Bizarre English test in Japan asks students about winged vegetables, launches new meme
Say hello to the Four Heavenly Kings of Center Listening.
While some Japanese universities have their own individualized entrance exams, many of them rely on a standardized examination called the Center Test. Held every year in January, the Center Test is similar to the American SAT, testing students’ proficiency levels in a variety of subjects.
So when examinees sat down for this year’s Center Test last Saturday, they expected there to be a listening section that would gauge their English comprehension abilities. What they didn’t expect, though was for the multiple-choice answer options to be a series of bizarre illustrations of anthropomorphized fruits and vegetables.
センター試験のリスニング第一問が話題ですが、一応説明しておくと 男「漫画の新キャラ作らな」 女「野菜とかどや?」 男「おっ、ええんちゃう?なんなら飛べるように翼もつけるか」 女「ええやん」 という狂った会話の末に完成した… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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はとまる (@hatocircle) January 19, 2019
The very first question in the listening section featured a conversation between two people, with the dialogue as follows:
Person A: “We need an idea for a new cartoon character.”
Person B: “I agree. How about a vegetable?”
Person A: “That sounds OK. But, for a stronger impact, give it wings to fly.”
Person B: “Good idea.”
不意打ちwww 笑っちゃった🤣 #センター試験 #センターリスニング https://t.co/LnJKMT53gr
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✿はっしー✿ (@l_ekw1) January 20, 2019
In a way, it’s not such a bad question. The vocabulary is all pretty useful terms that a competent English speaker should be able to quickly recognize and understand, and the grammar, likewise, is all common, practical phrases. But the sheer weirdness of the topic, and the drawings students were asked to choose from, has people across Japan scratching their heads…and artists reaching for their pencils and paints.
センターリスニングのあいつ https://t.co/o0LUZFcXGe
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飛沫かもめはインターンで虚無 (@kamome_hika) January 19, 2019
The Center Listening characters have since become Japan’s newest illustrated meme, with the question’s correct answer, the seraphic carrot man, proving the most popular.
▼ He’s got a bit of a Dragon Ball Super Saiyan thing going on here.
試験開始直後に多くの受験生を動揺させたセンターリスニングの人参を描き直してみた https://t.co/Yj5gFN5WuL
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十六夜 RAVEN (@Y16d39ydy) January 19, 2019
Other artists have decided to take the entire group as their collective muse, also drawing Winged Apple Man and the group’s beefy biceped cucumber and grape bunch, giving the group names such as “The Four Heavenly Kings of Center Listening” or “The Center Listening Four Musketeers.”
#センター試験 #センターリスニング 四天王…(;´_ゝ`) https://t.co/Pms74WY09p
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yokogon (@yokogon1) January 20, 2019
▼ One Piece’s dramatic backs-turned-hands-up pose meets a Your Name-style flare effect.
問題を解かれた後のリスニングのキャラクター達。 #センター試験 #センターリスニング https://t.co/Qh4zB1MIsM
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アンダル人のゼンジ (@saladstead) January 20, 2019
▼ The quartet in the style of hit indie video game Undertale
TobyFox風センターの英語リスニング問題 #センター試験2019 #Undertale https://t.co/8t0Ak1wFW3
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𓀠たいさ𓀠(近日中に垢移行) (@Colonelgame) January 19, 2019
▼ The Four Heavenly Kings of Center Listening as a live-in-concert boy band
ライブをするセンター試験リスニング四天王 https://t.co/cabWz0u9SR
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りーる (@rarararara428) January 19, 2019
▼ Winged Carrot Man as a kigurumi-style costume for a handsome anime boy
これはセンターリスニングの彼のコスプレをしたシンジュク代表の某社畜 https://t.co/QgCeIAZz6t
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鯖🥂👔💉原稿をしろ (@saba_mtnr) January 20, 2019
武田尚作センターリスニング https://t.co/yxUByJcFrH
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あたる (@maharo0501) January 21, 2019
▼ These extra-cute redesigns look like they could star in their very own four-panel gag manga series.
ごめん、どうしても描きたくて。 センターリスニングのこいつらにヤバTのタンクトップくんを憑依させました。 https://t.co/4mYuHvEWHK
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わ ら び ど り 🐣 ヤバT福岡姉妹参戦 (@tori32_7ritai) January 19, 2019
▼ There’s even been 3-D fan art for the suddenly famous four.
センター試験受験された方お疲れさまでした! 今年の英語のリスニング問題に出た謎キャラクターを3Dで作成しました! https://t.co/iZ1YFWY4Ap
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寺井 (@c_alex_x) January 19, 2019
同じクラスの東大志望の友達が、2年間ため続けた消しカスを1時間練り続けて出来上がったのがこれ。 #センター #リスニング https://t.co/RSqAHxKT1i
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ヘルニア王子⊿ (@223yaopin) January 21, 2019
Again, as mentioned above, weird as the subject matter may be, there’s really nothing unfairly difficult about the test’s question. However, that still leaves the issue of why the test’s creators chose to include such a strange dialogue. Maybe they thought that an absurd premise without any real-world context would be the best way to gauge pure linguistic skill, or maybe they just thought that showing students some ridiculous artwork right off the bat would give the kids a laugh and help them stay relaxed through the rest of the test.
Sources: IT Media (1, 2), Jin
Featured image: Twitter/@hatocircle
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