Three students from my seminar are hanging around after the end of the first day of a new class. I can tell they want to ask me something, but it is not some simple practicality or minor information, or they would have just asked. They have that special hesitant ‘should I ask?’ look on their faces. I slow my exit, wait for a few more students to trickle out, wipe off the chalkboard and then I look in their direction. They talk together, check their keitais and look up again to see if I am open to a question. I can guess what they will say.
After I gave a talk on student-generated materials to colleagues at a former school, I was a little surprised at their responses. I explained how English could be used to consider issues, express opinions and think more deeply. Some of those former colleagues thought otherwise: “Students will not write questions; they won’t even answer questions!” “Students are not critical enough even to start asking questions.” “Japanese students lack the ability to take a critical attitude.” And so on. They were skeptical that Japanese students had any critical capacity at all, much less in English.