College graduations in Japan

I attended my "sister's" graduation today. It was the first time for me to attend a Japanese college graduation. My "sister" and I were laughing at how different graduations were from the States.

Here are some things I was surprised about the graduation:

1. Unlike in the States, college graduation wasn't a celebration for all the hard work and completion of a major milestone in life. It was more of just a formality! No cheering, no student names called out, no mood of "celebration" detected.

2. The professors, or "important people" were the focus, not the students. All the "important" people were up front on the stage and they had to make sure each person's status and position was repeatedly announced and stated. Maybe the "important people" ought to just hang a sign from their neck's stating "I'M IMPORTANT!!!" so that all that time into making such a big deal of the professors' status doesn't have to be spent.

3. It felt like the people up front on the stage felt superior to the audience. Can you believe they actually made announcements like "we would like this to be a meaning gathering, so please be quiet." It's like they think the graduates are little kids or something!

All in all, the graduation ceremony was quite different from the States. In the States, graduations are a MAJOR celebration and people are PROUD for what they've accomplished. Families, relatives, and friends all join in the celebration and we make a lot of noise. Not so in Japan I've found. It's kinda sad I think. Why isn't everyone happier and proud of what they accomplished?!

My "sister" commented that college in Japan was a joke. She told me it felt like she went back to high school and that she didn't gain much in 4 years. Maybe that's why there's not such a mood of major accomplishment and celebration. I often hear that in Japan, for the majority of students, it's for partying and not studying. That's too bad. Why invest 4 years of your life if you're not going to study your butt off? But then again, that's how the system is set up in Japan and employers want students with a degree, but don't want you to have your own ideas about things, so it works out good, huh?

I have a really intense distaste for education in Japan since I totally hated it when I was FORCED to go to school here for a while, hence my major pessimism when it comes to Japanese education systems.