Greater discipleship impact with Japanese learning styles

What are Japanese learning styles? How do the Japanese receive and process information? These are the sort of questions that can help us as we think about making disciples and training people in evangelism in Japan.

At the same time, evangelism is a skill, which means the trainer should prioritize practical training and informal situations. To disciple Japanese people well, it helps to understand Japanese learning styles, which include observation, practice, proverbs, and visual learning.

Observation

Observation is an old way of learning, but it is still being used widely in many aspects of Japanese life. Observation allows a new disciple to see, process, and then explain a situation in the way they understand it, which then helps them share with others more easily. One of the reasons that observation is so highly valued in Japan is because it is a high power distance society where people regard leaders or teachers as knowledge sources.¹ Japanese people prefer to learn from a person directly instead of books. In addition, Japan is a high context communication society. People tend to use a lot of qualifiers such as “maybe,” “perhaps,” and “probably.” For students, it is often hard to fully understand just by listening, so observing how a teacher does something can be helpful. Through observation, a trainee can get a clearer understanding of what the trainer is intending to teach.

In traditional Japanese trades, an apprentice (deshi) spends a long time, sometimes more than ten years, just watching what the trainer does. This is in contrast with many contemporary societies that teach mainly in the classroom. The Japanese apprenticeship system traditionally emphasizes watching how you live your life and what you say daily. For example, in the famous carpenter training school Akimoku, apprentices are required to stay with their teacher and watch what they do, how they talk, and how they relate to others for the first three years.

Application

A Christian trainee can observe their trainer to see how they address people, how they start a conversation, and how they change topics or manage the conversation. The disciple maker can then ask the trainees about what they observed. This is also an opportunity for the trainees to learn from one another.

Practice

A sushi chef knows exactly how much rice he needs because of many years of practice. A sushi apprentice has to learn from the sushi chef and practice for ten years before he can open his own sushi restaurant.

Japan is a country where perfection is pursued and mistakes are avoided. Practice makes perfect. Practice plays an important role in the training process in different walks of life in Japan.

In evangelism training, a trainee learns to do one thing for a long time and, through practice, gradually improves. Practice is not simply repeating something but reflecting on what the trainer did and then considering what things need to change to be clearer when there is another opportunity to share the faith. It is important for the trainer to encourage this kind of reflection along with the repetition. As a trainer, create a long-term plan to help the trainee know that there is enough time for practice.

Application

In evangelism training, the trainer might encourage the trainee to share the gospel with five people instead of just one person. After each person, the trainee should have time to reflect with the trainer on how they did before moving on to the next person.

After sharing with five people, there can be further discussion about what was learned from these conversations. What things did they have in common? What was most difficult? What are the possible reasons behind that?

This is also an opportunity for the trainer to discuss ways of ending a conversation when difficulties arise or how to lead someone to Christ when they show a willingness to believe.

The hope is that once the trainee tastes the joy of evangelism, they will want to do it more by themselves.

Proverbs

Proverbs were coined by our ancestors based on their experiences and invoke the voice of collective wisdom rather than personal opinion.² They are short, compact, and contain deep meaning. In Japan, proverbs continue to greatly influence people’s thinking. Many proverbs that Japanese use in daily life are similar to Biblical teaching, which the trainer can use as illustrations. I am not suggesting the Bible conforms to well-known sayings but rather that proverbs can help Japanese people understand Biblical concepts faster and better. Even the Apostle Paul quoted a poem from Athenian literature in a speech recorded in Acts 17:28.

As an example, we can look at Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (NIV). The trainer could quote the proverb 苦あれば楽あり、楽あれば苦あり (ku areba raku ari, raku areba ku ari). It means that suffering or hard times may well be followed by something good and beneficial. In contrast, when we have good times, something bad may be lurking that we cannot see. The proverb may not fully explain the meaning of Romans 8:28, but it may be helpful for a Japanese person to understand the meaning of the verse.

Application

A trainer could include Japanese proverbs as they seek to explain Bible verses, stories, and concepts. There is also the opportunity for the Japanese trainee to identify a Japanese proverb that better explains the point that the trainer is trying to make. This process can also help the trainee learn to explain things in their own words.

Visual learning

Japanese people are visual learners. Kanji are word pictures, and visual learning is widely used to explain concepts. The popularity of manga in Japan is a great example of this. Japanese people understand manga or comics faster than words. A disciple trainer can encourage or teach their disciples to use visual learning in evangelism or teaching biblical principles.

Application

The use of hand-drawn pictures or comics may be helpful for outreach or teaching. Visual aids or diagrams, such as the Three Circles evangelism tool (you can find it on YouTube), can also be helpful for Japanese people who are visual learners. Using the Three Circles teaching tool as an example, the trainer can explain the meaning of each circle and the diagram, modeling how to draw the picture while speaking to someone (allowing the trainee to observe, the first learning style we discussed in this article). Then the trainee draws the diagram while explaining the meaning back to the trainer, and when they are ready, they find someone to teach using the diagram while the trainer watches (practice, the second learning style). Once they are comfortable with the process, the trainee can then teach believers or unbelievers using this visual learning method.

Conclusion

Observation, practice, proverbs, and visual learning are four learning styles commonly used in Japan. By understanding and using Japanese learning styles in discipleship, we can greatly impact those we are leading and training in their spiritual growth and in their outreach abilities.

1. Perry Shaw, Cesar Lopes, Joanna Feliciano Soberano, and Bob Heaton, Teaching Across Cultures: A Global Christian Perspective (Carlisle, UK: Langham Global Library, 2021), 80.
2. Craig Ott, Teaching and Learning Across Cultures: A Guide to Theory and Practice (Ada: MI: Baker Publishing Group, 2021), 100.