The Latest News in ELT

June 2003

JET System Failing
The Daily Yomiuri reported yesterday that the quality of Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) being employed on the JET Program is in decline. Among the factors is an apparent lack of interest in the program English speaking countries, with the number of applicants per position in Canada and the UK falling from 4 to 2, the level in the US for the last five years. According to the report, "Prefectural education board members said that the application ratio was officially set at two-to-one, but that in reality, all applicants were reportedly hired, excluding those who were unqualified and those who turned down the job. 'Because they know they'll be hired if they apply for the job, they don't have any awareness of being selected for the job,' the members said." 90% are new college graduates and many are ill-prepared for teaching large classes. The number of ALTs who quit before the end of their one-year contract is also rising, though this currently accounts for only about 2% of the 5,700 or so ALTs from 20 countries hired last year. The government ministries in charge of the program are said to be considering a performance-based salary system for ALTs rather than the current flat rate decide by each regional authority. Read the original article. (June 30, 2003 )

Schools Going Online
The Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications on Friday announced the start of a pilot program to assess the practicality of delivering lesson content by broadband. The EduMart program will be carried out at 98 elementary, junior and senior high schools in eight regions nationwide on a network of 3,500 computers. 24 companies are taking part, including 22 content providers such as Benesse and NTT Data. It will examine the effectiveness of the network as well as how such content can be utilized in lessons. ()

Tokyo to Toughen Teacher Training
The Tokyo metropolitan education committee announced this week that 50 university seniors hoping to become elementary school teachers will have a chance to complete a more intensive period of practical experience. Currently "trainees" spend about 4 weeks at a school, teaching and observing lessons, in order to obtain their teaching license. But the committee feels that this period combined with university study isn't enough to get a true feel for teaching. The new system will be implemented from next April, with school principals choosing the worthy students. At least one full day a week and a one-week intensive will be spent at a public elementary school. They will receive university credits for this training. (June 27, 2003 )

A Sea By Any Other Name...
The influential National Geographic magazine has for the first time used the name "East Sea" as the English name for the body of water between Japan and the Korean peninsula. In a cover story to mark the 50th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, a map used the name in parentheses next to the name "Sea of Japan." The latter has been used by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) since 1929 (at the request of Japan) and in the "Limits of Oceans and Seas," the authoritative international publication on oceanography. Attempts have been made by Korea since the early 1990s to change the name, and it was first used last year on the magazine's Web site. Japan has vigorously opposed any attempts to have the IHO change the name. (June 26, 2003 )

Reining In Ryugaku Agencies
Kyodo News reports that a new Tokyo-based nonprofit organization will come up with a training program for agencies arranging overseas studies to curb the growing number of problems between them and students they send abroad, members said Tuesday. The Ryugaku Kyokai association plans to issue certificates to agencies that satisfactorily complete the program, recognizing them as overseas studies counselors, they said. ()

Money Talks
Financial Services Minister Heizo Takenaka said Tuesday the Financial Services Agency (FSA) will continue to make efforts to boost public awareness about English financial terms that it often uses to explain policy. Takenaka made the comment in reference to low public understanding of financial jargon borrowed from English, such as the terms "governance" and "task force," shown in a Cultural Affairs Agency poll released last Thursday. (Kyodo News) (June 25, 2003 )

SELHi in Action
Yesterday's Daily Yomiuri included a feature on one of the Super English Language High Schools (SELHi) which are taking part in an education ministry English-based curriculum pilot program. The school in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture is utilizing many new and innovative ways to help students acclimatize to an all-English study atmosphere. Read the full article (link may expire). ()

SARS Fears Still Affecting ELT
A recent feature in the Guardian newspaper entitled "Just open wide and say Sars... " (or "Why language teaching has become the ideal job for the paranoid.") reported on how the disease is affecting EFL teaching in the UK. While teachers working in stuffy classrooms worry about the risks of infection - particularly from Asian students - it seems that language schools and universities are more interested in enrollment numbers than quarantine periods. Read the full article. ()

Throwaway Language
In his recent Language Connection feature for the Daily Yomiuri, Mike Guest talked about the use of "throwaway language" and how teacher talk can be a useful tool in the classroom. While teachers may not even realize that a seemingly simple question such as "How come you don't get it?" will mystify most English learners in Japan, teaching such expressions has its place. Read the full article (link may expire). (June 24, 2003 )

