As an English Teacher, I talk to many Japanese people often. And many times I’ve talked to them about their education and how they were brought up. From my conversations and experiences with those people, it seems like there is something in common: most people don’t learn how to debate or how to construct formal arguments in school.
I asked one of my students about this because it was interesting and that person told me something using an example that really surprised me. The example was this:
- 3 + 4 = ?
- ? + ? = 7
“In Japan,” he said, “we study hard for passing exams, so a common way of learning in Japanese schools is to find the answer to questions such as 3 + 4, for example. That question only has one answer. It’s direct and absolute. But many Western schools teach children to find the answer to questions such as X + Y = 7. As you can see, this has multiple answers and it’s not about the answer itself; It’s about how to get to the answer.” When I heard this, I stopped for a second. My mind suddenly recalled a collection of memories about my childhood and education and that’s when I thought, “he’s right, I did learn like that.” Of course these specific examples are taught and learned in all countries, but they demonstrate a basic difference in the way some education systems are directed. Perhaps they could also be applied in the business industries, or not. Anyway, I think it’s important to learn both ways of solving problems. But I think that focusing on how to get to the answer instead of the answer itself allows people to practice using their creativity and thinking-outside-of-the-box skills at the same time.
- Do you think you have problem-solving capabilities?
- If yes, is this because of what you were taught in school?
- If no, why do you think you never learned how to solve problems?
- Is problem solving necessary for being successful in Japan?
- Which method of learning do you think is better for people to experience (Japan vs UK) ?
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