[sakaeyellow]

Nyororin

I think learning to recognize a kanji and remembering how to write it are 2 very different things. I think it's okay that learners don't write in Kanji. Even Japanese write things like 皮ふ. And in JLPT we can see words like 火さい(災 is beyond that level).

But learners should be able to recognize and understand Kanji, at least the basic ones, because modern Japanese is still heavy in Kanji, to the extent that a Chinese who have no Japanese education can understand around 20% of Japanese text.

Okay. At the very very least, learners must learn the basic 100~200 kanji such as 日月木水人大小一二三…If learning these easy Kanji is a challenge for someone who aims at being a fluent speaker, I strongly recommend him to think twice before investing his time.

Also, if you teach learners the origins of the Kana, chances are they will learn more than 50 kanji without paying extra effort. も＞毛、や＞也、け＞計、あ＞安、い＞以、ク＞久、れ ＞礼. Why not?

Finally, to be honest, can a fluent but illiterate Japanese speaking foreigner find a respectable job in Japan? (It is a question. I really don't know the answer.) And yes, if you don't know how to read Kanji, you are illitereate.