Japanese happy after UK waters down English tests

Friday 13th June, 01:19 PM JST

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

Latest 15 of 62 Total Comments Show All

Soochi at 09:30 PM JST - 13th June

I doubt the Home Office was overly concerned about salarymen from Toshiba and Sony when it first proposed this test, hence the ICT exemption.

So long as they can ask for directions to Spearmint Rhino and get a round in then no worries - stay as long as you want.
gogogo at 12:53 AM JST - 14th June

sarcasm123: Fair enought but I'm sure you can see my poiny, call it what you want, a reward, a pat on the back, an incentive or whatever the fact remains that if you want a 5 year visa you need to pass a Japanese test. Yes 3 years doesn't need it, but it's REQUIREMENT for a 5.

meija: Do your homework, tts new in the last few months, watch what happens next time you apply for it.
meija at 02:06 AM JST - 14th June

gogogo: "Do your homework, tts new in the last few months, watch what happens next time you apply for it."

You contradict yourself in your own reply. "Yes 3 years doesn't need it", therefore it is not a requirement for a working visa into Japan. The whole point of this discussion is that EVERY Japanese citizen wanting a working visa into the UK will need to pass a language test. There is NO requirement as such in Japan. A normal, 3 year visa does not require a language test. You've said so yourself. Then why do you then try to deny it in the very next sentence?

If it is "new in the last few months", show me where. It obviously isn't mentioned on the official Japanese government visa page: http://www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/visa/ , or is that not enough homework for you?
Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land at 03:03 AM JST - 14th June

Patrick Smash says: I think the Japanese should start to insist that native English teachers hold a qualification in their own first language, as well as a real teaching license. Then maybe they'll make a difference in the schools, and this kind of idiot legislation from the British government won't cause so much concern in years to come.

I think that would be great, but then the schools would have to treat the foriegners the same as the regular teachers. The Foreign teachers aren't usually residents of any length and could return home at any moment, so giving them the same status and privelidges of a regular teacher seems very risky to the administraters.
aguri23 at 03:20 AM JST - 14th June

luckily A1 level is very low so they shouldn't have much problems with it.
Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land at 04:01 AM JST - 14th June

"A normal, 3 year visa"

Is a 3 year visa normal? Funny, I had to go through 5 one year visas before I could finally get a 3 year year visa.
meija at 10:46 AM JST - 14th June

"A normal, 3 year visa"

Perhaps I should have been more clear. A normal 1 or 3 year visa (as opposed to any special 5 year visa that may have additional requirements). My mistake.
gogogo at 02:14 PM JST - 14th June

meija: Permanent residents visa are 5 years, I'm not talking about work visas.
meija at 03:04 PM JST - 14th June

Then there is our misunderstanding.

"The Japanese community in Britain is relieved after the government watered down a new English language requirement for foreign nationals coming to work in the country."

As the article is about Japanese working in the UK and about work visas, then I thought it was a fair assumption we were on topic and talking about work visas.

So, to rephrase my original statement so as to avoid further misunderstandings, "there are no language requirements for getting a working visa (whether 1 or 3 years, or renewals) in Japan." (seems like a lot of work just to say something that was pretty obvious in the first place)
thundercat at 04:26 PM JST - 14th June

gogogo

You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. Other than basing your argument on a news paper article have you even checked the MOFA website to back up your position? If you can post a link supporting your point then why haven't you?

BTW which test is it that we have to take? For which visa again?

One more thing, permanent residency is a STATUS not a VISA.

Stranger

If you had to get five 1 year visas it was probably because you changed jobs or something. Usually, if you stay at one company for over a year you are eligible for a 3 year visa. You also have to fill out the application form properly and make sure to ask for a 3 year visa instead of a one year visa.
Pukey2 at 05:43 PM JST - 14th June

Permanent residents visa are 5 years,

What on earth is that? I thought the whole point of getting PR was so that you don't need to get a visa to stay in Japan anynmore.

The funniest thing about this, as someone said, is that a worker who is going to be sent over to UK by their Japanese company would presumably have gone through 6(?) years of English at school (and perhaps more at university). Surely that would be enough to know the very basics of English. I wonder whether any other country complained or whether it was just Japan.
untmdsprt at 08:39 AM JST - 15th June

I'm also an English teacher in Japan, and I laughed at the comment of "qualified Japanese teachers." Yeah sure some are good, but others don't have a clue of what native English should sound like! I'm always told to slow down to a snail's pace so the students can understand me. o_O Ok, the students need to hear me speak at a natural speed, etc. at least once during the lesson. The teachers also need to let me proofread anything first. It's hard to read something that is totally wrong in the first place.

Other comments about the teachers: one is so boring to listen to in either English or Japanese, that I even fall asleep. I finally was given something to read, and stumbled over some words. I laughed at myself, and said "maybe I need to relearn English again." The students laughed and applauded. The teacher was horrified!! Ok, if you want a perfect reading then use a CD, not a live human. Another teacher keeps bitching about me learning kanji. I'm in Japan and don't expect my Japanese boyfriend to do everything for me. She also bitches when I talk to another native English speaker at a natural speed. Personally, I'm glad I don't have to teach with her yet.
knucklerap at 09:55 AM JST - 15th June

So long as they can ask for directions to Spearmint Rhino and get a round in then no worries - stay as long as you want

Spearmint (Hot) Rhino (Horny) could have easily been called "Spearmint Japanese Salaryman"

Yeah sure some (nihonjin english teachers) are good, but others don't have a clue of what native English should sound like! I'm always told to slow down to a snail's pace so the students can understand me.

My "supervisor" (nihonjin english teacher) also told me to slow down. Like eight lessons in a row. Yeah, I get the point. If I spoke any slower I'd be speaking backwards. Also, "speak louder". And "exaggerate" the pronunciation.

She also bitches when I talk to another native English speaker at a natural speed.

Basically, my previous supervisor was just generally bitchy. It was especially interesting how he got bitchy when his instructions were awful or his criticism was unfair/confusing (Me: Are you saying the lesson is both too easy and too hard? Him: Ah...I mean -- air sucking -- ah ... ahh ... please speak louder and slower and .... ahhhh clearly... ahh ... plan what you are going to say before the lesson - right, who does that? .... ah ... talk to all the students - not just the ones who are actually answering the questions - how the f do you make eye contact with 36 students simultaneously?) He also would write/scribble a lesson plan and expect me to memorize it without looking at it. What's the big deal about looking at the lesson plan? David Letterman uses a big blue card to read the top ten list; he's not expected to memorize it.

Now, I've got a creepy supervisor (same gender as me) who can't keep his hands off me.

Is there some kind of union for teachers in high schools and junior highs?
eresay at 08:55 AM JST - 16th June

"all skilled workers from outside the European Union "

In other words, the original draft of this bill was mainly drawn up to exclude non-caucasians. Of all countries I've travelled to, England is by far the most racist place I've ever been. This news hardly surprised me.
chardk1 at 11:15 AM JST - 17th June

It would probably be good for Japanese professionals, once they got over having to extend themselves, if the UK enforced this standard. It's not like these Japanese businessmen were sent over to the UK by accident -- almost without exception these are the people who on their company entrance exams and career course displayed high English proficiency and actively pursued kaigai haken shain status. Then when they actually are expected to do as part of their job what they have claimed is their specialty -- i.e., hold communications in English, they flip out and want the government to step in? Kind of lame. Typical, but lame. I never really understand why Japanese are so obsessed with 1) learning English and 2) avoiding using it at all costs.