Bringing up Japanese-English bilinguals in Japan
Adapted from: Noguchi, M. G. (2001). Bilinguality and bicultural children in Japan: A pilot survey of factors linked
to active English-Japanese bilingualism. In M.G. Noguchi & S. Fotos (Eds.), Studies in Japanese Bilingualism (234-271).
Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Many native English-speaking residents of Japan express a desire to have their children
become bilingual. The general position of English as an ‘international language’, the high status
of English in Japanese society, the inclusion of English reading skills on most high school and
college entrance exams, and the fact that many native English-speaking parents in Japan earn
their living by teaching English or using their English language skills, make them eager to have
their children learn their native tongue.
In a survey of international families conducted in Japan in 1990, Yamamoto Masayo
asked her subjects if they thought being bilingual was beneficial or detrimental, and why they
felt this way. She reported (Yamamoto, 1995) that 88% of her 49 subjects felt that being
bilingual was beneficial. Many cited practical reasons for this belief, such as being able to
communicate with foreign relatives or having a wider range of future career options or skills.
The promotion of cognitive development was also mentioned. In addition, some of her
respondents felt that bilingualism builds personality, enhancing open-mindedness and
maturity. Bilingualism was also seen to promote intercultural understanding by helping
bilinguals develop an ability to grasp various ways of thinking. Only five of the 49 families she
surveyed (10%) noted possible negative aspects of bilingualism, such as the difficulty of
dealing with two languages, cultures and educational systems.
Bilingualism was also viewed positively by most of the respondents to a survey the
present author made of 22 native English speakers living in Japan who had taught their
children to read English in this country (reported in Noguchi, 1996a and Noguchi, 1999). These
families taught their children to read English for various reasons. For example, some said they
wanted their children master basic English communication and reading skills. Others said they
wanted their children’s communication skills to be balanced by their English literacy skills. One
family wanted their children to become fully bilingual and bicultural. In addition, some families
hoped for their children to enjoy using English or to have better access to the minority parent’s
culture or religion. Several families said the objective was for children to develop the ability to
read for pleasure in English. Still other families wanted to expand the children’s world view.
Finally, several families wanted their children to be able to communicate with Englishspeaking relatives.
Despite such reasons for wanting their children to become bilingual and/or biliterate,
many native English-speaking residents of Japan find that their children do not necessarily
learn English. Indeed, research has shown that many children in international families in Japan
do not become active bilinguals, but instead, are passive bilinguals with only limited
productive ability in the minority language, or in some cases, have no English skills of any kind
(Yamamoto, 1987; Yamamoto, 1992; Billings, 1990). There are a number of reasons for this.
First, western expatriates who settled in Japan before the 1970s tended to form
enclaves near ports like Tokyo, Yokohama and Kobe, or near American military bases, where
they established their own ‘international’ or mission schools, or relied on schools for
dependents of members of the armed forces. On the other hand, young English-speaking
people who arrived during or after the 1970s are widely scattered throughout the country,
Many of these immigrants live wherever their teaching or translating services may be needed
Others live near their Japanese spouse’s family. Thus, they do not generally belong to a foreign
community that would provide motivation for their children to learn English.
Many of these mixed families send their children to local Japanese schools for a variety
of reasons. In some cases it is because they cannot afford to the high tuition fees of
international schools: in others, it is because they live too far away from such schools. In many
cases, however, this choice is due to their positive view of the Japanese education system.
Whatever the reason, children in these families often lack a nearby community of fellow native
speakers of English to provide linguistic, cultural and social support for bilingualism. As a
result, many of the native English-speaking parents in mixed marriages in Japan have found
that their children do not learn to speak much English, or even, in many cases, to understand it
very well.
In addition to the lack of community support for and educational instruction in the
language, another factor working against the development of English proficiency in these
children is peer pressure to ‘be like everyone else’. While such pressure is a salient feature of
childhood in most societies, it is strengthened by the overwhelmingly monocultural nature of
Japanese society. Yamamoto (1995) discussed the psychological effects of standing out because
of physical, linguistic or cultural differences in Japan. She says that Japanese society has a low
tolerance for people who are not “normal” according to society’s standard. She suggests that is
the reason why children from international families in Japan ‘often face rejection from society
… [and] some may try to minimize their distinctiveness by behaving like the norm population’
(p. 80). Thus for some biracial children, rejection of their foreign parent’s language may be part
of an attempt to reduce feelings of isolation.
References
Billings, M.L. (1990). Some factors affecting the bilingual development of bicultural children in
Japan. AFJW Journal, April 1990, 93-107.
Noguchi, M.G. (1996). Adding Biliteracy to Bilingualism: Teaching Your Child to Read English in
Japan. Monographs on Bilingualism No. 4. Osaka, Japan: Bilingualsim National Special
Interest Group of the Japan Association for Language Teaching.
Noguchi, M.G. (1999). Katei de no dokuji shidou wa kano ka? 22 kazoku ni miru seikou no youin
[Is it possible to teach English-Japanese bilingual children to read English at home?
Survey of 22 families on factors tied to success]. In M. Yamamoto (Ed.) Bairingaru no
sekai [The World of the Bilingual] (pp. 33-63). Tokyo: Taishukan shoten.
Yamamoto, M. (1987). Significant factors for raising children bilingually in Japan. The Language
Teacher, 9(19), 17-23.
Yamamoto, M. (1992). Linguistic environment of bilingual families in Japan. The Language
Teacher, 16(5), 13-15.
Yamamoto, M. (1995). Bilingualism in international families. In J. Maher and K. Yashiro (Eds.),
Multilingual Japan (pp. 63-85). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.