Self-Introduction
Hello, my name is Nicholas Maync-Matsumoto. Please call me Nick. I am a former honors graduate of the Australian National University, with tertiary qualifications also from Canberra University and Cambridge University, UK. My majors were in Applied Science, Linguistics, Japanese Language and History, and Computer Science. For 12 years I worked as a programmer and systems analyst at the Australian Taxation Office in Canberra. Moving to Japan and changing jobs, my wife and I set up an English cram school in Setagaya, Tokyo, which we have been running on the basis of word-of-mouth for some 16 years.
The editing of research papers soon became a natural extension to our cram school program. Over the years, apart from student essays and admission applications, I have edited papers related to IT, medical research, education, business and other areas. In particular, I am periodically approached to review papers and case studies written by researchers, staff and associates at Japanese universities and hospitals. Some of these papers have been given at international conventions or published in pertinent technical journals, while others are used in-house or serve English language education programs.
Perhaps I should add a personal note. My attitude in life is non-partisan and global (stemming from upbringing, education, experience and a dose of humility), practical and self-reliant (a sleeves-up, no-nonsense home builder) and progressive (from Motorola 68000 to Intel Core). I am a family man (see Facebook) and a generalist (multi-skilled rather than sub-specialized) with a keen interest not only in science and technology but also in the humanities.
Driving the competitive edge
USS Powhatan carrying the First Japanese Embassy to America, ca 1860. (Woodblock print, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco)
English, as the language of an increasingly interlinked world, enables access to entrepreneurial opportunity and success. Fully cognizant of this fact, China, South Korea and other countries in the region are making great strides in English language acquisition and the use of study abroad programs, particularly in the US. Not everyone is on board though, with Japan showing signs of losing its determination of keeping up. Sadako Ogata, the respected former U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, warns, “If an inward-looking nature dominates Japan, Japan cannot survive. That's the reality of the economy and that's the reality of the information society behind the economy” (Speech to students at Tokyo University, Oct.18, 2010).
Japan, in fact, is not new to the need for English acquisition. During the Meiji Restoration, some 150 years ago, it had already experienced a powerful English “boom.” A radical transformation of society and its operation had become imperative at that time. Opening up the country to the outside world and catching up with the West was the goal, survival was at stake and English was in demand.
Now well into the 21st century, with globalization lending urgency to the need for communicative skills in English, it has become evident that Japan is confronted with another make or break situation. No matter what one may think of all the current trends in globalization, there appears to be the need to “be on the ball.”
Worldwide collaboration in science, technology, enterprise and commerce is accelerating. Collaboration facilitates creativity and discovery through differences in opinions, values and ways of thinking. A diverse environment produces ideas, excitement, synergy and, potentially, significant economic and other benefits. Naturally, collaboration requires English. English ability helps individuals and nations to compete and gain recognition and rewards.
In the case of Japan, what the country needs now again as much as it did 150 years ago are outward-oriented, tough and enterprising individuals, bright and borderless in thinking, driven by curiosity about the world around them and rising to its challenge.