Opinions of a Japanese Jr High Student

This past week or so in the 3rd grade at Jr High (14-15 year olds) we have been practicing debate.  The kids read the example in the text and were then asked to write their own composition about a topic.  The book's example was...


I think beds are more convenient than futon.

I agree because it is easier to make a bed.
I disagree futon don't need so much space.
There were example topics for them to choose from, but they were also allowed to pick something different.  We mostly got summer vs. winter (mostly dealing with cold vs hot, winter sports vs summer sports, winter food vs summer food) and school lunch vs sack lunch (mostly dealing with the difficulty if making your own lunch or having to eat foods you don't like in school lunch- this was a little interesting as kids are not allowed to bring their own lunch).

But some of the kids really surprised me with their opinions.  This is because usually, as with most homework assignments, the children tend to write what they think you want to hear (aka I love school lunch!  I love English class!  Doing homework is important! Uniforms are comfortable and fashionable! Drugs are bad!) or they just copy from a book.  But in this assignment we got some great original thoughts and answers.  So I thought I would share some of the highlights.

First off in reference to school uniforms, one girl wrote,

I think pants are better than skirts.  Pants are warmer and are more comfortable.

That seems pretty reasonable to the average American, but in Japan where girl student uniforms are considered "cute and sexy," I was impressed.  For those that say that the Japanese don't see the uniforms as sexy, go to a costume shop or watch an AKB48 video.

Another girl wrote,

I think plain clothes are better than school uniforms.  With a uniform we can't express our own personality.

Again, might seem obvious to those who grew up wearing what they want to school, but in Japan where "the nail that sticks out will get hammered down," this is an original thought.  For those that say, "It's not what you wear, but what's on the inside that counts," I agree to the point.  But why should girls have to wear skirts and boys wear pants?

In reference to city life vs country life, one boy wrote,

I think living in the country is better than living in the city.  The country has clean air and better fishing.Being from Iowa, I know that all too well.  What was surprising was that a) the 15 year old doesn't have big city dreams and b) he will take fishing over the pro sports, arcades and game stores that the city offers.

One boy wrote that,

I think a PC is better than a cell phone.  You can carry a mini-PC.  A PC has more data.I was surprised as most people in Japan use their cell phone for everything.  When I came to Japan in 2005 my phone could already access gmail, Facebook, etc Things my US cell dreamed of doing.  If you ask someone for their email, they will give you their phone email, not a PC one.  I had to ask, on the kid's paper, "What do you think of smart phones?"

One boy who is a bit of a suck-up (sorry to say...) wrote an original topic by saying,

Some people think now is better than the past.  In that case, we now have TV, cell phones, refrigerators, and so on.  But there are bad things now.  To watch TV is fun.  But we watch TV for a long time.  This is sight fail.  To play video games is fun, but this must take a long time.  Your mother must be angry.  And there is a bad thing.  This is "phone fraud."  So to be frank, the past is better than now.

He makes mistakes but he has some good points.  It was actually a bit longer with a lot more phrases he picked up from the dictionary, but overall he put a lot of thought into it.  I rewarded his work by two paragraphs of counter arguing by saying that cell phones save lives in emergencies and that in the present we have better medicine and communication.  I used big words that are in reality too challenging, but that will give him something to do.

But the winner had to be two boys in 3-D (3rd year D home room) who had this to say about their friend Morishita (his last name)...

I think a kangaroo is better than Morishita.  Because a kangaroo is stronger.

I think a cockroach is better than Morishita.  Because a cockroach is more convenient than Morishita.Yes, yes, fine arguments both of them.