ENGLISH, WITH FLAVOR OF JAPAN; VISITING TEACHER TOURS LOCAL SCHOOL

Teachers and students at Alma Schrader Elementary School had a chance to talk with a teacher from Japan Monday.

Kazuo Miyagi teaches English at a private high school in Japan and is in Cape Girardeau to study American education. He is in the second week of a three-week stay here.

This is Miyagi's fourth trip to Cape Girardeau. The high school where he works, Suijo High School in Mito-City Ibaraki, has an exchange link with Southeast Missouri State University.

High school students from Japan visit Cape Girardeau each year. Miyagi said a group of students will arrive here March 13 for three days before heading to Los Angeles to visit.

"It is my privilege to be here this time as a participant," Miyagi said. "I have been an escort teacher in the past."

The exchange link was created by Yoshihiro Takase, a longtime friend and supporter of Southeast Missouri State University, who is a member of the board of directors at Suijo High School, where Miyagi teaches.

Takase also recently gave $150,000 to help fund the Yoshihiro Takase International Business Board Room and Teaching Center, designed to be a state-of-the-art learning complex in the proposed College of Business Administration building.

"Everything I have done has been a learning experience," Miyagi said.

"One of the big differences I see here is American schools have very small classes. We have an average of 45 students packed in one class," Miyagi said. "It's very difficult to reach individual students. I think it's a big problem in Japan."

Miyagi credits students with the success Japanese education has achieved.

"The students study very hard," he said. "I think that is unique to Japanese students. After school they go to `cram school' or `prep school' where they continue their school day."

He said over half of all students attend these "cram schools."

"They work very hard many hours a day," he said.

An English teacher, Miyagi was quick to explain that while most Japanese students learn English, few speak the language.

Students learn to read, write and translate English. They do not learn to speak English. Miyagi, an English teacher for over 25 years, began learning to speak English only three years ago.

"We have been criticized for the way we teach English," he said. "But it is not practical for the college-bound student to learn to speak English. He cannot afford the time."

But he said students must learn the other skills related to English.

"English is not compulsory, but it is almost compulsory," Miyagi said. "English is a core subject in entrance exams to high school or college."

He said students officially begin learning English at the junior high school level. But many students begin taking private English lessons while in elementary school. The reason is simple, Miyagi said. They will be tested on their English skills.

Like the United States, students are required to attend school through junior high age. He said about 98 to 99 percent of all students go on to attend high school. Entrance to high schools is competitive. "Some schools are very difficult to get in."

During his trip here, Miyagi is also visiting students and faculty members on the Southeast campus. Once a week he makes a presentation on campus about Japanese language and culture for university staff.