Body Language in Japan

                In Japan, body language plays significant roles on communicating with others, especially facial expression, eye contact, and indicating behavior. Sometimes, body language shows people’s real feelings, and it is possible to make people uncomfortable if you use body language incorrectly. Japanese are very sensitive to their attitudes and behaviors; body languages.

                The most important body language for Japanese is facial expression. For example, in case that you are talking with a customer at your working place, you are required to keep your smile and eye contact with them. Even though you are waiting on the customer with good hospitality, such as polite wordings and behaviors, the customer might be unpleasant to you without your smile. Also, eye contact shows your interest and respect for person who you talk with, so it makes them relieved and credible. These days, because Japanese are not likely to show their facial expressions while communicating with people, some company or working places have focused on having employees keep their smiles and eye contacts with customers. It is no exaggeration to say that facial expression gives people your impression and personality.

                Secondly, there are some behaviors that people can understand our real feelings. For instance, when people tell lies, they tend to look at the lower right, stare at anything, scratch their heads, or bite their lower lips. Another example is folding their own arms, putting their hands in pocket, and crossing the other legs frequently. These behavior shows people have no confidence or feel uneasy. It is possible to expose your hidden feelings by doing these behaviors without being aware, so you have to be careful to use body languages.

                In short, facial expression, eye contact, and indicating behavior are considered as one of the most important body languages in Japan. Body languages are more honest than languages.

My major;English

                   My major is English, and there are some reasons and advantages to choose this major. Then I would explain about my major.
First of all, the reason why I chose English as my major is that I would get a good job involved in English. Actually, my university in Japan is foreign language university, so I have no choice to decide the major that I want to learn except for language. However, my university is proud of the highest employment success rate of airplane business. I'm not sure which job I want to get in the future, but I am interested in some jobs, such as airplane business and hotel business. It is necessary for us to acquire English skill in order to get these jobs, so I chose to learn English professionally.
Second, I think my major is a good fit for me because I like to study foreign language rather than Japanese. Since my childhood, I have admired those who speak English fluently as a cabin attendant or interpreter. Even now, they make me motivated to improve English skill whenever I see people speaking clearly.
Third, as I learn English, I found learning Japanese is the most essential subject even though I want to learn English. For example, I don't like to read Japanese books and newspapers, and I have no knowledge and vocabulary in Japanese, which cause me bad influence to learn English. In addition, it is totally different how to pronounce Japanese and English, so it takes long time to get accustomed to listen and speak English perfectly. Then I have difficulty in improving my skills more.
Lastly, it is hard to get a job by only learning language professionally, but I hope mastering English let me access to success my future. If I perfect my English skill, will have greater choice to find a job, such as a travel industry, a teacher, a registered customs specialist, a interpreter, and a translator beside the company involved in airplane and hotel. Then I would like to learn other language like Spanish and Chinese, and learn about hospitality and servicing later.
In short, my major, English, helps me access to get a great job that I'm interested in, so I would try to master English enthusiastically and find the best job for me in the future.

Western Culture in Japan

                 My country, Japan, has been influenced by western culture especially in respect of food, music, and fashion. Western influences that Japan has been affected bring positive and negative impacts.
The biggest effect in Japan from western culture is food. For instance, there are many restaurants where serve American and Italian food in Japan, such as hamburger, pizza, pasta, and so on. Especially, fast food restaurants has been increasing these days. Not only are fast foods tasty and low cost, but also they help us save time to eat food. That's why fast foods are prefer by wider generations from children to businessmen who don't have time enough to eat food. Despite of these advantages and population, they causes bad influence to our health. Fast foods and almost all of American foods have high-calories, much sugar, and salt in comparison to Japanese foods. Then as many Japanese tend to eat American foods frequently, the population of obesity is increasing. Therefore, people should think over about foods and health.
Second, western music has affected Japan. Recently, some Japanese tend to prefer listening to western musics to listening Japanese musics. Although many remarkable singers is playing an active part in Japan, it is no exaggeration to say that western musicians are more popular than those of Japanese. Japanese like to listen to and perform western musics and dance with them in clubs, parties, and concerts, such as R&B, Hiphop, country music, and jazz. Also, there is a tendency for some Japanese singers compose and sing songs that imitate western musics. While it is positive for Japanese and Western countries to spread various musics, however, effect of western music led to decline the population of Japanese music.
Lastly, Japan has been influenced on western fashion. For example, there are many clothing shops imported from western countries in Japan. Also, lots of fashion magazines has been picking up western fashions, and some Japanese brands are imitating these fashions despite of the original concept of the brands. As a result, the number of people who are interested in western fashion is increasing. I also like western fashion rather than Japanese fashion, so it is good tendency to import and make a reference them. However, I think it is also important for Japan to sustain and be proud of originality by itself.
To sum up, foods, music, and fashion are the things that Japan has been affected by western culture especially. There are some advantages and disadvantages to introduce western culture, so Japan has to think over how to improve and how to be more international in the future.

