An internet survey taken among first-year junior high school students asked them to rank celebrities by the statement, "That person would be nice to have as a teacher." 500 boys and girls participated in the survey, conducted by the company Superweb.

For the female rankings, actress Haruka Ayase came in first, while Arashi's Sho Sakurai topped the rankings for the male category. Professional baseball player Ichiro was first in the athlete category.

Ayase recently played the role of a junior high school teacher in the hit movie "Oppai Volleyball." She barely beat out actress Yukie Nakama, who starred as a teacher in the drama series "Gokusen."

In the men's category, Shinsuke Shimada placed second while Ryuta Sato of "ROOKIES" ranked third. Swimmer Kosuke Kitajima came in second behind Ichiro in the athlete rankings.

The survey also included a politician category, led by Hideo Higashikokubaru. He was followed by Barack Obama and Junichiro Koizumi.