10,000￥ for Good Habit

There is a interesting topic about the rule and manner of the university students. Akita Keizaihoka University(Akita University of Economics and Law) made a rule to prohibit the students from dyeing their hair brown and wearing pierced earings and also proposed giving 10,000￥(about US$90) to the students who obey the rule. In order to heighten students' sence of social manner and moral and to have students conscious of being a responsible member of society, the University made a decision to ban students from brown hair and having ears pierced.

The hair of the Japanese students is generally black, which is different from that of many of the Western. And there is some resistance against students' dyeing hair brown and golden in the Japannese society. A traditional student rule in the Japanese school bans dyeing hair brown and golden and wearing pierced earings. I think it to be one of the original culures of Japanese tradition. Having black hair and not wearing pierced earings at school is thought to be a good manner and habit for students in Japan.

Surprisingly, the University made a proposal to give 10,000￥to the students who have stopped dyeing hair brown and golden and wearing pierced earings in order to have the students take a social responsibility for their behavior and habit and to have a sence of social manner.

However there are strong oppositions to such a proposal from both internal and external various kinds of people like students, teachers, journalists, pundits and so on. Some oppositions say that the earnest students can't have no reward for not dyeing hair brown and not wearing pierced earings, while the insincere students who dye hair brown and wear pierced earings can be rewarded 10,000￥.

It is natural to oppose such a ridiculous proposal, I think. The university eventually made a decision not to reward the students who have stopped dyeing hair brown and wearing pierced earings. A good choice. I think that the University needs to talk the students into not dyeing hair brown and not wearing pierced earings. However this case will create quite a stir in the educational circles.