留学生A：先生、私達の冬休みのレポートはどうでしたか。
先生：そうですね。二人とも日本語の間違いが大分ありますね。
留学生B：でも、僕の方がましでしょう？
Mashi
Ryuugakusei A: Sensei, watashitachi no fuyuyasumi no repooto wa doo deshitaka?
Sensei: So desu ne. Futari to mo Nihongo no machigaiga daibu arimasu ne.
Ryuugakusei B: Demo, boku no hoo ga mashi desho?
Foreign student A: How were the reports we wrote over the winter vacation?
Teacher: Hmm. There were a lot of mistakes in Japanese in both of your reports.
Foreign student B: But mine was better than his, right?
Mashi means better, preferable, the least of two evils.
Writing reports in Japanese is difficult for foreign students. In Japanese there is a strong distinction between conversational forms and written forms.
One of my Canadian students said, "Watashi wa nihongo wa heta desu ga repooto wo kaku yori happyoo suru hoo ga mashi desu.* ("I'm not very good at Japanese, but I'm better at speaking in front of people than report writing.").
What about Japanese students then? They often say, Happyoo wa nigate desu ne. Repooto nara, sukoshi wa mashi da to omoimasuga... (I'm not very good at speaking in front of people. I think I'm better at writing reports...).
When foreign students speak in Japanese, in spite of their language barrier; they hold their head up high and are not afraid to express their opinion in front of the class.
For Japanese students, report writing is apparently easier than
speaking in front of class, even though the students are using their
own language. With reports you are able to rewrite and make corrections as many times as you like.
When it comes to speaking though, once the words leave your mouth, that's the end of it. It takes practice to get used to expressing your opinion within a set time.
It's always difficult teaching mixed classes of foreign students and Japanese students.