3rd-Level Fee Hike Expected
Among the effects of next year's proposed changes to the national university system may be higher tuition fees. A Kyodo News survey showed that roughly half of the 92 school presidents who responded predict such a rise, though only one confirmed that an increase was already being considered. Currently, students attending state-run universities pay a uniform annual tuition of ¥520,000. The plan is set to go into effect next year if, as expected, it passes the House of Councillors. The 97 third-level institutions will become independent entities and some 120,000 faculty members will no longer be classified as civil servants. The reforms are part of an effort to make schools more competitive and integrated with business. Each university must produce a medium-term plan and a government panel will periodically evaluate the institution. The evaluation will affect the amount of subsidies each university receives from the state. Just over half of the pollees said that the timing of the change is right, but 75% are worried about whether the education ministry is capable of fairly evaluating each university's education program. (June 23, 2003 )

New Resources for JETs
Two new micro-sites for the JET community were recently launched as part of the Jetset Japan site. Friends & Family assists you in arranging your loved one's visit to Japan by providing you with the best deals and Japan travel expertise from your home country. It is the one stop shop for people thinking of visiting you. Pera Pera JET is the new community website for JETs, with custom built chat rooms, an easy to use message board system and free classifieds. To celebrate the launch of this exciting new site Jetset Japan are giving away a Sony portable MiniDisc player and a Canon Word Tank electronic dictionary to two lucky users of the site. All you need to do to qualify for the draw is to register and post 15 or more messages in the next 30 days! (June 20, 2003 )

Katakana Confusion
Among the findings of an education ministry study of Japanese people's understanding of their own language was that the katakana verions of the following English words seem to baffle most people: "task force" - understood by 4.9%, "consortium" (4.1%), "enforcement" (3.4%) and "incubation" (3.3%). The most understood words were "recreation" (87.7%), "theme" (88.2%), "volunteer" (90.8%), "recycle" (91.1%) and "stress" (92.6%). The survey polled 2,200 people over the age of 16. ()

Toying With English
There is a growing range of toys that help young children become familiar with English as they play. Recently released examples include Konami's Sound Cube-kun, a series of puzzles that can be assembled into different objects such as animals, vehicles or food. When complete, the toy speaks the name of the object in English. The toy is targeted at kids 2-4 years old and retails for ¥1,280. Another toy is a puzzle imported by Bornelund from Holland that has a letter on each piece. When assembled in alphabetical order, the ¥3,800 toy forms an open-mouthed crocodile. Gakken Toy Hobby sell the US-made Odyssey Globe (¥25,000), which uses a stylus to speak the names of places around the world in both English and Japanese. Other functions include a clock that announces the local times of selected locations in English. The globe also has prerecorded geography quizzes in English and Japanese including questions such as, "What is the capital of Japan?"

Meanwhile, according to a survey by Miki House Kosodate Soken, over 60% of parents chose English as the subject they most want their kids to learn in after-school private lessons. (June 19, 2003 )

ETJ Expo Dates Set
The ETJ English Language Teachers' Expos are moving forward. Each Expo will have between four and eight rooms with concurrent presentations, and a very wide range of teaching materials on display. Some regions of Japan will never have seen anything that supports English language teaching on this scale. More details will follow from time to time. All venues have now been decided:

Oct 19 - Chubu ELT Expo - Chushokigyo Shinko Kaikan, Nagoya
Oct 26 - Kansai ELT Expo - AA Hall, Honmachi, Osaka
Nov 2 - Miyagi ELT Expo - International Center, Sendai
Nov 9 - Hokkaido ELT Expo - Hokkaido University, Sapporo
Nov 16 - Chugoku ELT Expo - City Plaza, Hiroshima
Nov 29 - Minami Kyushu ELT Expo - Jelly Beans, Kagoshima
Nov 30 - Kyushu ELT Expo - Mitaka Kaikan, Hakata, Fukuoka
Jan 18 - Niigata ELT Expo - Toki Messe, Niigata
Jan 25 - Kanto ELT Expo - Mipro, Ikebukuro, Tokyo (June 18, 2003 )

Teachers, All Change!
The Tokyo metropolitan government is to allow its 58,000 public school teachers more flexibility in choosing when to transfer to a new school. Teachers at all levels will only have to stay at any given school for three years before becoming eligible for a transfer, though principals will be able to extend tenures to up to six years. Currently, rookie teachers have to stay at their first school for at least four years. The period increases to eight years for a second school and 10 for a third, 12 if it's a senior high school. In this year's reshuffle in April, 33.4% of elementary, 30.6% of junior high and 42.5% of senior high school teachers were reassigned after serving at least eight years. School principals seem to favor the change, saying it will reduce teacher complacency and the dictatorial tendencies of long-serving teachers. Many teachers, on the other hand, cite difficulties in dealing with a new principal as their main reason for opposing the plan. (June 17, 2003 )

