Update on the Kancho: Lest any of you think I'm exaggerating or making this thing up, I have a collaborating source. This is taken from the September issue of the "Tombo Times" the English magazine in Oita prefecture.
The Tombo Times is on-line, but the newest issues have not yet been posted, so I thought I'd take a minute to copy the relevant segment on the Kancho. This is from an article entitled "Tombo Times Top Tips". It's advice to new English teachers arriving in the prefecture.
"Walking Bullseyes: In the eyes of Japanese children, from pre-school to post-pubescent, you are a walking target. Breasts will be grabbed, dicks slapped, and perhaps most bizarrely, children have a martial arts move involving joining their forefingers together and ramming them up your bum when you're least expecting it. Always be alert, and retaliation is frowned upon."
So you see I'm not making this thing up. (Although I suppose the more skeptical among you will just have to take my word for it that I didn't just make the above excerpt up. It came from the magazine, honest).
It is true though, retaliation is somewhat frowned upon. Japanese teachers can't understand why foreigner often get so upset when the kids Kancho them. It has been suggested to me by my Japanese co-workers that my "hat out the window" policy might be overkill, but I've decided it was time to draw the line somewhere. As a first year I was willing to put up with it, but now that I'm on my third year here, I just explain that I don't like Kancho.