Does teaching English contribute to greater cross-cultural understanding on the part of learners in Japan?

In this paper an attempt is made to answer the question of whether teaching English contributes to greater cross-cultural understanding on the part of learners in Japan. It starts with questioning and exploring the mindsets of those involved in English language teaching and leaning, i.e., Japanese learners of English, Japanese teachers of English, native speakers of English, and native speaker researchers. It then argues that those mindsets have been interfering with the facilitation of cross-cultural understanding on the part of Japanese learners of English through teaching English as a foreign language. Finally, it concludes with a proposal that those involved in teaching and learning English should not conceive native speaker competence as their goal.