Japan’s Royal Family Supports Speaking Better!
We don’t know how lucky we are!
Those of us who were born in countries where the primary language is english, that is.
You see, in many parts of the world english has to be painstakingly taught word by word in high-school rather than the way we learned from our parents or other family members around the same time we learnt to walk.
Despite that early advantage - I strongly suspect that many of the guests at Princess Takamodo’s recent Tokyo garden party spoke better than the majority of we Aussies, Brits or Americans!
Why would that be so?
Because the Princess is the honorary patron of the All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest and in honour of the 61st Event she’d invited the competition’s 100 judges plus company sponsors to the official residence of the late Prince Takamado in Minato Ward, Tokyo.
It was a very big ‘do’ indeed!
And yes, you read the number correctly. This is the 61st year in a row that all of Japan’s Inter-Middle School students took part in what for them is an extraordinarily difficult competition to find the best english speakers.
What amazes me is that the Japanese Royal Family, scores of businesses not to mention all those Japanese kids put so much effort into doing something that should be second-nature for millions of kids in western nations - and yet so many Aussie, American and British children speak so badly!
I hear howls of despair from many CEO’s and other employers “about the way young people mumble rather than talk” and about “how hard it is to encourage employees to speak clearly and communicate effectively”.
It’s crazy because it would make such a difference to their career prospects - not to mention their pay packets!
So the next time you hear someone murdering ‘the Queen’s english’ - tell them to hurry up and catch up with the latest generation of Japanese entrepreneurs and get some tips to speak better - or get left behind!
‘Arigato’ to all my Japanese friends!
Kx
