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A language school owner needs a broad range of knowledge, skills and traits to make his or her business a success. Anyone thinking of starting and operating a language school in Japan needs to be aware of the various demands that accompany such an undertaking.
Many of these needs were outlined by James Gibson at a Wakayama Jalt presentation held on Jan 25, 2009. Gibson, who together with his wife Jinko has operated his own English conversation school in Osaka for the past decade, painted a very detailed picture of the challenges and choices that they faced with over the years.
While Gibson emphasized the fact that much of what a language school owner needs to know can only be gained though experience, he highlighted many important areas of concern for any potential school owner. As one might expect, these include issues pertaining to day-to-day business operations, such as scheduling, record-keeping, and public relations. Gibson also drew attention to the personal aspects of the job, particularly the need to find a balance between the various roles that a school owner can expect to play (teacher, administrator, etc.). He also had some illuminating things to say on the topic of teaching to students of various levels and age groups.
One very important point that came across through the presentation and in the subsequent discussion concerned the crucial role of a multi-talented, business-minded spouse with top-notch verbal and people skills in the operation of a successful small English language school. While it may not be absolutely essential for a small school owner to be married to a Japanese, the reality is that such an arrangement is much more conducive to success in Japan. Native speakers who choose to go it alone are certain to encounter much greater obstacles.
In a period of roughly 35 years, English will have gone from a language prohibited by the government to the exclusive language of instruction at all Vietnamese universities. A look into this fascinating history was just part of Dr. Tran Van Phuoc’s presentation to Wakayama Jalt on Saturday, November 8, 2008.
Dr. Phuoc, who is Dean of the College of Foreign languages at Hue University, began by tracing the background of foreign language education in Vietnam from its roots in Classical Chinese education through French during the colonial period, followed by Russian after the Communist victory in 1975. It is a history that not only highlights the continual importance of foreign language education in Vietnam; it explains some of the unique challenges faced by the country in its efforts to implement a communicative language approach to the teaching of English.
According to Dr. Phuoc, a turning point in the Vietnamese approach to language teaching was reached in 1984, when methods and texts developed from the ideological and cognitive-based “Soviet Conscious Practical” methodology were replaced by a more western-based communicative approach, ushered in by the adoption of texts such as the Streamlines series and American Kernel.
This shift in approaches brought many changes to language teaching in Vietnam and Dr. Phuoc focused the remainder of his discussion on the positive and negative effects of these changes for both Vietnamese teachers and students. His findings were based on results from two studies conducted in 2001 and 2007, respectively.
Although initially received with great excitement, particularly by students, the communicative approach has had to (and continues to) deal with a number of challenges. Many of the problems are familiar to those who teach foreign languages. These include limited opportunities to speak in the target language outside the classroom as well as the nagging need to prepare students for written examinations. Other problems noted by Dr. Phuoc ranged from the resistance of some educators to the time-demands of CLT methods to a simple misunderstanding of its goals.
In the case of Vietnam, cultural and political issues loom large, and these have resulted in the need to adapt materials to a Vietnamese context. In one example, Dr. Phuoc described how the content of a particular textbook needed to be changed to reflect attitudes more in keeping with government policies.
While some ideological tweaking has taken place, other more linguistically motivated adjustments have also been encouraged. On this point, Dr. Phuoc spoke persuasively of the need for a more liberal attitude toward Vietnamese-English as a valid and perhaps even more preferable variety of English within the Vietnamese context.
Such accomodations may need to be considered here in Japan as we move forward into EFL from Elementary school levels onward.
This was our first time to try a “My Share” here in Wakayama. A time for teachers to get together and share. Each person is given 5 minutes to speak, followed by 5-10 minutes of questions and discussion. This is timed so that everyone will have a chance to share. It is a good way to get a lot of new ideas quickly, and if an idea raises a lot of interest, we can ask that person to give a mini or full presentation at a meeting in the future.
