Raising a multilingual children in Japan

[yankunov]

I tried to find similar topics on TAG, but it appear any relevant links.

I'd like to hear some opinions on raising a multilingual child in Japan. My partner and I are planning to have a baby in the next few years, perhaps by next year or so.

I do understand that there are no specific rules as in "you must do this or that" as every family has different values, perspectives, goals etc in life. I'd like to hear some successful stories from other language enthusiasts or expats with children in Japan.

To make things more clear and specific, a little bit about our background: I was raised as a bilingual child as well and since I'm a language (not only sex) enthusiast, I wanted to hear some opinion from our buddies here.

A little bit about my background: I speak Japanese fluently and I've been living in Japan for one year and a half as well. That said, I haven't encountered any linguistic-related problems so far. On the other hand, my partner is Chinese and a native speaker of Mandarin and she is fluent in Shanghainese as well.

So, basically I thought about talking to my future kid exclusively in one language, and my partner in Mandarin. The child will learn Japanese with friends, child-care, school, extra-curricular activities etc. So, I'm not worried about Japanese, but rather on how to make him learn Mandarin and possibly English. Since my partner is Chinese and has Chinese friends or acquaintances, I think he will pick up by speaking in Chinese to them and their kids as well. I suppose I can send him to visit her family during his summer and/or winter school holidays every year. Getting such exposure in Mandarin, I think it will make him near fluent or fluent in Mandarin. I will also make sure that he will watch shows, movies, play games, listen to songs etc in his mom's language.

How about the other language? Would English be a good choice, since I'm not a native speaker? Should I stick to Japanese? For personal reasons, I don't want to use my native language as I don't feel connected or positive about it, its culture and so on. I don't want to hear my native language anymore...Not to say that when it comes to education, it will be hard to find native resources for children as well.

What are the pros and cons of raising him in English, despite not being a native speaker?

Some people I talked to, they commented on the fact that they won't have a native-like accent. Well, that is not a problem at all for me. Many Japanese parents nowadays, as far as I've seen in big cities, at least, they send their children to language schools to learn English since young. Some or many of them learn English not from native speakers, but from Japanese people who speak poorly or poorer than me. Generally speaking, I think my English accent is widely understood by many people.

I do understand that the higher level (CEFR), the better. However, which is the lowest level (CEFR) you would speak to your child?

Well, I still have time to reach a higher level. I was in between C1-C2 (CEFR) before, but I believe I'm around B2 nowadays. That means that I should keep improving and maintaining my English skills.

I thought about sending the kid to an international school in Japan. I haven't checked some details, but some might say that it is overpriced. If my partner agrees, then, I will have less worries because money would not be a problem. Apparently, this list seems to be updated.

But if she doesn't accept sending him to an international school, then, the other plan is to send him to the common Japanese schools. In this case, I will have to be creative and find fun ways to don't make him stress about learning a third language. Nowadays, there are many legal resources in English for cartoons, songs, books and so on. In addition, I would also make him learn English in some centers, but I will check those native speakers who work with children in Japan. I also thought about travelling in overseas once a year, perhaps to New Zealand, Canada or Australia where he would hear English all the time.

What are your thoughts on implementing English, if you were in my situation? How could I effectively make this plan work in the next future?

 

[warubuta]

International schools are less expensive here than good private schools in most parts of the US. Around 3mil yen a year for the better ones. It might seem expensive, but it is, considering the cost of other things here, good value IMO.

 

[User#8628]

I don't have anything to back this up now, but i've often heard that if you raise a kid trilingual from their early years, they will develop less well in each language and be behind their peers. Two languages is find but three is too much.

If i were you i would raise them with native Japanese and Chinese and then let them learn English when they're in their teens.

 

[MikeH]

I don't have anything to back this up now, but i've often heard that if you raise a kid trilingual from their early years, they will develop less well in each language and be behind their peers. Two languages is find but three is too much.

Nope on that. That was the old theorem but more recent (like in the last 10 years or so) studies have shown the kids are masters at learning several languages fluently at the same time. The trick is to keep the situations where they use the language separately. It might be different persons speaking different languages to the kid, or different places where different languages are spoken. No matter they come out with flying colours.

I personally knew a kid who at the advanced age of five years old spoke four languages fluently. One of them was Japanese and because it was at the time when I was having difficulties learning it properly I really hated that kid for the easiness he had with languages.

