Tag - english

 
 

ENGLISH

While the education ministry recently introduced a new subject called “logic and expression” in its new curriculum guidelines, experts say that many teachers, in practice, are still focusing on grammar acquisition.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 19, 2024
Japan study downplays complex grammar in improving English writing skills
English learners are better off focusing on making good arguments, according to the Kobe University research.
The Japanese government updated its English education guidelines in 2017 to emphasize communication over grammar and memorization. Public school teachers are incredibly busy, however, which means schools haven’t been able to implement changes uniformly. Private and alternative schools are attempting to remedy this.
LIFE / Language / Longform
May 27, 2024
The language of opportunity: Bilingual education is on the rise in Japan
Stuck with a reputation for poor English, Japan is pushing its next generation to be bilingual. Privately run schools are seeing the benefits.
An education ministry survey has shown that the English proficiency of public junior and senior high school students in Japan is continuing to improve.
JAPAN
May 9, 2024
Japanese students' English proficiency is improving
The levels of English skills greatly varied depending on the region, according to the education ministry.
Only about 2% of Japan's annual output of 700,000 manga volumes are released in English, according to a startup working to translate manga using artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 8, 2024
Japanese startup to use AI to translate manga
With its technology, Orange aims to produce 500 English-language manga per month.
When Fighters interpreter Shinju Sakuma set her mind on becoming a language liaison in sports, she picked a sport she enjoyed watching and an employer who thinks outside the box.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Feb 26, 2024
Rookie female interpreter provides voice for foreign baseball stars in Japan
Shinju Sakuma, who will graduate from Rikkyo University in Tokyo this spring, is believed to be the first female interpreter in NPB history.
Gunma Bank's video message in English is geared toward those from overseas who are flocking to Japan to buy up stocks, bonds and real estate as the nation’s assets emerge from decades of slumber.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 22, 2024
English video shows Japanese regional banks opening up to overseas investors
Foreigners are flocking to Japan to buy up stocks, bonds and real estate as the nation’s assets emerge from decades of slumber.
Foreign investors are seeking more English-language disclosure from companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 6, 2024
Foreign investors want more English info from TSE firms
The TSE plans to make Prime firms release key information in Japanese and English simultaneously.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange will require all companies listed on its prime section to publish key information simultaneously in English and Japanese.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 18, 2024
Tokyo bourse to make simultaneous English disclosure mandatory for top firms
A reform panel has cited foreign investors as saying that a lack of English disclosure is one of the reasons for staying away from Japan's stock market.
The "wolf warrior" metaphor is used for Chinese diplomats who are known for aggressively making their country’s case on the world stage.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2024
Doves, pandas and dragons: Decoding the global political zoo
Animal metaphors help us reflect on the rich and varied landscape of foreign policy discourse.
The Atomic Bomb Dome at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park
JAPAN / History
Jan 7, 2024
English-language Hiroshima Peace Declaration book published
With over 400 footnotes explaining different words and idioms, the book can be a great way for for 'global citizens' to learn English.
Global Indian International School (GIIS) Tokyo opened in 2006 with 60 students and has now grown to over 1,300, the majority of whom are Japanese.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 28, 2023
How Japan's international school landscape is evolving
With lower tuition than legacy international schools, new affordable facilities are catering to the growing communities of non-Japanese Asian communities.
If we let writers and translators be replaced by AI tools such as ChatGPT, we lose control over language and how it shapes us.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 30, 2023
When we abandon language to AI, we abandon our humanity
Not only does AI threaten writers' and translators' jobs, giving it control over how we shape and are shaped by language is detrimental to who we are.
As technology and politics increasingly force society to determine truth from fiction, Merriam-Webster's dictionary has selected the word "authentic" as word of the year.
WORLD / Society
Nov 28, 2023
Merriam-Webster crowns 'authentic' as word of the year
The winner beat "deepfake," "rizz" and "coronation" for honors as the word that most often sent people to the dictionary.
Yogendra Puranik, the first person from India to win elected office in Japan, at the Indian cultural center he manages in Tokyo's Edogawa Ward in October 2022.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 6, 2023
Japan needs Indian migrants. How can it attract them?
India can help fill the domestic labor gap, but for migrants to succeed, Japan must embrace a genuinely intercultural approach.
Small-cap shares listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange are undervalued because many don’t have enough information in English, according to a top-performing Japanese small-cap fund.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2023
Top Japan fund bets on English disclosure to lift small-cap shares
An improvement in transparency may help revive foreign demand that drove Japan’s stock market to multi-decade highs earlier this year.
A teacher gives an English lesson in the city of Saitama on July 12.
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2023
Japanese junior high kids average 12% in English oral test
More than 60% of the students evaluated could not answer a single speaking question correctly.
A survey of 908 environmental scientists of eight nationalities revealed greater costs for non-native speakers in reading and writing English papers.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 30, 2023
Non-native English speakers struggle more in science research
A survey of 908 environmental scientists of eight nationalities revealed greater costs for non-native speakers in reading and writing English papers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 16, 2023
In her own words: A Hiroshima bomb survivor learns English to tell her story
While talks by hibakusha have become a regular feature of Hiroshima's memorial sites, Teruko Yahata stands out for her presentations in English.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
May 11, 2023
BOJ adjusts English translation under Gov. Kazuo Ueda, hinting at new policy era
The bank has adopted a new word in English to describe its stance of continuing with large-scale monetary easing, while the original Japanese word remains unchanged.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Apr 23, 2023
Wrexham follows Hollywood script to reach Football League
Wrexham has garnered global appeal since 'Deadpool' star Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney took control from a supporters trust with an initial $2.5 million investment.

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'