I've been subscribing to the Weekly for about a year. Before that, I subscribed to The Japan Times. This is a weekly paper so it's handy to read in my spare time. The daily paper is full of updated news and articles, and is fun, but people like me don't have enough time to read it through.

What I miss in this paper is that it doesn't carry articles about English education. Could you keep in mind that articles about education might be expected by some subscribers? Still, I'm enjoying the Spotlight section. I wonder how you dudes can find those interesting articles.

I like reading culture-related articles, the National and Easy Reading pages, this Readers' Voice column and especially The Japan Times editorials. These columns are easy to read and some are heartwarming stories about life. I feel as if I received some letters from my friends. (The editorial page is a little difficult for me, though.)

Also, I'm very interested in English education at schools in Japan. I heard that all elementary school students will take English lessons once a week. I think that modern teaching methods especially emphasize spoken language (daily English conversation) compared with English classes a few decades ago. I'd like to know about the new strategy for language arts currently taught at schools.

I'm also eager to know how students gradually develop listening, speaking, reading and writing abilities. I'd like to read some articles about advanced English education not only in Japan but also around the world.

I was interested to read about China's cancer village (Dec. 20 issue). I've seen this village in a TV program that made me realize that this is very similar to Japan's Minamata disease and itai-itai disease caused by industrial waste at a time when Japan enjoyed high economic growth. The situation in China, however, looks more serious. In the TV program, a farmer was at a loss after losing his wife and children to cancer. I think we have to urgently establish worldwide regulations that strictly control environmental pollution.

The Japan Times Weekly: Jan. 17, 2009
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