Sorry  - there was a typo, and a big one at that, in my posting.  

My post should have read "The buraku, a part OF Japanese society..."  

My typo ("a part Japanese society..") might have given the impression they are not fully Japanese (however you want to define that) - they are indeed native born Japanese. 

Erik 


 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: ejonline at comcast.net

> I agree that Japan (and other Asian countries) and the US are different, but the 

> interesting thing is that the history of ABE in Japan is really an important 

> part of the history of multicultural Japan (and I would suggest that Japan has 

> always been multicultural in some ways). 

> 

> One stream of Japanese ABE was created and operated by the buraku community, a 

> part Japanese society that functions as a lower caste and that traditionally has 

> had less access to education. Other programs were created to provide ABE to the 

> Korean population of Japan, particularly the older generation that remained in 

> Japan after WW2. Newer programs provide JSL to recent waves of immigrants from 

> South America (e.g., Brazil, Peru),  Asia (e.g., China, the Philippines) and 

> other countries. 

> 

> Many of the volunteer programs that teach JSL do so to welcome their new 

> neighbors, and often talk about the changing nature of the society in their 

> descriptions of themselves. In this sense parts of ABE in Japan really celebrate 

> the multicultural nature of Japan. Volunteers in these programs talk about 

> wanting to see this for themselves, and to have a chance to meet people from 

> other cultures. 

> 

> To cycle back to an earlier question, I think the impact that these volunteers 

> have on the larger community might be somewhat limited. When I began my research 

> there I thought these programs would provide a bridge between the Japanese 

> mainstream (that might not want to recognize the multiculltural nature of Japan, 

> or who would still have prejudice towards the burakumin), but many of the 

> volunteers I spoke with said that they don't talk about their work that much to 

> other people (including their family) who are not already involved. In some ways 

> it is something they do for themselves and for whoever they work with, and they 

> don't describe it as part of wanting to change attitudes in the larger 

> community. 

> 

> Certainly, this sense of being part of community is important in Japan. Even 

> correspondance schools for adults have field trips where the isolated students 

> get together.  Most one on one tutoring programs meet together in large rooms, 

> rather than in individual locations (like in the US).  As another example, one 

> of the schools (a night time junior high school)  that I have been visiting and 

> working with holds something that they call "nakama" which means "community" or 

> group of people. Students from different classes come together to discuss one 

> subject. In the beginning, teachers taught lessons about topical subjects, but 

> the student participation was limited. Then students took the lead to talk about 

> the discrimination they were dealing with. That structure worked for a few 

> years, but over time they sort of burnt out on that (sample student response: 

> "Yeah, yeah, I get it, I get it - discrimination stinks..."). Then teachers took 

> the lead and that has met with mixed results

>  . It f

> eels more like a class now, and concerned teachers are trying to figure out what 

> is next. 

> 

> Sorry this post is a bit long. Boiled down I guess my point is that while 

> community is important in Japan, I think it is imporant to consider how Japanese 

> ABE is part of multicultural Japan. 

> 

> Erik Jacobson

> 

> 

> 

>  -------------- Original message ----------------------

> From: Mari John <mjohn at kats.tec.ks.us>

> > As a "newcomer" to this discussion room, first of all, let me say I find the 

> > discussion fascinating.  Thanks for the opportunity.

> > 

> > To compare the diverse population of the US to other monocultures is using a 

> lot 

> > of energy without first recognizing up front that a huge difference exists 

> > between the US and Asian countries.  That said...our South Korean ESL teacher 

> is 

> > aghast at the laxity of the ABE students both in body language and dress but 

> > especially attitudinally.  Listening to her explain a typical South Korean 

> > school day makes MY head swim.  These monocultures have unanimity on the 

> > importance of education and are honor/shame oriented countries unlike the US.  

> > While traditional culture pressure may not be as pronounced in Japan or South 

> > Korea as some of their Middle Eastern neighbors, community consensus generally 

> > reigns.  I'd like to learn from them and gather ideas; however, we must 

> > recognize this basic difference.

> > 

> > Mari John

> > Kansas

> > 

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