We only have to go to Africa or some places in Asia and kids speak several languages and/or dialects and it is taken as normal. We westerners always think you have to have a curriculum or go to expensive school to do that; these kids are living in the poorest countries in the world and still manage to handle four or five languages properly.

 

[User#8628]

I don't have anything to back this up now, but i've often heard that if you raise a kid trilingual from their early years, they will develop less well in each language and be behind their peers. Two languages is find but three is too much.

If i were you i would raise them with native Japanese and Chinese and then let them learn English when they're in their teens.

I know that Japanese people don't have good English so you could send them to extra lessons, start teaching them the alphabet and correct way to pronounce it fairly early...
Maybe a public Japanese primary school and an international high school would be ideal if possible.
International schools are expensive, but imo, your child will have A LOT more chances in life with any privaye school than if you send them to a common public school in Japan

 

[warubuta]

Nope on that. That was the old theorem but more recent (like in the last 10 years or so) studies have shown the kids are masters at learning several languages fluently at the same time. The trick is to keep the situations where they use the language separately. It might be different persons speaking different languages to the kid, or different places where different languages are spoken. No matter they come out with flying colours.

I personally knew a kid who at the advanced age of five years old spoke four languages fluently. One of them was Japanese and because it was at the time when I was having difficulties learning it properly I really hated that kid for the easiness he had with languages.

We only have to go to Africa or some places in Asia and kids speak several languages and/or dialects and it is taken as normal. We westerners always think you have to have a curriculum or go to expensive school to do that; these kids are living in the poorest countries in the world and still manage to handle four or five languages properly.

Agree with this completely. The one thing to be careful of though is that you can't expect kids who grow up in a multilingual educational enviroment even if it includes lots of Japanese to have Japanese skills that are considered by Japanese people to be the same as kids who go to Japanese public schools. If you are raising kids here and you want them to be treated exactly the same as "Japanese kids" and not be treated as 'foreigners', then you need to send them to Japanese school through 6th grade at least. I am sure there are exceptions to this, but it is a good rule of thumb. The problem is that until very recently almost nobody spoke Japanese with an accent, and if they did, they were obviously 'not really Japanese like the rest of us'. Though only slightly different, they stick out like a sore thumb. Accent, grammar, vocabulary. All of it will be just slightly off. Compared to US, UK, Canada, ANZ and lots of other countries with histories of immigration, where half the people speak with some kind of difference from native but are nonetheless treated like everyone else.

 

[Kaspar]

Children pick languages fast and have excellent memories. Remember that the language of the mother will be the dominant one, so if I were you I would make sure to enroll my child in a Chinese class by the age of 2. As to the language you will decide to use with him/her (namely English), create an environment in which that language will be natural to the child: friends, videos, books, etc... An International nursery or a kid center will be fine at the beginning. Your spawn will grow bilingual in a heartbeat, don’t worry.

 

[joeking]

I'd be careful about international schools, they are majority Japanese students, so the English they have is impressive by Japanese standards, but it can have noticeable holes by native speaker standards. A bigger problem is that the kids learn virtually no keigo in Japanese, so if you imagine your kids are going to stay in Japan, they will have trouble in that regard, but if they were trilingual, it is hard to imagine them staying here. The big problem is not the speaking, kids can pick that up, it is getting literacy in the language(s). Becoming literate is a full time job for one language, so you've got to really find a way to make the child love reading (and writing!) in both languages or you are just going to have them reject one. Dividing time between 3 languages is going to be challenging to say the least, especially with the literacy requirements in Chinese, English and Japanese being so different.

Keeping two home languages that are non majority languages is also really difficult. Even with one non-majority language, it helps to have the child go back to speak with relatives, but it sounds like you aren't going with your native language, so where they would go in the English speaking world is a question, though it sounds like Chinese is a preferable option. I also don't know how things are with your family, but not having them learn your mother tongue is a bit of shame, as they can't get to know that side of their identity.

 

[e-smile]

I don't have anything to back this up now, but i've often heard that if you raise a kid trilingual from their early years, they will develop less well in each language and be behind their peers. Two languages is find but three is too much.

If i were you i would raise them with native Japanese and Chinese and then let them learn English when they're in their teens.

no they will only take time to first speak one language well and communicate compared to other kids but after that they learn fast and at 5-6 they are just like other kids.

