Training course opens for specialists to help foreigners

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

› Login to comment

15 Comments

ptolemy at 11:41 AM JST - 24th January

Why not hire foreigners who understand the problems by actually living through them? Oh sorry, too practical, forgot where I am.
borscht at 12:02 PM JST - 24th January

‘‘I learned all the things I didn’t know,’’ said Maria Igarashi, a 22-year-old licensed psychiatric social worker.

In a one day course? Wow. She must know a lot. Or, there was a mis-translation?

I think they should be able to find a few Brazillians of Japanese descent who can speak Portuguese and Japanese well enough to explain whatever problems other Brazillians of Japanese descent might encounter but it's nice the prefecture is thinking along these lines. Versus thinking the foreigners will eventually leave, thus problem solved.
shiuu at 02:07 PM JST - 24th January

Unless they're planning on providing them services above and beyond those available to normal Japanese citizens, the only "specialization" needed to deal with foreigners is language ability. Even that wouldn't be necessary if some of these long term foreigners would get off their butts and learn some Japanese. Strangely, however, that always seems just too much to ask of them.
some14some at 02:14 PM JST - 24th January

...Training course/jobs open for the specialists.
AlfGarnett at 02:20 PM JST - 24th January

Strewth, in other countries, specialist help is a matter of course, well it are in Wapping where i live. I think if they need help and understanding, then it should be available whether they can speak Japanese or not.
555Book at 03:23 PM JST - 24th January

Judging from all these social programmes aimed at helping foreigners in Japan, the J people aren't as xenophobic as what they are perceived to be.
sf2k at 03:43 PM JST - 24th January

what exactly is specialist help beyond translation? or is this cultural training or science training? or how to answer the phone when you explain your non-japanese name and not get razzed?
sharky1 at 09:34 PM JST - 24th January

Yep...would be much more effective if they trained foreigners to help foreigners, or is this one of those "Japanese Only" jobs?
rurika at 11:33 PM JST - 24th January

You can't expect all social workers, medical staff and government employees so be fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, English, Korean, etc... And you can't expect translators to have a detailed knowledge of issues outside their area of expertise.

In an ideal world, foreigners on a permanent or long stay in Japan should be fluent in Japanese but in reality many lack that fluency.

Therefore there is a need for this specialist help.

their objective is to train personnel who can support foreigners in need of advice on a continual basis

This is a worthwhile project IMO and I hope it will spread to other prefectures.
some14some at 11:42 PM JST - 24th January

In an ideal world, foreigners on a permanent or long stay in Japan should be fluent in Japanese but in reality many lack that fluency.

Wrong assumption.
zaichik at 04:47 AM JST - 25th January

would be much more effective if they trained foreigners to help foreigners, or is this one of those "Japanese Only" jobs?

Ah, but foreigners can't understand the Japanese perspective and would therefore not be able to preserve the "wa"....
outofmydepth at 12:41 PM JST - 25th January

why is it in other countries people are allowed to have social workers, medical staff and government employees who are not citizens - but permenant residents - helping their fellow countrymen but in japan that is impossible. just think of how wonderful it would be to have a doctor, nurse, careworker that speaks your language AND has lived in their adopted country for years - they know a lot of things. when we lived in the states my husband could go to a japanese doctor, a japanese lawyer, etc. etc. etc.
neverknow2 at 04:58 PM JST - 25th January

Sounds like help for 'Japanese who were born in another country' not help for foreigners. The title is misleading.
whitepocky at 01:38 PM JST - 26th January

Even that wouldn't be necessary if some of these long term foreigners would get off their butts and learn some Japanese.

In an ideal world, foreigners on a permanent or long stay in Japan should be fluent in Japanese but in reality many lack that fluency.

Hardly relevant seeing as the Japanese language is tarnished by so much 'gai-rai-go'. Give it 30-40yrs and the Japanese language will be nothing more than Jinglish!!!! As a resident of 4yrs here in Japan, I have taken the time to learn the language to find that I am of no greater benefit than if I hadn't bothered. Yes, I'm independent and can move around freely with ease, but the fact is there are few foreigners in my local vicinity. That the article states there are 6,676 foreign residents in the town, I would imagine that they intergrate and/or cater for one anothers needs fairly well.
Yelnats at 04:41 PM JST - 26th January

I speak the language, but at times have been very lost, like trying to get a loan redone at the bank. There were all of these special words flying out, that I did not know, and only needed them this one time. That is where we could use help.