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August 16, 2025
 

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COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 5, 2014

English fluency hopes rest on an education overhaul

Ringing in 2014, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has a dream: One nation that will actively re-engage with the global marketplace.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Dec 12, 2007

How do chimps top us in a brain test?

"We are 98.77 percent chimpanzee," Tetsuro Matsuzawa told me last week. "We are their evolutionary neighbors."
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 14, 2022

Ukraine crisis won't take Washington's eyes off North Korea, top U.S. diplomat says

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has hinted that Pyongyang could continue to test weapons, including a possible long-range missile, amid fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 23, 2021

Volunteer superfan brings message of gratitude to Olympics in Miyagi

Clad in his homemade samurai armor and topknot, Hirokazu Tsunoda has used sporting events over the last decade to thank the world for its support after the March 11 disaster.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 12, 2017

Xi, Trump talk on phone in bid to tamp down surging tensions over North Korean nukes

As a U.S. Navy "armada" steamed toward the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday, Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump over the phone, reiterating the need for a peaceful resolution to the North Korean nuclear standoff.
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 9, 2009

'No public discourse' in Pakistan about its nukes

Kamila Shamsie is a Pakistan-born novelist who was educated in the United States and now lives in London, from where she recently gave the interview below. In her 2009 novel "Burnt Shadows," Kamila Shamsie explores the indelible mark that the larger sweep of history leaves on people caught up in its...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 10, 2022

Yoon Suk-yeol takes office vowing larger role for South Korea in global affairs

Although Yoon did not mention China or Russia in his inauguration speech, he did zero in on the importance of the international rules-based order, mentioning the word “freedom” 30 times.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 22, 2020

Japan faces balancing act over virus clusters among foreign nationals

Talk of the issue underlines the delicate balance the government is trying to strike between stopping foreign communities from becoming hot spots and preventing discrimination.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2013

Firm floats alternative to TOEFL

While Japan looks to make a passing score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language mandatory for university entrance, it should also consider alternative exams that might work better, said John de Jong, senior vice president at Pearson English, a division of Pearson PLC.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 20, 2009

'Exam hell' now not so hot

The annual university entrance examination season kicked off Saturday and Sunday as some 540,000 high school students and graduates nationwide took the standardized National Center Test for University Admissions.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / GETTING THINGS DONE
Mar 3, 1999

Sorry about that

My sympathy is with a reader who used a previous column as a guide when he had his U.S. driver's license translated and took it to his Japanese licensing bureau for the easy exchange I had promised. He had studied the "Rules of the Road" handbook and didn't expect any problems with the required written...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 11, 2019

Trump clips hawkish adviser Bolton's wings in firing expected to reverberate in Tokyo and Pyongyang

The U.S. president, citing strong policy disagreements, fires his national security adviser John Bolton — the White House's third national security chief in less than three years.
EDITORIALS
May 10, 2014

Good example of English use

Perhaps an education ministry division's decision to begin conducting its meetings in English this month will help shake loose Japan's grammar-translation paradigm, which does little to compel students to communicate and understand English better.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2013

High schoolers dream of Ivy League

One March afternoon in Shibuya Ward, a group of high schoolers earnestly listened as students from Harvard University described life on their campus.
EDITORIALS
Mar 31, 2013

Testing English versus teaching it

The proposal that all students take TOEFL to enter university shows that the LDP sees the need for better English in Japan but is missing the answer.
Reader Mail
Mar 24, 2013

It takes more than an English test

The March 19 article, "Higher English test hurdle awaits ministry applicants from fiscal '15," has caused me some anxiety about the attitude of some Japanese toward English.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Sep 7, 2002

Koji Nakamura

SHROPSHIRE, England -- Koji Nakamura says his life has taken many twists and turns.
EDITORIALS
May 3, 2014

Test problems here and abroad

Recent news that two of the most popular English-language proficiency tests in Japan, TOEIC and TOEFL, can no longer be accepted for obtaining visas to Britain may have come as a shock to students, parents and test administrators.
Reader Mail
Mar 26, 2014

Employ foreigners as educators

Regarding the March 22 article "Break 'passive' English effort": Perry Akins, chairman of Boston Educational Services, is reported to have cited the teaching of only material to be tested as the main problem hindering English communication and efforts to foster global talent among Japanese youth. In...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Sep 13, 2011

Eriko Hiratsuka

Eriko Hiratsuka, 26, received her master's degree from Waseda University's Graduate School of Law in 2010. That's no small achievement for anyone, but for Eriko, who has severe hearing loss in both ears, reaching her goals has always required extra effort. Although she can only hear sounds above 80 decibels...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Mar 14, 2007

What's 'separate' about humankind?

