knowledge based and technology driven and most of the documentation is written in English, Japan still manages the third largest economy in the world. If Japan already maintains a world-class economy without English being their second official language what is the point spending huge amounts of money to give English official language status in Japan?

Japan also has a very rich native speaking history. Over 130 million people worldwide speak Japanese and it is the 9th most spoken language in the world. [7] The earliest known evidence of proto-Japanese people dates back to 3CE. Japanese has evolved since then with many dialects being spoken in modern Japan. That’s why there’s a reluctance to adapt English as Japan’s official second language. In Thailand, when the prime minister of Thailand was asked why they have not adapted English as an official second language, the Prime Minister said that people may misinterpret their history and think that Britain was a former colony. The Japanese prime minister might as well as well say the same thing. It’s a good excuse, isn’t it?

As I have said before, there is no benefit in making English Japan’s official second language. The best solution is to improve the teaching of English throughout Japanese schools. There are a few possible solutions to this issue. Since Japan already teaches English for a fair bit of time (five-six years) they have to improve the quality of teaching of English. There are many ways to do this. Either they employ native English teachers from overseas, teach them some basic Japanese and then employ them into schools to teach. This sounds fairly easy while you are reading it, but it will take a lot of time to teach the teachers Japanese, then tell them the curriculum and then pay their wages (which will be a fair bit of money). There is however another method that I believe that will be effective in improving English proficiency in Japan. This will be for the current Japanese teachers improving their own English first before they teach it to their students. There are several methods to this. One method could be exporting the teachers overseas to countries where English is a native language and enrolling them in courses to be taught about English. If they do not want to this, they can try to enrol the teachers in courses in Japan that are taught by native speakers of English.

Japlish as it comes to be called, or Japanese English provides a comical relief to native speakers of the English language. Hopefully one day-when Japanese people learn sufficient amounts of English- they will look back at it and laugh at it themselves.

[906 Words]