Message from the journal staff AIU’s Student Journal of the International Liberal Arts has come together once again with the efforts of AIU students and faculty to assemble exemplary pieces of writing to showcase AIU’s identity and qualities in the liberal arts. The student journal is a student-led editorial board with active student involvement every step of the way, so it is our pride to continue to present the works and the research of AIU students. In this issue of the student journal, we have increased our efforts in encouraging submissions by rewarding outstanding pieces in both academic essays and creative writing. Every piece published in the journal has been deemed outstanding and exemplary by the editorial team, and we hope to encourage more students to write such pieces or submit their work by reward- ing excellence. After much discussion, the editorial team selected “Single-Mother Families and the Acceptance of Family Diversity” by Mai Sato as deserving of praise for its relevant and poignant subject matter. Social change and progress are after all very close to what the liberal arts can achieve, and the frst place to start is in how we see the world and think about issues in both our societies and in the global community. “The Sino Dash to Africa—An Em- pirical Analysis” by Emmanuel Marvin Maseruka and “The Infuence of Discounts, Reviews, and Ratings in Hotel Booking” by Rin Saito were chosen as runners up. For the frst time in a while, we have worked towards including creative pieces of writing by AIU. The creative writing editors for this issue chose Ellie Olstad’s poem “Anemoi” as winner for the Editor’s Choice Award and K. Kohno’s story “Rock Throne and Snowdust” as runner-up. About “Anemoi,” the editors especially enjoyed Olstad’s style of distinguishing the characters of the four deities with different tones and word choices for each. Illustrating these deities with magnifcent images gives readers an original vision of mythology. In memory of Dr. Paul Iida, AIU Professor, Editor-in-Chief We wish to thank our designers, Ayaka Kasai and Anh Nguyen, both recent graduates of of Akita International University Global Review, and Faculty AIU, for their continued help with this important aspect of the journal. As the Student Jour- Advisor of the Student Journal of International Liberal Arts nal grows and improves, we wish to have your continued support with your submissions or with your interest in joining the editorial team as an editor or as a designer. We hope you take some of your time to look at the pieces and enjoy this collection of excellent writings. Thank you for reading! Lead Editors: Luis Daruiz and Judy Wu Designers: Ayaka Kasai and Anh Nguyen Editorial Team: Anh Nguyen, Ayuna Yukihira, Sae Tomiyama, Manami Yaoita, Shohei Tsuchiya, Kakeru Oikawa, Kazuki Fujii, Rin Saito, Kei Torio Faculty Advisors: Lee Friederich and Joel Friederich Cover photo by: Rino Miyamoto Table of Contents Academic Writing Creative Writing Japanese Bilingual Education: Why not Reform Plan 2020 and Other Foreign Languages? Anemoi (Poem) Melissa Modi . 7 Ellie Olstad . 133 Single-Mother Families and the Acceptance of Family Diversity Rock Throne and Snow Dust (Story) Mai Sato . 13 K. Kohno . 135 Judicial Review on Same-Sex Civil Marriage - Is the restriction of same-sex civil Knock Knock (Story) marriage constitutional or unconstitutional? Ellie Olstad . .137 Isana Tsuchiya . 22 How to make Donald Trump the appealing alternative Kitchen (Poem) Sakura Kina . 32 Kazuki Fujii . 140 Mass Shootings: Weak Gun Control and Preventions in the U.S. Blood (Poem) Kakeru Oikawa . 37 Ayuna Yukihira . 141 Social responsibility for crimes with psychopathic juvenile offenders Shade in Peace (Story) Leona Yanagi . 47 Kazuki Fujii . 142 The Sino Dash to Africa—An Empirical Analysis Emmanuel Maseruka . .54 Alone Together (Story) Kei Torio . 147 Possibility of Female Migration Stimulated by Education for Socio-Economic Development in Zimbabwe My Milk Mug (Poem) Hana Tomioka . .68 Anh Nguyen . 149 Regarding Mothers as Individuals, not as Tools: Issues of Surrogacy It’s a Monochrome World (Story) Miwa Nakada . 86 Anh Nguyen . 150 Elective Cesarean Section: Safe and Painless? Kana Himeno . 91 Unspoken Tale (Poem) Ayuna Yukihira . 155 Religion and Children Miyu Ota . 98 Winter Tree (Poem) Textile Waste Management: Cradle-to-cradle Design K. Kohno . 158 Satoshi Nakao . 104 Dear Friend (Poem) Meet and Eat new Meat: Insects Sae Tomiyama . 115 Ellie Olstad . 160 The Infuence of Discounts, Reviews, and Ratings in Online Hotel Booking Rin Saito . 