In a sense, I'm a mind reader. In writing this, I believe that you think that I want you to think that I intend to persuade you of something I believe. Got that?
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
May 26, 2003

Casualties soar in America's war on words

NEW YORK -- During war, news manipulation comes to the fore; so does language manipulation. In the latest war against Iraq, as in the Persian Gulf War, the Pentagon sold a "Star Wars" depiction of U.S. technological prowess, blithely hiding the carnage it created. And many American news organizations...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Apr 3, 2022

Chesil's coming-of-age tale gives voice to the silenced

'The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart' is a short but heartfelt novel that tells an explicitly Zainichi story.
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 7, 2023

Feeling anxious? Wastewater, heat and Japan’s year in climate

In a year that saw Japan release 24,000 tons of wastewater (so far) from Fukushima No. 1 as the planet smashed heat records, it’s no wonder climate anxiety is on the rise. Mara Budgen joins us to break down the year in environment news, where we could see hope, and what we should be worried about....
Alongside foreign students, some Japanese students attend a special lecture held entirely in English at Nagoya University in early October.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Nov 11, 2024

Amid rising costs, universities try to help students study abroad

The cost of studying abroad, including travel and living expenses, is much higher now compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The nuclear-powered USS Annapolis submarine makes a port call at South Korea's Jeju Island on Monday. It was the second such visit by a U.S. submarine to the country in the span of about a week.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 25, 2023

Nuclear Consultative Group strengthens Northeast Asian deterrence

The logic for trilateral coordination between the U.S., Japan and South Korea is compelling. The NCG is an important first step toward that goal.
For centuries, Japanese people have been scaring themselves with horror stories as a way of cooling down during the stifling summer months.
CULTURE / Books
Aug 16, 2024

New tales in translation to give you chills and thrills this summer

Recent fright-filled releases with supernatural creatures, shrewd sleuths and creepy killers provide welcome relief from the sweltering heat.
Shibuya’s iconic scramble crossing has helped put the district on the map globally.
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2025

Shibuya, Tokyo's coolest ward, offers startups a leg up in Japan

It's offering international entrepreneurs free space, a good address and a wide range of support services.
On April 23, 1925, The Japan Times ran a story about the principal clauses of the new Peace Preservation Law that was enacted to suppress ideologies deemed dangerous by the state.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Apr 5, 2025

Japan Times 1925: Peace law has several teeth

The Peace Preservation Law was a means of ideological suppression that grew tighter over time until it was repealed by Allied authorities following World War II.
The indelible memory of being a part of Unit 731
Hideo Shimizu, 95, says he cannot forget seeing the prisoners' bloody wills scribbled on the walls of prison cells at Unit 731 in 1945.
Japanese star convicted of indecent assault in Hong Kong
J-pop idol Kenshin Kamimura leaves the West Kowloon Law Courts on bail in Hong Kong on Wednesday, after he was found guilty of indecent assault of a woman who worked as his interpreter at a restaurant in Mong Kok district in March this year.
Tens of thousands left stranded at Osaka Expo by train service interruption
Visitors rest inside the Osaka Expo venue early Thursday morning
Welcoming foreign residents benefits Japan, three quarters of economists say
The streets of Tokyo's Ginza district in April. The number of foreign residents in Japan hit a record high at 3.76 million as of the end of last year, comprising just over 3% of the population.
Hiker missing in Hokkaido after bear attack found dead
The Rausu mountain range at Hokkaido's Shiretoko National Park. A man in his 20s who went missing after being attacked by a bear while hiking on Mount Rausu has been found dead.
The indelible memory of being a part of Unit 731
Hideo Shimizu, 95, says he cannot forget seeing the prisoners' bloody wills scribbled on the walls of prison cells at Unit 731 in 1945.
Will Ishiba's critics be able to garner enough support for a leadership race?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's political survival likely hinges on whether a leadership race will take place within the Liberal Democratic Party following its decision to have its election committee canvass the opinions of party members and prefectural chapters on the subject.
Hidden rosters and the legacy of Japan’s germ warfare
Katsutoshi Takegami, 77, in his storehouse attic where he discovered his father's Unit 1644 documents
Osaka Expo highlights the challenge of holding events in Japan's scorching summer
People huddle near a large fan blowing icy-cold mist at the Osaka Expo on July 12. Amid Japan's relentless summer heat, organizes have put myriad measures in place in order to keep guests safe.
At Himawari Shokudo 2, Italian food with a Japanese soul
At Himawari Shokudo 2, chef Hozumi Tanaka serves Italian-inspired fare with a focus on Toyama produce, such as this appetizer of lightly blanched "hotaru ika" (firefly squid) served atop mixed wild plants and a crepe prepared from "yamato-imo" yam.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Members of the nonprofit group Japan Youth Memorial Association search for the remains of dead soldiers in a cave in Okinawa Prefecture in February.
The long search for Japan’s lost soldiers
By Tomoko Otake

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