Speaking Japanese in class

The following is a true story I've retold dozens of times. I've written down the incident because it should help explain why we do some of the things we do.

A parent once came up to me asking why we bother to speak Japanese in class. I'm not Japanese, her son is not Japanese, and we're not in Japan. The Japanese are simply speaking their native language. We're in America, so why not just speak English?

The basic reason I've always read is that wearing a uniform, following specific rituals, and speaking a foreign language are all designed to make the student realize that what they're learning is 'special'. While partially true, that answer never fully satisfied me, so I knew that answer would not satisfy the parent.

I explained to the mother that her son is learning something about another culture. We touch on Japanese history and language. It is an attempt to force the student to think, as we train the mind as well as the body. We work on discipline - mental and physical. These are skills that can be applied outside the dojo into the student's school work and other areas for the rest of his life.

I then further explained how speaking commands in Japanese inside the dojo specifically relate to self-defense skills:
A student hears the Japanese phrase, recognizes what it means, decides what is the appropriate action to take, and takes the action.

This same four-step thought process occurs in self-defense:
A student sees an attack coming at him, recognizes what is happening, decides what is the appropriate action to take, and takes the action.