122 Student Journal of International Liberal Arts Spring 2021 Student Journal of International Liberal Arts Spring 2021 Emerge of the Reform Plan 2020 to build Japanese students’ speaking and Japanese Bilingual Education: - Lack of Speaking Skills listening skills (Yamaoka, 2010). Commu- The current English education in Ja- nication skills increasingly began to get at- pan practices a grammar-translation method tention as time passed; by 2010, English Why not Reform Plan 2020 and for teaching (Yamaoka, 2010). This gram- teachers were trained in extra sessions for mar-translation method is the most “de- improving class content, and a listening test 3 Other Foreign Languages? motivating” method, while being the most was introduced in the National Center Test mainstream one simultaneously (Osterman, (Yamaoka, 2010). Due to such progressive Melissa Modi 2014). Ultimately, students come to dis- transformation and globalization, voices to prioritize speaking and listening skills Melissa Modi is in the Global Business program. Her essay “Japanese Bilin- like the language itself; according to Ben- have been raised for a couple of decades. gual Education: Why not Reform Plan 2020 and Other Foreign Languages?” was esse (2009), 57% of students responded that Taking this into consideration, experts written for her ENG 330 “Global Communication” course under Professor Naoko Araki’s su- they dislike English in general, especially evaluate that the government’s reforms do pervision at AIU. Melissa’s interest has been in bilingualism and the cognitive minds of bi- lin- grammar. As a result, students become un- have a positive infuence; the past reforms guals since she entered AIU, where she has met various bilinguals with diverse backgrounds. willing to communicate in English (Yama- oka, 2010). Interestingly, these are the ex- have proved to transform English educa- act opposite sort of students from what the tion positively, in various aspects (Yamao- Introduction 2014). It was set to prepare Japanese citizens Japanese government aspires to produce. ka, 2010). However, the reform plan 2020 Once again, Japan has beat its worst re- for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020; hence, the According to Yamaoka (2010), the gram- is majorly criticized by the media that it is cord with the EF Standard English Test — plan is referred to as the Reform Plan 2020 mar-translation method derives from the tra- not and will not be suffcient. Assistant Lan- an internationally recognized test conducted (MEXT, 2014). Probably, the most debated ditional attitude of Japanese dealing with guage Teachers (ALTs) and some researchers for non-English speakers— conducted this plan within the reform plan 2020 is advanc- foreign languages. Ever since the Meiji res- show a positive attitude towards the new re- year; out of the 100 non-English speaking ing the year to begin learning English; it was toration, it was a common understanding form plan, believing that it could alter Japa- countries and regions, Japan came in as 55th brought two years forward (MEXT, 2014). that foreign culture can be effciently learned nese citizens’ English abilities (Japan Times, place. This result places Japan in the “low” Nevertheless, this paper’s focus is through reading books. Hence, the govern- 2019). Nevertheless, most of the opinions band in its English prtofciency, despite its on secondary school education, which is ment and schools required students to gain seem to be quite pessimistic and doubtful of reasonably equipped educational environ- also required to have a drastic transforma- such comprehension and translation abili- the reform plan 2020. These critical com- ment (EF Education, 2020). Surprisingly, tion. Before implementing such radical re- ties to learn the foreign culture, resulting in ments are mainly based on two aspects: uni- this result is not rare for Japan; the country forms, there are countless issues and mat- setting up entrance exams requiring such versity entrance exams are not changing, has been struggling for years in English ed- ters to consider. Students are not trained “passive skills” (Yamaoka, 2010). Even the and that the reform is relatively ineffective. ucation (Margolis, 2020). In response to with their speaking skills, and the reform government believed that speaking and lis- Through some investigation of the reform such negative evaluation Japan is receiving, plan 2020 is said to be unrealistic. With the tening skills were “neither sophisticated nor plan 2020 and the current education situa- the Japanese government is fnding necessi- discussion of the reform plan 2020, this pa- necessary” at the time, in the 1970s. As in- tion, the next section analyzes the reason and ty in rearing “globally-minded individuals” per looks into the general issue in Japa- ternational exchanges became frequent in backgrounds of the two arguments raised. nese bilingual education as well: the pres- with “intercultural perspectives” and “high the 1990s, the Japanese government