One of my favorite commercials on TV lately is for a tutoring school.
"Yaruki" （やる気） means "a mood to do", motivation or eagerness. I like the tongue-in-cheek science-fiction tone and the main kid looks exactly like one of my students (the one who started crying during the first class I ever taught - that was traumatizing) and if there really was a "yaruki switch" I would be all over it - in fact I think it was a serious design flaw that there isn't such a thing. "A go-for-it switch, where is yours? A go-for-it switch, what kind is yours? I'll find it for you! Your switch, The switch that is only yours. Go-for-it switch, On."
This article is a sobering look at the pressures put on Japanese teachers. I've only been working here two years, and I've already seen two teachers take extended leave of absence for reasons of "mental health."
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