Building the new textbooks webpages

[Otaku]

...and I'm starting to feel the rage again of wanting to inflict some serious harm on whoever wrote these things! I had a deja vu flashback of when I built them the first time.

I'm building the SUNSHINE series right now and all that is screaming in my head is, "STOP WITH FRICKIN' EXPLAINING OF JAPANESE CULTURE!!!"

On one page alone, there is: tamae, chado, ichigo-ichie, tatami, chashitsu, matcha, kakemono, tokonoma and wa-kei-sei-jaku. Furthermore, the include the kanjis to go with some of these words. FOR MEXT'S SAKE, STOP!!!

I bubbled a little too much today cuz I shouted out in the middle of teacher's room, "I hate Japanese culture!" <--in Japanese, then started strangling the English book. The other teacher's just started laughing at me cuz they know what I'm doing with Englipedia. BTW, just had all the textbook series delivered to my desk this morning. Yay, more screaming and pulling my hair out!

And then Japan imports newbies that can't speak Japanese and expect them to actually say all these Japanese words correctly?!?!

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

I feel your pain. I have never experienced this in any other language text book. If you pick up a german textbook, it talks about stuff you see around Germany. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!!!

[Paul]

This is Japan, you guys have to realize by now that the people who are writing the textbooks realize that there are now numerous foreigners in the classrooms assisting the JTE's and who know little to anything about Japan. The goal is not to use Japanese in English lessons per say, but use the Japanese to teach the foreign English teacher about Japan.

Weird I know, but when you stop and think about it, the idea makes sense. If that isn't the reason then and again.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

The goal is not to use Japanese in English lessons per say, but use the Japanese to teach the foreign English teacher about Japan.

Weird I know, but when you stop and think about it, the idea makes sense. If that isn't the reason then and again.

That shouldn't be the goal of a JHS teacher, student or textbook. The ALT is responsible to recitfy his own ignorance. The text book should give the students a window to the outside world, and fuel for the teacher to teach about that. Namely life in the English speaking world.

Truthfully, unlike Otaku, I don't mind a little bit of J culture, as a kind of ease into the English world. Using familiar topics has a point, so students can focus on the English. Maybe even share culture in English, and have the means to do that after say, a "RAKUGO" lesson. I especially don't mind if it is mixed in with a visit to the west, to balance things out. As many textbooks do with their characters.

But I have never seen anything like that EVER before Japan. Not in Italian texts, German, French, or Sapanish. It is just here!

[moolooman]

"The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right."

This should cheer you up Otaku. At least someone has a clue.

[Paul]

I apologize if anyone took my previous post with any seriousness, I left out the sarcasm marks in a fit of stupidity.

[jeisensei]

From what I can tell, the textbooks are built around the "communicative style." Which means there needs to be a reason to use the English. They are grasping at straws, but it seems the reason they chose in that lesson was explaning Japanese culture to English speakers. Bah is all I can say.

They textbook companies have been making English textbooks for tens of years at this point. They really should be doing better than this (I just got a good look at the new NH books).

[azuhlLt.]

And then Japan imports newbies that can't speak Japanese and expect them to actually say all these Japanese words correctly?!?!

That's the joke mate, don't you see? A few kids hate it when I get the Japanese right...all of them love it if I spell or say anything wrong. It's not their fault directly though, they're told from birth that if you're not Japanese, then you can't speak Japanese. There's a few exceptions, like David Spectre, but they humiliate them on national television in order to humble them to the Japanese public, eventually they are more accepted and now David is on quite a few well respected talk shows. Still, he had to go through his 'hazing' ritual.

[gsuiris]

And then Japan imports newbies that can't speak Japanese and expect them to actually say all these Japanese words correctly?!?!

I can speak Japanese pretty well, enough to get by. I'm not fluent or anything, but its usually good enough.

Anyway, once when I was recording a listening test, the teacher said my Japanese was wrong. We had to stop and practice it for a minute or two, then re-record the test.
The problem - she wrote it in romaji and I didn't say the long vowel (like yuki vs yuuki) because it wasn't there.
Even worse - I messed up a little on the English at one point (first time reading something, bound to make a small mistake!) but she said that wasn't a problem.

I know a lot of foreigners who can't speak Japanese, and if this lady thinks that the people these kids will meet one day will say everything exactly like a Japanese person, she is CRAZY.

But I have a lot of problems with this lady.
For another listening test she had the school nurse come and record part of the test. Fine, but English isn't her strong point. AND the nurse had longer and MORE IMPORTANT roles than I did.