TOKYO (Reuters) – “Who played the father in the movie ‘Kramer versus Kramer’?” That’s one of the 50 questions Japanese men could face in a “daddy exam”, meant to raise awareness about fatherhood in a country where men tend to work long hours and leave their wives in charge of childcare and household work.
Even men who remember Dustin Hoffman struggling as a father in the movie may have a hard time answering questions ranging from baby food to politics.
Tetsuya Ando, director of Fathering Japan, a Tokyo non-profit organization that came up with the test and will offer it to eager dads from next March, said the exam was an attracting way to get fathers into parenting. “There just isn't enough information about parenting for fathers. Through the exam, we want men to realize that they don't know anything about bringing up kids,” he said.
For the price of 3,900 yen ($34), fathers can find out whether they qualify as a “Super Dad,” or are in need of more effort as a “Challenge Dad.”
“We have received inquiries(咨詢) from fathers, single men, to-be-dads, grandfathers ... even an aunt who was concerned that her nephew is too busy with work to notice the fun of parenting,” Ando said. The image of fathers is gradually changing in Japan as younger men eschew their own dads’ hands-off way in favor of closer involvement, and a wave of new parenting magazines for male readers has been hitting newsstands. But it is still hard for Japanese fathers to cut down on their work hours and spend more time with their families. Only 0.5 percent of employed men in Japan took parental leave in 2011, compared with 14 percent in the United States and 12 percent in Britain in 2000.
【小題1】The “daddy exam” is intended to .
| A．test to – be – dads’ fatherhood knowledge |
| B．test Challenge Dad’s parenting knowledge |
| C．a(chǎn)ttract the whole society’s attention to parenting |
| D．have fathers realize their responsibility for their families |
【小題2】In the exam, the Japanese fathers may find that
.
| A．they almost know nothing about the questions |
| B．the questions only make sense to to – be – dads |
| C．there is ample information about parenting |
| D．it’s not a good way to get them into parenting |
【小題3】The underlined word “eschew” in the last paragraph can be replaced by the word “
”.
| A．a(chǎn)void | B．a(chǎn)dopt | C．improve | D．a(chǎn)dmire |
【小題4】The magazines for male readers are popular most probably because many men
.
| A．long to know how to do household chores |
| B．become more concerned about parenting |
| C．want to get high scores in the 50 – question test |
| D．like to know whether they are Challenge Dads |
【小題5】From the whole report, it can be inferred that
.
| A．Japanese fathers show no interest in parenting |
| B．young Japanese men tend to set about parenting |
| C．young fathers value parenting less than their fathers |
| D．Japanese fathers value parenting more than British fathers |
