Job Discussion Forums

Venti · Joined: 19 Oct 2006 Posts: 171 Location: Kanto, Japan

Will there be a shift from learning English to learning Chinese in Japan's schools in the next few decades? Why or why not? Detailed thoughts would be appreciated.

As for me, I have no idea.

Mark · Joined: 23 Jan 2003 Posts: 500 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Probably. I assume it'll start at the university level and then perhaps trickle down. Even if it doesn't trickle down, a really solid 4 year university major in Chinese should be sufficient for serious students. China/Taiwan are close so it' really easy to get over there for exchanges and immersion experiences and whatnot.

Hopefully in a few years students at high schools will be able to choose between English, Chinese and possibly other languages as well like Korean.

But I don't think anything will change soon. It's taken Japan 100 years to build up its English infrastructure, so I think it'll take some time to build up a parallel Chinese instrastructure.

japanman · Joined: 24 Nov 2005 Posts: 281 Location: England

I suggetsed the same thing to a JET at one of my schoold and he couldn't see the logic of learning Chinese, which I was suprised by. I ponited out the strength of China in economic terms etc but he was pretty much fixed on the idea that English was the only language that Japanese students should learn.
It is often the case that students who study Chinese at university do so because they think it will be easy, due to the writing system. So, they end up good at writing chinese but very poor at speaking. I study Chinese in my free-time with my Japnese girlfriend and I think it is much easier for me than for her. The range of sounds are so far detached from Japanese.
It's pretty obvious that more Japanese should learn Chinese and Korean etc. More people can speak French or Spanish than Chinese I guess. I've never met a fluent Chinese speaker ever. Is it the Japanese pride of their position in Asia that will always prevent them from studying Chinese seriously?

c-way · Joined: 19 Nov 2004 Posts: 226 Location: Kyoto, Japan

Yes, they will start "learning" Chinese.

And if the foray into English serves as an example, then Most Japanese people will suck at TWO languages.

And far, far into the future, the best university students of Japan will be able to proclaim when they "make friends in English".

"Hello, my name is ___________. I suck at 12 languages."

(Said in jest, and to be fair my name is ________ and I suck at all languages without English)

stillnosheep · Joined: 01 Mar 2004 Posts: 2068 Location: eslcafe

...at all languages including English if your last sentence is anything to go by....

Laughing

Smooth Operator · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Posts: 140 Location: Japan

I teach English to some Chinese language uni majors and they all say it's difficult.

Anyway, there are a few reasons why English won't be threatened by Chinese and most revolve around the problems the PRC has such as:

-Massive brain drain
-Increasing inequalities fracturing society
-The concurrent rise of India, with its strong English skills
-The Chinese themselves are pushing English education on their own populace.