Lack of Education in Japan

Lack of Education in Japan

                My country, Japan, has had problem about lack of education for a long time. I think there are several way to fix this issue.

First of all, most students lack of education of Japanese, which is the most important subject for Japanese people, so we should change to educate Japanese to students. Despite of our own country, some Japanese people tend to have poor Japanese skills. Few people tend to read books and newspapers, few people can’t speak Japanese correctly, and some people don’t know various words like phrases and proverbs; lack of vocabulary. The lack of Japanese affects all us when we learn the other subject, when we talk others especially with older people, and when we get a job in the future. For example, it’s effective way for student to have them to read books or newspapers everyday and write essays and summarizes about that. In addition, students should be educated how to use honorifics correctly.

Second, most people is lacking of other important skills like foreign language and scientific subject. English is the universal language in the world, some Japanese companies has been requiring person who is good at English, so learning English is one of the most important thing for Japanese. However, it seems that Japanese are not good at English. Japanese pronunciation is totally different from English, so it is very difficult for us to improve English pronunciation. Also, there is no opportunity to speak English in Japan unless we try to get such a chance independently. Then some employees often have difficulty in communicating with foreigners in Japan. Because of these disadvantages, I think all elementary school should introduce English education more actively. Moreover, scientific subjects like science and mathematics is also very important subject for people. Because of difficulty in learning these subject, some people give up to learn that including me. However, scientific subject is actually necessary to develop of logical thinking, so schools should improve these subject to teach students more.

In addition to improve important subject, Japanese schools had better to increasing school hours. For example, they should have classes on Saturdays and reduce the term of long vacations. Unless students have school, and they are forced to study, they tend to never study by themselves. The more opportunity to study students have, the more effectively they can learn.

Finally, Japanese schools ought to change systems to evaluate teachers in order to improve their quality. Nowadays, there are many criticisms and dissatisfactions toward quality of teaches in Japan. Originally, teachers can be teach students until compulsory retirement once they get teacher’s certificate. Then schools should investigate about evaluation of teachers periodically, and they should be fired in case that there are many bad evaluations.

In short, although the luck of education is one of the most serious problem in Japan, there are some effective ways to improve. Then Japanese schools have to think over how to change bad situation about education in the future.

Kana Kawakita

The Thing I Want to Change in My Life

                If I could change something in my life, I would like to be tall. If I were tall, I could do something that I can`t do actually, and my life would be happier. There are several reasons why I think so.

First of all, I could have less difficulty in doing something if I were tall. For example, I often have difficulty in taking something on a tall shelf. I always have someone take such things instead of me in this situation, so I can`t help troubling others. Also, when I worked at a restaurant and a drug store, my short height was very inconvenient. Although I didn`t have them help me, some co-workers often helped me. Every time others help me, I am filled with feeling sorry toward them.

Second, I could enjoy some hobbies and sports if I were taller. Actually I have wanted to learn volleyball since I was a child, but I gave up playing it because of my height. Some friends told me that it is difficult for me to play volleyball, so I played other sports unwillingly. However, playing other sports like softball and badminton is also hard. In addition, although fashion is one of my hobby, I can`t enjoy fashion satisfactorily with my short height. I want to enjoy wearing various clothes more, but some clothes can`t match for short people like me. If I were taller, I could wear every clothes I want to wear. Also, I can`t help wearing high heels every day because many people often make fun of my height. In order to hide my real height, I sometimes wear extremely high heels like 12 centimeters.

