Regarding interaction
- カテゴリ：日記
- 2014/04/07 10:08:18
What I've learned by interacting with people from all over the world is people are all different. I think it's important to discuss things and exchange our own opinions.
Different ideas and thoughts surely broaden our mind-set and make us realize people are not all the same.
In my book, it's vital to know this fact from early stage of our life so that we can accept others more easily. Thus we can live as we are.
Frost said that interaction with people living in Japan is getting more difficult each year.
I guess it's attributed to our tendency of conformity.
I wonder where this conformity comes from.
It would be a good idea to discuss things starting at kindergarten when kids express things more freely and don't have the idea of conformity.
Elementary schoolers in the U.K. and the U.S. had their own opinions about many topics including politics.
People there were always ready to discuss things and enjoyed different ideas.
I thought it was an ideal world for everybody.
Hope we Japanese will express ourselves more freely and get out of our conformist society in the future.
Your different ideas and opinions are always welcome! :D
I am sorry for worrying you. I will try to update my blog again, as well. Thank you for your concern. :D
Oh, I also like the poem by Misuzu Kaneko you mentioned; I used her message for my self-introduction in the flier to welcome young students.
I'm happy to find we are on the same page about many topics. :D
I'm totally at your side.
Different thoughts and opinions are nutritious to grow up.
I like your idea to discuss things starting at kindergarten when kids express things more freely and don't have the idea of conformity. In order to encourage them to be like that, I think it's also important for them to gradually learn how to strike a happy medium because there are many things that they need to find or create the better way they should go in the future. You are able to keep your own opinions, but trying to reach a consensus is another thing.
While writing this, I've been so nervous. I must admit I'm a typical Japanese, so I wish to be able to exchange the opinions more effectively with others even they have different opinions from mine. I hope you understand what I said.
Have a nice day!
Thank you for your comment on my last presentation. It's really nice to get sincere feedbacks from friends.
As you may be surprised, I basically agree with you. We don't want to argue nor change our own opinions all the more so with important issues. That's why we usually choose safe topics to talk. I think it's normal way to spend the daily life. However, the more I learned what happened in the world, the more issues I found we have to think about. Those issues seem to be too difficult to discuss for us to reach the conclusion, but from time to time, we're required to make the decision anyway.
Actually, we don't live in a two-dimensional world. It's much more complex, but we tend to follow plausible opinions without fully thinking about them because we feel easy to avoid a conflict by following the majority. It means we put priority on the conformity, which I felt you doubt about.
to be continued....
I'm very glad to hear you like my ideas. :D Is this what you want to talk about in SESS?
I guess many children living in Japan also feel interacting with their friends is tough as you do.
You're such a sensible girl. I'm sure you excel in academics as well.
I'll certainly keep my fingers crossed for you. :D
I really like the speech you posted here! I hope japan can become a more 'free' country where everybody can state their opinions as well!
As for my exams, I finished them and I'm just waiting for the results now. I'm aiming for honor roll, so I hope my grades doesn't go below 80!!
Thanks for your comment. :D
You're right. Elementary schoolers also live under peer pressure, especially girls over 10 years old.
One of my students said to me, "Friends are such burdens". I feel really sorry for them.
You are busy having a new semester.
Please take care and good luck! :D
We tend to feel easier among "the same" or "similar" level people and dread the prospect of saying different opinion.
As arie said " Strike while the iron is hot", I admit that education at the early stage is important.
I notice young people scare to be disliked by others and care about what others think about them too much.
I wish many people could live their lives more freely.
You're dern tootin'! I also think adults are the one who should change first.
Though it's difficult to change our attitude, as we're used to living this conformist society for a long time.
On top of that, not many adults have young hearts like you do, and wake up and smell the coffee.
I think all the children should go abroad to experience different cultures like Lala does. Frost also knows two different societies..
when I first stayed in the U.K. in my 20's, I was so embarrassed to find that the kids there had their own opinions about politics and discussed with the adults.
I didn't even know about what was going on, as I wasn't interested in politics at all. ^^;
However, through this experience, I got interested in the world crisis. It woke me up!
Direct contact with different cultures is really an awakening! :D
Adults will have to change themselves first if they want young kids to change from what we used to be in the past.
Senses of value will be handed down to younger generations just like a vicious cycle unless we sever it halfway with our conscious efforts.
Adults should set a good example for younger generations to follow, so we'll be responsible for showing an ideal route for young kids to proceed.
It'll take an unconscionable amount of time to realize the ideal new stage on which younger generations will be able to express themselves in a unique manner, but it's worth our challenge.
Thanks for the food for thought.
Thanks much for your quick response as always. :D
As I had to leave after delivering my speech last Sunday, I really wanted to know what others thought about my presentation.
I'm glad to find we are on the same page about this matter.
Somehow I don't like conformity from my young age; if everyone does it, I don't want to do it.
I'm not interested in popular things but something unique.
I have suh a perverse character! lol
It's really fun to discuss things. Hope kids in Japan will experience it and enjoy the difference.
Thanks a bunch for posting your presentation you made in the last session on April 6.
I'm deeply impressed with the coherency of your assertion about the topic.
I totally agree with you that the earlier we start educating young children in such a way that they will be flexible to express themselves freely and accept others, the more fruit it will bear in the end.
Conformity certainly hinders us from expressing our uniquely personal ideas in public.
We should have more confidence in ourselves so that we can express ourselves in words what we really think.
Have a nice evening.