Themes are various and we’ve discussed two styles of My Shares:
We decided upon a Focused My Share, with the theme of “Small Group management.” As Communicative Language Teaching has become more popular, making use of pair and group tasks in class, and helping students learn to take more personal responsibility for their work within the group situations, is something we all could learn to facilitate more smoothly.
We had a great time hearing of the different situations and management approaches of each participant. With snacks and drinks to share while we talked, it made for a very friendly atmosphere. We found the My Share style to be less formal than regular presentations, and much more lively as well! The short 5 minute format meant the speaker had to focus and limit their thoughts to core points, and the follow-up discussion also allowed for further expansion as needed, following questions from the others.
President Kent Hill’s “business team” and timed task-management approach to groups drew so many questions that we all went overtime on his turn. It looks like he will be asked to do a fuller presentation on his approach next year. Watch for the announcement on our website.
Overall, this My Share style proved a popular format, bringing teachers together in a open atmosphere to talk about ways to expand an improve our teaching. What a great evening!
On Friday, June 20, 2008, Marlen Elliot Harrison conducted a presentation / workshop for Wakayama Jalt at Wakayama’s Kaichi High School.
Harrison began by posing several questions related to the use of internet technology in the language classroom. This was followed by a discussion of communities of practice and speech communities and the ramifications these concepts have in an EFL context. Implicit in the discussion was the idea that newly available technologies offer far more than convenience and ease of access to information; they provide modes of communication that can bring about and sustain new communities of speech.
In the second part of the presentation, Harrision guided those in attendance through the simple steps that go into starting a blog. Using WordPress, everyone was able to create, design and edit his or her own blog within minutes. These blogs were immediately available for comment and feedback from other members of the workshop.
This hands-on demonstration in conjunction with Harrison’s explanation of the way that he uses a blog in his college composition classes in the U.S. provided a very concrete and easy-to-understand overview of the way that teachers might want to employ the blog to foster a sense of community among their language learners.
Harrison is temporary faculty in the English Department at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) where he is also completing his doctoral studies in Composition and TESOL. Prior to IUP, Harrison spent 4 years teaching at Doshisha and St Andrews Universities in Western Japan and served as co-coordinator for the JALT Learner Development sig.
On Sunday, May 25, 2008, chapter president Kent Hill gave a presentation on the use of spaced-repetition systems (SRS) in language learning.
Based on research dating back to the early 20th century, spaced-repetition, or “graduated interval” recall, is a learning technique that seeks to optimize the mind's ability to memorize and retain lesson content by systematically presenting (and re-presenting) material to be learned. It is particularly helpful in learning vocabulary. While the benefits of spaced-repetition recall have been fairly well known for many years, it is only recently--with the development of computer programs--that SR techniques can be fully and easily implemented.
After a brief introdcution to the theory and history of SRS, Mr. Hill provided a demonstration of some of the available applications such as Anki, Lexxica, and iKnow. He also discussed his own experiences as a co-developer of an SRS-based learning program, Words.
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Arudou Debito, human-rights activist and author of JAPANESE ONLY (Akashi Shoten 2004, 2006), returned to Wakayama on Saturday, March 29, 2008, to present from his newly published HANDBOOK FOR NEWCOMERS, MIGRANTS, AND IMMIGRANTS TO JAPAN, co-authored with Higuchi Akira (Akashi Shoten Inc.).
Debito, a naturalized Japanese citizen who has lived in Japan for more than 20 years, shared advice for foreigners on ways to improve the quality of their life and work in this country. According to Debito, non-Japanese who plan to stay in Japan for any length of time owe it to themsleves to learn how to make the most of their experiences here.
Wakayama JALT would like to thank all those who helped make Arudou Debito's presentation a success. Especial thanks go to Arudou Debito himself for taking time out of his busy schedule to visit us here in Wakayama.
Those who missed the presentation can download the PowerPoint version from Debito's website.
