Issues | LEARNING CURVE Mar 21, 2018
Springtime in Japan brings the sadness of the eikaiwa exodus
Budding English skills built up over years at conversation school can wither as junior high school clubs take over students' lives.
Charles Lewis
Charles Lewis has lived in Japan since 1977 where he has been an editor, writer, teacher, carpenter, fisherman, importer, wholesaler and retailer. He is a founding member of e-publisher Shonan Press. He contributes to Eye-Ai magazine and has written for The Japan Times since 2010.
For Charles Lewis's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Issues | THE FOREIGN ELEMENT Sep 14, 2016
Japan's dual citizens get a tacit nod but keep their status in the shadows
Is the "don't ask, don't tell" status quo the ideal situation for a country that tends to be reflexively conservative on issues of race and nationality yet benefits from the dual-citizen population?
People | 20 QUESTIONS Nov 7, 2015
Kalani Po'omaihealani: 'Stand firm and strive for the summit'
Hula master on music, dancing and the hula sidestep
People | 20 QUESTIONS Jul 25, 2015
M. Payne: 'Live life to the fullest, and have no regrets'
Photographer on dancing and Jay Gatsby
Issues | LEARNING CURVE Feb 15, 2015
Spare a thought for the junior-high students going through 'exam hell'
Adolescence has never been easy, but add the pressure of having to pass an important high school exam and you have what's commonly known as "entrance exam hell."
Our Lives | TELLING LIVES Oct 19, 2014
Renaissance man scours the globe for stories
Manuel Bruges has lived life to the full, as photographer, inventor, journalist, chef, boxer and more.
Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Jul 30, 2014
Enoshima: Do you think Japan should legalize casino gambling?
Charles Lewis asks interviewees in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, what they think about the idea of relaxing the long-standing ban on gambling and and allowing the establishment of casinos.
Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Jul 21, 2014
Atami: What do you make of this statue of a jilted gent kicking a girl while she's down?
Gracing the shoreline in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, is a statue unique among the many in Japan that celebrate local legends or famous historical figures: A work depicting a man kicking a woman.
Voices | VIEWS FROM THE STREET Apr 28, 2014
Fujisawa: What do you think of the new rules for standardizing English on public signs?
New transport ministry guidelines require that public signs use standardized English words to replace Romanized Japanese words. So what do tourists and residents in Enoshima think of the changes?
Our Lives | TELLING LIVES Apr 27, 2014
Hawaiian XLeague player Alo finds much that's familiar in his adopted land
For most people around the world, football means just what the word suggests: a sport played primarily with the feet in which the ball is rarely touched with the hands. But there is, of course, another version of football — actually derived from rugby — ...