 

[e-smile]

Children pick languages fast and have excellent memories. Remember that the language of the mother will be the dominant one, so if I were you I would make sure to enroll my child in a Chinese class by the age of 2. As to the language you will decide to use with him/her (namely English), create an environment in which that language will be natural to the child: friends, videos, books, etc... An International nursery or a kid center will be fine at the beginning. Your spawn will grow bilingual in a heartbeat, don’t worry.

not necessarily

 

[Izuku]

I can share my personal story with you to make it easier for you to understand from the child's perspective. My mother and father spoke different languages. I was enrolled in a school where they taught in English. One added challenge for me was my parents did not speak any English, not even basic sentences. Even parents teacher meetings were conducted with some difficulty. Now having said that i managed to learn three languages well maybe because i was young and thats a very critical point.So dont worry much about the language problem. Children are very fast to learn languages. I am twenty three year old and learning a new language is very difficult for me now. Also I developed a formal way of speaking in english ( bookish tone) maybe because my parents cannot speak in english so please ensure both formal and casual speaking opportunities for your baby ( in all three languages).

 

[jhingy567]

Sure, you can cram many languages into a young kid's brain. But as they grow older, it becomes like a 'use it or lose it' type of thing. I'm now only fluent in 2 out of the 4 languages my parents tried cramming in. Anyway, I think you've probably got the right idea. Good to have them continually immersed in the Chinese and English (preferably native speakers).

Oh, and have you checked your sperm count?

 

[warubuta]

I'd be careful about international schools, they are majority Japanese students, so the English they have is impressive by Japanese standards, but it can have noticeable holes by native speaker standards. A bigger problem is that the kids learn virtually no keigo in Japanese, so if you imagine your kids are going to stay in Japan, they will have trouble in that regard, but if they were trilingual, it is hard to imagine them staying here. The big problem is not the speaking, kids can pick that up, it is getting literacy in the language(s). Becoming literate is a full time job for one language, so you've got to really find a way to make the child love reading (and writing!) in both languages or you are just going to have them reject one. Dividing time between 3 languages is going to be challenging to say the least, especially with the literacy requirements in Chinese, English and Japanese being so different.

Keeping two home languages that are non majority languages is also really difficult. Even with one non-majority language, it helps to have the child go back to speak with relatives, but it sounds like you aren't going with your native language, so where they would go in the English speaking world is a question, though it sounds like Chinese is a preferable option. I also don't know how things are with your family, but not having them learn your mother tongue is a bit of shame, as they can't get to know that side of their identity.

good points.

 

[Sudsy]

But as they grow older, it becomes like a 'use it or lose it' type of thing. I'm now only fluent in 2 out of the 4 languages my parents tried cramming in.

Yep, I've lost two languages over the years... once completely, but I think I could recover the French with some immersion... like say three-four months in a Parisian brothel.

 

[Ettore2011]

to my knowledge the only rule is that if you want to him/her be bilingual with no problem as that you need both speak with the baby in your native language and he/she will pick up those easily with no efforts. If you mess up with this rule some problems may arise. Suggested is starting the third language later, at the elementary school where writings starts.

 

[warubuta]

I'd be careful about international schools, they are majority Japanese students, so the English they have is impressive by Japanese standards, but it can have noticeable holes by native speaker standards. A bigger problem is that the kids learn virtually no keigo in Japanese, so if you imagine your kids are going to stay in Japan, they will have trouble in that regard, but if they were trilingual, it is hard to imagine them staying here. The big problem is not the speaking, kids can pick that up, it is getting literacy in the language(s). Becoming literate is a full time job for one language, so you've got to really find a way to make the child love reading (and writing!) in both languages or you are just going to have them reject one. Dividing time between 3 languages is going to be challenging to say the least, especially with the literacy requirements in Chinese, English and Japanese being so different.

Keeping two home languages that are non majority languages is also really difficult. Even with one non-majority language, it helps to have the child go back to speak with relatives, but it sounds like you aren't going with your native language, so where they would go in the English speaking world is a question, though it sounds like Chinese is a preferable option. I also don't know how things are with your family, but not having them learn your mother tongue is a bit of shame, as they can't get to know that side of their identity.

International schools in Japan may, in your opinion, not produce perfect English speakers or writers, but the ones that follow the IB curriculum have insanely impressive acceptance rates to the worlds top universities. I know of one school in Yokohama that only graduates about 40 kids a year but there are always a few kids going to Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge and MIT. So you can talk about ‘noticeable holes’ and advise people to be careful, but the data from standardized test scores and college admissions says that some of these international schools are providing a truly excellent secondary education.