Third, if I were taller, I would like to be a cabin attendant in the future. I like to travel by airplane and talk with people. I actually wanted to study English for airline business, but it is hard for small women to be a cabin attendant. Then I gave up my dream in the future.

In short, being tall has more benefit and helpfulness for people to enjoy their life than being short, so I would like to be tall if I could change my life.

The important test to get a job

Kana Kawakita

10/22/14

The important test to get a job

                In my country, Japan, it is important for getting a job to take the TOEIC, which is very profitable and essential test to get a job. The TOEIC is a shortened form of “Test of English for International Communication“. This is a test common throughout the world that we are evaluated our communication skill in English extensively. This test includes listening and reading sections, and in about 150 countries, people have taken it. This is evaluated from 10 to 990 point, and the score we have to get in order to find a job is different each kind of the job. In general, we need to get at least 600 to 650 score in Japan. The higher company you get, the higher score you are required to get.

Then, I have taken is two times before, and I have some effective ways to get higher score.

First of all, doing shadowing, reproduction, and dictation is very effective to improve listening skill. The shadowing is a practice you repeat to read aloud by following English sentences while listening so that you get accustomed to listen English and pronounce fluently. In this practice, it is important to follow the native speaking rather than to attach importance to complete sentences grammatically. The reproduction is a practice you repeat to read aloud same sentences perfectly after you listen to English sentences. You need to make and read aloud sentences grammatically correctly in this practice. Then, the dictation is a practice you white down all of the sentences after you listen to English sentences. It is good way for me to follow these steps in this order when I listen to a news or lecture. By continuing these practices, you can improve not only listening skill, but also information-gathering capacity.

Second, you had better to reading as many books as possible to improve skills of reading and grammar. The more books you read, the more skills you can get, such as reading quickly and learning some new words and grammars. Also, it is necessary to see how long you read all articles because you might have difficulty in reading all articles within the limited time in TOEIC test.

Lastly, you have to make sure the form of TOEIC test and rehearse it by seeing time. For example, you should make sure how long you can use in each of section, and what kind of contents include in the test.

In short, it is not easy to get high score on TOEIC test, but you can improve if you follow these steps. Then why don`t you take TOEIC test to get a good job in the future?

The different ways to live between US and Japan

I'm from Japan, and I'm living in US, but there are especially three different ways to live between two countries. First of all, the way to use a bathroom is definitely different. In Japan, almost all bathrooms are separated from restrooms and rooms where I take off clothes, and we have bigger bathrooms. Then I can take clothes off in a big space, wash my body and hair by sitting a chair, and sit and stay in a bathtub to make my body hot and relax for a long time. However, all bathrooms in US are unit bath, and people do nothing but taking shower for instance. Some American think that they want to save time to take shower and save water. In contrast, some Japanese likely to spend about 1 hour staying bathroom to recover from fatigue, so I'm missing Japanese bathroom. Second, the way to wear my shoes is different. While I take my shoes off in my house in Japan, I never do so except for the time when I sleep on my bed in US. Japanese people consider that entering in a house with shoes is dirty and impolite. Then I think it is better for us to take shoes off in house so that we can clean our house easily. Third, traffic rules in US is different from those of Japan. Drivers have to sit on right side of seat in cars and drive left side on road in Japan, which are totally opposite in US. Also, it is very confusing for me to understand traffic lights in US. Traffic rights is Japan is very simple. For example, if a right turns into green, we can go, and if it turns in to red, we must stop. However, in US, I sometimes get confused with rules on traffic lights and mistake to go ahead, then some cars honk a horn. In addition, many people drive too fast despite there are limits of speed, so I am always scared while I driving with my friends or mothers here. In short, I have difficulty in getting accustomed to live in US because there are many differences from Japan, but it is good for me to learn different culture.