I went up to Kaikoura and down to Dunedin last week. It was a lot of fun catching up with some old friends.


06 October 2001

Life's going relatively well, though bludging off the parents is beginning to wear a bit thin on them and me. I think sometimes that the Olds forget that I've been away for three-and-a-half years, and so from my point of view it seems that I'm not getting quite as much respect as I feel I deserve. Still, flat hunting is not highest on my priorities when I'm seeking overseas' jobs. The joys of living at home, eh?


11 October 2001

Things are getting rather fascinating at work. During my afternoons I've begun tutoring what might loosely, but fairly be coined 'Conversational English Philosophy and Sociology' to a Japanese doctor of an advanced English level. This is simply because he wants to become efficient with English along these lines, and he wants to know what's acceptable and what's considered taboo with the average New Zealander / English speaker.

Although my job is to teach language and not morality, etc, I recognise that I am also his way of safely experimenting with the English language in a controlled environment. A typical classroom must, understandably, remain relatively superficial and mainstream, so as not to inadvertently offend different students. This is all very well for the average classroom, but it is hardly the reality of the English speaking world, and hardly practicable for one wanting to become a confident part of it. Eventually any student of language will need to explore the depths of the language they're learning (comparable to how far he or she may venture to go in their native tongue) and this may be intimidating for any one. Students, aware as they are of the massive social barriers between any two peoples, may easily feel threatened by the idea of venturing too far into the psyche of another culture. When it comes to sociological discussion (especially when contrasting the two cultures concerned) with people belonging to the other language and cultural group, the visitor must be ever conscious of what may offend their host, and vice versa; and this can only inhibit the process of natural and enlightening discussion.

We're all taught that there are differences that we need to respect, of course, up to a day-to-day level of social etiquette. Japanese people must remember to look English speakers in the eyes when shaking our hands; we must remember to accept their business cards from them with both hands. But when it comes to crossing a deeper cultural divide that has been carved out by centuries of misunderstandings, the bridge between these differences seems pretty uncertain. For example, is it in any way appropriate to talk openly with the Japanese about WWII and the atrocities inflicted by both sides, or will even the most cautious and respectful references to these painful memories hit a raw nerve that cannot be mellowed? It would seem to me to be a worthy discussion, for it encourages growth, understanding, and acceptance, but how can you be sure that you won't appear to be bearing a grudge or stirring up muddy waters? Indeed, I now know that Japanese people wonder this to some degree also.

For Dr. Shiro 'Y' and I, the divide is effectively bridged. He cannot directly offend me, because it is for this reason that I am under his employment. A professional is, inherently, impartial to many things; and if he were to say something that I could construe as offensive as a Westerner or English speaker, my job would only be to point this danger out to him. I can advise him if what he talks about may be touchy within any particular demographic of the English speaking peoples, and therefore I fulfil a necessary, if seldom contemplated, role. The benefit to me though is that I'm also given the same freedoms; I'm experimenting with the Japanese mind, as he experiments with ours (and I mean that not in a derogatory sense at all). We're delving into subjects that are often taboo, and normally only for fear of misunderstanding between two respective cultures, and I think this a fairly significant experience. The relationship is very much unique and mutually educational, and I am gaining tremendous insight with every lesson. I just forget, sometimes, which one of us is theoretically meant to be the teacher, as he is a doctor, after all.

So far, and with no fear of offending one another, we've covered: The contrast between Japanese and New Zealand schooling; What it means to be educated for the Japanese; Sexism and racism within Japan, within New Zealand, and between the two countries; Social expectations for the peoples of both countries; Our past, their past, and the World's future; What America's war against Afghanistan means for Japan, and Japan's regret for not having assisted America in the Gulf War; Rugby (he was the doctor to the Japanese rugby team in the last World Cup incidentally); The history behind 'the Kamikaze'; Japan's three main religions; and, finally, Sex, sexual education in schools, and the appropriateness of such discussions in the East and in the West.

On Monday, we're covering WWII, and what it means today to his generation and mine. He is thirty-nine years-old, and if I am his English teacher, he is rather like my philosophy teacher. You might know me enough to know that I'm exceptionally happy with all this.

Looking back on this entry, I am pleased that my attitude towards teaching has not changed. It is one of the most rewarding aspects of my job that I continually learn so much from the people who pay me to teach them. I have since met many people like Shiro 'Y', and I don't think I could have hoped for a better education. I have learned that it cannot be true that travelling is the best education, as travelling as an English teacher is better by leaps and bounds.