 

[joeking]

I'm not sure, but I don't think it is possible for all the international schools who say they are authorized for the program are actually authorized. The list (total of 31 schools for the Diploma program) is here,

http://www.ibo.org/programmes/find-...s.SchoolGender=&SearchFields.ProgrammeDP=true

but when you click on some of the schools, the field where it says 'Students are registered for the following subjects' is often blank, so I'm wondering if they pay a fee to be listed, BUT don't actually have any students so they aren't heavily scrutinized.

 

[kozak001]

I studied overseas in a foreign country (not Japan though0 for 10 years as well, doing the IB program and graduating from it too. If you really want to let your child do the IB program, you have to think carefully about it. If you decide to do it and suddenly in the future change your mind (going to another country, or your child isn't doing well in it, etc) then they're gonna have a hard time. I was supposed to do 2-3 years of IB then change back to my original curriculum, and upon looking at what I was actually supposed to do, I had no clue what everything was.

 

[warubuta]

I studied overseas in a foreign country (not Japan though0 for 10 years as well, doing the IB program and graduating from it too. If you really want to let your child do the IB program, you have to think carefully about it. If you decide to do it and suddenly in the future change your mind (going to another country, or your child isn't doing well in it, etc) then they're gonna have a hard time. I was supposed to do 2-3 years of IB then change back to my original curriculum, and upon looking at what I was actually supposed to do, I had no clue what everything was.

It is a challenging standardized program if you go for the full diploma. This is why it is so respected by universities. Not to be taken lightly.

 

[kozak001]

It is a challenging standardized program if you go for the full diploma. This is why it is so respected by universities. Not to be taken lightly.

While it is respected, not all know about it. For example, if you intend to go to the US for university, your final score is only like 30-40% of your application. You still need SAT, interviews (for the ivy league) and all that shit. Some universities don't even care about the IB score. I had friends where they applied for some universities, can't remember which ones, and the university literally said we don't want IB

 

[nedar]

Speaking as someone from a linguistics background, don’t worry about the number of languages. I’ve seen kids learn 4 languages growing up (father, mother and 2 local languages). What is inportant is consistency and exposure.

Children learn language in a very natural, subconcious way that we still don’t fully understand. They will pick up things from their environment and incorporate it in. As someone suggested earlier, “one parent - one language” is a good start, provided it is consistent and the parent does not switch to another language often and doesn’t switch to accomodate the child.

Exposure is the other critical point. As others pointed out “Use it or lose it”. Media like childrens shows or books helps to reinforce their learning. (Plus, reading books to children is always a good thing ) and since you’re not native English, might end up helping you as well.

The biggest problem is that in a monolingual country like Japan, the child might start resenting the other languges and insist on Japnese since it’s what everyone around him/her is speaking.

 

[MikeH]

The biggest problem is that in a monolingual country like Japan, the child might start resenting the other languges and insist on Japnese since it’s what everyone around him/her is speaking.

This is though something I have never seen happen with any of my friends' kids at least in Tokyo area. Being able to speak languages is, if not cool, then at least accepted here. Nowadays local kids are trying to learn English and Korean to be able to follow their favourite pop singers in Instagram and Twitter.

 

[User#8628]

So if you do this one parent, one language thing, you can basically never speak to each other in the same language around the child?

 

[MikeH]

So if you do this one parent, one language thing, you can basically never speak to each other in the same language around the child?

That's the beauty; you can actually even pick up a third language for communicating with your spouse and the kid get's a fourth language.

If you pick one of the parent's languages for the family communications it's OK too. So if dad speaks Japanese and mom English to a kid they can go for any language they would like to speak when they are all three together. Of course if you live in Japan and select Japanese as the family language the kid might decide to be lazy later and talk to mom also in Japanese as she surely will understand it too. Then it's mommy's responsibility to continue speaking English even if the kid answers in Japanese.

And that's actually a tough thing to do. I have several aunts and uncles who managed to do that with the first kid but then it got too difficult and they stopped it with the following ones. So the first kids speak two languages well, the others have just one.

 

[jhingy567]

So if you do this one parent, one language thing, you can basically never speak to each other in the same language around the child?

That's the beauty; you can actually even pick up a third language for communicating with your spouse and the kid get's a fourth language.

Yeah. Also there are some who try to reserve a secret mutual language (never introduced to the kids) to speak to each other without the kids understanding...
Doesnt work. Very quickly the kid will pick things up. I know from experience. Even to this day, I suddenly become fluent in Hokkien when my parents try this shit.