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How the decision was reached that all Japanese children must study English probably has little bearing on the current state of language instruction in Japan. Let it be noted in passing, however, that there was a time when languages other than English were the means of instruction at Japanese universities.
Learning a foreign language can be beneficial in several ways which differ from other subjects of study. Among these are: one, the ability to communicate with people from other cultures, so as to learn more about your own; two, improved international relations; three, better facility in one's own language brought about by a better understanding of language in general; four, the transfer of technology and other information from another society to your own; and five, travel abroad. Now let us consider each of these in turn and examine how they are achieved or not achieved within the Japanese system.
The Japanese public educational system simply does not provide Japanese students with the ability to communicate in any language but Japanese. Moreover, although the Japanese private sector has gone a long way to improve upon the public sector, it can hardly substitute for living in the country whose language one wishes to speak. More important to the discussion at hand, the effectiveness of the private sector in achieving communicability depends heavily on the amount of money which each student is able to pay. Based upon the obviously large number of private English language schools which do exist, and the very small number of Japanese who have acquired near native fluency by attending them, one must conclude that even with the help of the private sector, the Japanese system has largely failed with regard to foreign language communication. Because few Japanese can afford to pay the high sustained costs of private and semi-private training required to achieve speaking proficiency in one's own country, this result should surprise no one.
As mentioned earlier international communication can be achieved in different ways. One can learn the language of others, one can learn a common language which everyone speaks, or one can teach one's own language. Logic tells us that failing with regard to the first alternative means failing with regard to the second, unless of course everyone in the world speaks the same language and that language happen to be one's own. What is truly troublesome, however, is that Japan also fails in the third objective -- namely, making their language available to others. This nation-wide failure is brought about by several factors only two of which are relevant here: one, Japanese are so busy in their failed effort to master English, that they frequently forget, or purposefully ignore, that foreigners come a very long way to Japan at significant personal sacrifice to learn Japanese and Japanese culture from Japanese; and two, there exists a general reluctance on the part of Japanese to speak with strangers, be they from another country, another town, or their own city. As a result Japanese either avoid speaking with foreigners altogether, or insist that foreigners speak English with them in the event that communication does take place. Because few Japanese can speak English well, an informal linguistic barrier has been constructed between Japanese and foreigners which is very difficult to cross. Moreover, by raising the linguistic barrier Japan has made the cost of learning Japanese extraordinarily high, thus denying foreigners that one crucial tool which everyone requires to become close to any foreign culture -- language.
You may ask, how is it that there are so many foreigners in Japan? To which I am compelled to ask in return at what cost, to what end, and under what circumstances? Then too, are there really so many foreigners in living Japan?
Learning a foreign language to improve one's ability to speak and write one's own language is another extremely important derived benefit from foreign language learning. Unfortunately, due to the way in which foreign language is taught in both the public and private sectors in Japan, this benefit is largely absent. First of all, foreign language instructors in Japan, be they of Japanese or foreign origin, are either unable or not permitted to make the comparisons needed to achieve this benefit.
The vast majority of Japanese English teachers in the public sector, have never lived in a culture where English is the commonly spoken language, and the English which they teach Japanese children is much more akin to subjects like history, mathematics, and law, rather than linguistics or other language related field of study. Students are required to memorize vocabulary and rules of grammar by rote and practice these within a particular patterned framework which breaks down, when certain logical preconditions are not met. The language which they learn is not robust, reveals few of the nuances, which would be helpful in understanding one's own language, and meaningful comparisons are difficult to make.
As mentioned elsewhere, in the private sector foreign instructors are strongly discouraged from making useful comparisons in class, because they are often not permitted to speak Japanese. More importantly, however, the vast majority of these instructors have had little or no formal training in the teaching of English as a second language. Many of them are college graduates, who probably did not major in English, may have studied Japanese, but more likely than not majored in another topic totally unrelated to formal linguistics or language learning. It is one thing to be a native speaker, it is quite another to know how to teach one's language to a foreigner. If you find this difficult to understand, ask most any foreigner, who has tried to learn Japanese from a Japanese in casual conversation, or most any Japanese who has actually taken the time to teach a foreigner is own language, just how difficult the task of learning another's language or teaching one's own can sometimes be.
