Common Japanese misconceptions regarding foreigners

[Shiro]

Teachers have virtually no freedom to customise their curriculum, and must follow exactly the textbooks, including for moral education and "what to think of foreigners" (it is part of the education system in Japan!), regardless of their own opinions or experience.

In which class is that "what to think of foreigners" taught?
Where is it written in what textbook?
Tell me if you can find anything applies to it in this education guidelines.
http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/01_c.htm

the Japanese commit proportionally more crimes than the Westerners or Koreans in Japan.

As I said it before, what NPA released is the crime stats of VISITORS. Permanent residents are not counted in them. So, as for Koreans, you have to subtract 489,900 (tokubetsu eijuusha) from 625,422 (tourokusha) for estimating the rate at first. Calculate it once more.
http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/030530-1/030530-1.html

This table of stats makes no sense.
http://www.wa-pedia.com/society/fore...in_japan.shtml

This may not be annoying at the beginning, but when someone has been living in Japan for 3, 5 or 10 years, speaks Japanese fluently and is still constantly asked whether they can use chopsticks just because they look foreign is close to racism.

I agree with this point of view.

It may be difficult to believe for a Westerners that almost all Japanese believe that their country is somehow unique for having four seasons

That's the weirdest misconception.
What Japanese often admire Japan's nature for is it's distinct changing of four seasons, and the blessing of nature each season has. not for that Japan has it "four".

"having unique four seasons" and "being unique for having four seasons" are completely different matters.

Indoctrination goes so far that most Japanese do not know that 1st January is not their traditional New Year day before Japan adopted the Western calendar in the late 19th century.

Most Japanese do know 旧正月 and what it means.

The same goes with inventions. No the Japanese did not invent the telephone, not even the first mobile phone. They did not invent the CD (the Dutch company 'Philips' did), they did not make the first video game (some Americans did), and no, they did not invent the camera. The system of NHK (the national TV broadcaster) to tax TV owners to finance the programmes is not Japanese either. They copied it on the BBC. The list goes on ad nauseam.

The half of the top 10 patent recipients in the U.S. are Japanese companies nowadays. Japanese are good at inventing, as well as at adopting other's idea, I think.
http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of...ent-recipients

Japanese teachers misinform their students by telling them that all Westerners speak English.

This is plain lie.

[Maciamo]

In which class is that "what to think of foreigners" taught?
Where is it written in what textbook?
Tell me if you can find anything applies to it in this education guidelines.
http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/01_c.htm As I said it before, what NPA released is the crime stats of VISITORS. Permanent residents are not counted in them. So, as for Koreans, you have to subtract 489,900 (tokubetsu eijuusha) from 625,422 (tourokusha) for estimating the rate at first. Calculate it once more.
http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/030530-1/030530-1.html

Didn't you say that it was for visitors AND residents ? How could they separate crime statistics based on whether the people are residents or not ? If they really do separate, where are the statistics for residents ? I am sure that the 1,800,000 residents (mostly Korean and Chinese) do commit at least some kind of crimes or offences.

"having unique four seasons" and "being unique for having four seasons" are completely different matters.

Exactly. No Japanese I met seemed to emphaise the fact that Japan had more distinct seasons when they asked me "does you country have 4 seasons ?". Anyway, European countries often have even more distinct seasons that Japan. In Tokyo and most of southern Japan, there is almost no winter. It snows just a few days a year, doesn't freexe (there are always flowers blossoming troughout winter). This winter, the ginko (銀杏) were still full of yellow leaves on New Year's Day, and the plum trees were already blossoming mid-February. Where is winter ?

Another seasonal change that lacks in Japan compared to Europe is major change in daylight between summer and winter. I was used to see the sun rise at 8-9am in winter (and set at 3-4pm), while it rises around 4-5am in summer and sets around 10-11pm. This is not even for Scandinavia or Scotland where the differences are even more marked.

Most Japanese do know 旧正月 and what it means.

Alright, then tell me when was the traditional New Year in today's calendar.

Japanese teachers misinform their students by telling them that all Westerners speak English.

This is plain lie.

Oh yes ? Maybe in your experience, but many of the Japanese I know (including my wife) told me that. There has been a lot of discussion about this on this forum. For example, one Japanese member explained this earlier in this thread (see post #100 by Epigene)