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On Dec. 22, 2007, Walt member Monica Rankin introduced a writing activity that she has successfully implemented in her college English classes. The activity involves the use of personal journals that students in one class exchange--blindly--with students in another. The exercise is designed to provide learners with an opportunity to engage in authentic communication in the target language. Ms. Rankin reports that the response among the students has been enthusiastic. Motivation is provided both by a sense of responsibility and genuine interest in the content of the interchange between “secret” correspondents.
Click here for a more detailed discussion.
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At the same meeting of Dec. 22, Walt member Kevin Collins provided some brief tips on ways that teachers can simplify common computer-related tasks. He showed how tables can be used in Microsoft Word to create neat and orderly dialog texts and multiple-choice questions. This was followed by several different ways that presentation programs like Power Point and Keynote can be used in the classroom. Applications ranged from games to reading comprehension exercises. Click here for more details.
In a follow-up to the presentation by Julia Christmas (see above), Collins described his own experiences using “Hot-Potatoes” software to create interactive exercises.
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On October 14, 2007, Wakayama JALT member Julia Christmas gave a presentation on the use of Computer Assisted Language Learning at Kaichi High School in Wakayama. Ms. Christmas began by summarizing the numerous ways that the Internet can be used to make language learning more interesting and effective. She emphasized the way that the Internet can empower learners by allowing them to advance at their own pace at their own level while pursing content that was of greater personal interest.
General remarks on the use and evaluation of available materials was followed by a demonstration of the ways that Christmas uses interactive web-based lessons in her own class.
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On Feb. 10, 2007, Wakayama JALT welcomed Arudou Debito as a special guest speaker.
Debito, a naturalized Japanese citizen, spoke on the Yunohana onsen case and the famous lawsuit which he brought against its owners for refusing entrance to foreigners.
Debito’s experience and knowledge in Japan, with it’s legal system and with grass roots organizing was very informative. He showed clearly how native Japanese, immigrants and foreigners in Japan benefit from working together to fight close-minded, short-sighted attempts to limit human rights for certain groups within Japan. Rather than a secretive approach, where only some may benefit at the other’s expense, Debito is living proof that a transparent, open approach helps and protects all parties involved in community projects or disputes.
It was also clear that people from other countries who live in Japan really do need to work to improve their Japanese language abilities. Otherwise, when problems arise (as is normal with people new to any country), the opportunity for local Japanese to understand and assist becomes severely limited. The burden is upon the visitors who stay to study Japan and to extend bridges of communication to the Japanese, not the other way around. Such efforts by Debito and others, in many ways - small to big – assist in helping the modern, mixed Japanese society to come to terms with its possibilities for the future.
The after-meet talk that followed at a local member’s house was also fantastic. We all went away feeling energized!
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Our first event was held at Wakayama University October 22, 2006. The meeting featured two presentations on the topic of extensive, graded reading. The presentations were by Jim Swan and Clive Lovelock.
Mr. Lovelock spoke first and outlined the aims and advantages of extensive graded reading, which seeks to develop overall language competency of students by increasing their ability and desire to read in a target language.
Mr. Lovelock summarized a number of the dos and don'ts of an extensive reading program.
Mr. Swan followed with a similarly enthusiastic endorsement of extensive reading.
Both men made convincing arguments for the use of extensive reading. Those in attendance also benefited, no doubt, from the enormous amount of practical information that they were able to provide based on both experience and research into this area.
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Swan & Lovelock:
Extensive Reading
Arudou Debito:
Otaru Onsen Case
Julia Christmas:
Using CALL
Kevin Collins:
Computer Tips
Monica Rankin:
Journal Exchanges
Arudou Debito:
Visitor to Resident
Kent Hill:
Spaced-Repetition Systems
Marlen Elliot Harrison:
Communities of Practice
WALT My Share:
Group Management
Tran Van Phuoc:
CLT in Vietnam
James Gibson:
Opening a School