More importantly in this light is the language of instruction which has been chosen -- namely, English. In order to improve one's ability in his own language, it is much better to learn another language which is closely related. This is because learning the many fine nuances which distinguish two similar languages from one another, improves one's ability to discriminate among words, phrases, and syntax within the context of one's own language. In the case of Japan learning Korean -- the language spoken by Japan's closest neighbor -- would be ideal. Indeed, English is probably the worst language in the world for Japanese to be learning to improve ability in their own native tongue. Not only are the root vocabulary so completely different, but the basic syntactical structure is diametrically opposed. Learning English for Japanese is much more akin to learning to crawl all over again, rather than participating in a stiff race where every nuanced improvement means the different between victory and defeat.
In one important respect, however, learning to speak English does help Japanese in their ability to communicate in Japanese, but the obtainment of this benefit is largely restricted to the private sector, where contact with native English speakers is sometimes very intense. The win/lose, truth seeking attitude of most anglophones, and the high premium placed by them on logical rigor, compels Japanese to examine their own native writing and speaking habits and improves their ability to communicate to large audiences. Thus, with regard to native language enhancement, English language training in the private sector, and even at the college level in the public sector, is not a complete waste of time, money, and effort. Notwithstanding, does it represent a positive net gain?
Of the five catgories of benefits mentioned above only technology and information transfer reveals a net positive outcome. By compelling every Japanese to learn to read primitive English language texts, Japanese are able to master enough of English logic to make it possible for them in the company of others, if not alone, to decipher technical manuals and reports. During Japan's early industrialization and during its postwar recovery this ability obviously proved invaluable. Fortunately, this period of Japan's development is largely over. Notwithstanding, Japan is now in the position where it must convey knowledge to others, not simply acquire it. Passive, English reading skills those which Japanese master best are very valuable for gathering information. They are not very useful in communicating that which one already knows.
Finally, travelling is a favorite past time among the wealthy, the messianic, the adventurous, the homeless and the wayward; Japan's per capita income is among the highest in the world. Unlike citizens of many other countries, whose individual sense of adventure takes them to exotic places of danger and excitement, often alone or with a friend, Japanese tend to travel in carefully organized groups. This phenomena probably has as much to do with the salary structure and organization of Japanese society, as it does with the conservative, risk avert mentality of most Japanese. Young Japanese workers simply cannot afford to travel far away from home for prolonged periods, and older Japanese, who have retired are usually more interested in creature comforts and social status, than their younger counterparts. Prestige in Japanese society has more to do with one's social rank, than particular life's experiences. After all, it is the nail which is sticking up that gets pounded down, and few Japanese wish to deviate very far from the norm. Thus, with money and time in hand, the typical Japanese traveler visits famous places with large international hotels on carefully arranged tours which promise a high level of security and comfort.
Although recent trends show a distinct shift toward greater
independence and more adventure, as places become known among
the Japanese populace, and the need for group tours diminishes,
still the places which a Japanese can visit are largely limited
to those where English is spoken. Thus, although the private sector
is able to provide Japanese with the necessary spoken skills to
register in a hotel, order from a menu written in English, rent
a car, purchase a bus or train ticket, command a bell-boy, and
follow the calls of a dealer at a resort casino, this entire scope
of independent language activity is largely limited to the world's
international hotel chains and carefully selected spots in the
anglophonic world such as Hawaii or Guam. Thus, although
the private sector scores a net plus in this category of benefits,
it is not without important qualification.
Having examined each of the possible benefits obtainable from
the acquisition of a foreign language as a function of Japan's
educational system, we observe that Japan achieves qualified but
good success in the areas of technology imports and tourist exports,
but generally fails to derive net positive benefit in all other
categories -- most important among these internationalization.
Nevertheless, the system persists. Why?
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