Princess Addresses New Contest Committee
Princess Takamado attended a ceremony last Friday to announce a new student committee for the annual speech contest named for her late husband. The princess is honorary patron of the "H.I.H. Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest", which has been held annually since 1949 and is run by the Japan National Student Association (JNSA) Fund. Originally named the H.I.H. Prince Takamatsu Trophy, the event is also sponsored by the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper. In her address to the ceremony, held at the newspaper's head office, the princess said, "As this year's contest will be the first one since I became the lone honorary patron, I believe it will become the one that will stay in my mind. Therefore, I hope you do your best." Prince Takamado died shortly after last year's contest. The committee is chaired by Kenichiro Matsunaga, a junior at Tokyo University. (June 16, 2003 )

Lewd Lecturers on the Increase
Among the 102 teachers at state-run third-level institutions who were disciplined in 2002, a record high 17 cases were of sexual harassment. The latter number was the highest since regulations regarding such behaviour were introduced by the education ministry in 1999. Of the 102, 15 were fired, 21 suspended, 35 had their pay cut and the rest received warnings. Details of the sexual harassment cases included fondling students and slanderous remarks to third parties. The ministry report didn't mention which departments the various teachers taught in, but the universities named include Ehime, Tohoku, Utsunomiya, Yamaguchi, Kagawa and Hitotsubashi. (June 13, 2003 )

RIC to Publish Children's Bestsellers
RIC Publications-Asia announced the purchase of world English language rights from Fukuinkan Shoten, one of the most prestigious children's publishers in Japan. RIC purchased 8 titles with a total sales history of 9 million copies. RIC President John Moore said, "These titles will be coming out in English for the first time to the delight of parents and educators throughout Japan." Titles include Miki's First Errand, Amy and Ken, Groompa's Kindergarten and Elphee's Walk, all hard cover books and available with an audio CD for the first time. "The initial response to this news amongst the trade has been fabulous, and RIC is extremely proud to be releasing these titles from September," added Moore. For more information, contact RIC at elt@ricpublications.com. (June 12, 2003 )

Macmillan to Launch Online "Campus"
Major ELT publisher Macmillan today announced the launch of their new Macmillan English Campus. The result of two years of development and the work of one of the largest teams of authors ever assembled on an English language teaching project, MEC is described as "a complete online practice environment for English language students." Fifty-three contributing authors, 20 editors and 40 software engineers worked on the project. Twenty teachers and 150 students took part in initial trials.

The software allows institutions to create and manage customized courses based on a range of materials that includes exercises, activities, tests, reference materials and games. Ian Johnstone, Director of Internet Publishing at Macmillan said "Most online English materials teach English to their own agenda, working to a defined syllabus, removing the focus from the teacher and the classroom. We were committed to developing an online product not to replace but to support the activity of language schools, governments and corporations. It is a product that we believe will change the way English is learnt."

MEC will be officially launched in the UK at a reception to be held in London in September. For more information, see the MEC web site. (June 11, 2003 )

Berlitz Survey
Berlitz Japan is collecting suggestions of Japanese words that seem to originate from English but lost or changed their meaning in the transition. Examples would include "consent" for power socket or "smart" meaning to be slim. 100 people will receive a set of cards based on "WordMaster", the company's free e-mail service that focuses on such words. You can submit your suggestion (in Japanese only, it seems) at the Berlitz Web site. ()

EfJET Workshop
The second in a series of EfJET (English for Japanese English Teachers) workshops will take place in Tachikawa on June 22. In this workshop, Peter Ross will present on what is usually described as "error correction." As his thinking has evolved, he has come to believe that the presuppositions behind this phrase are arrogant. In the workshop, he will, therefore, suggest a different approach to this topic, and demonstrate using some of the tools he has developed. The first part of the demonstration/workshop consists of an opportunity for Japanese English Teachers to experience an advanced language class taught using a though-provoking approach. In the second half, participants will have an opportunity to discuss the lesson as teachers. Native speakers of English are invited to observe the first part of the workshop, and offer their comments during the feedback session at the end. The workshop is free for members and ¥1,000 for "one-day members." For more details, contact Peter Ross (042-328-7943) or Etsuo Kobayashi. (June 10, 2003 )

College Freshmen Annoyed by Peers
It seems that the majority of college freshmen share their elders' view that their own peers have terrible manners. A survey of 600 students at Tokyo's Toyo University showed that 83% of those polled think that young people are rude. The most common complaint was about mobile phones ringing in class (94%), while 74% found whispering annoying. Teachers may not agree, but only 48% said it was rude to send e-mails during lectures. Behaviour considered inappropriate on the train includes hogging seats (90%), sitting on the floor (85%), women putting on makeup (56%), and eating (49%). (June 09, 2003 )

SARS Reverses ELT Boom in NZ
Various world crises have hit not just the global travel industry but also the ELT business. Language schools in Auckland, New Zealand, for example have been laying off teachers in a reverse of the boom that the city enjoyed last year. Schools that usually employ teachers for the peak June to August northern hemisphere summer period are not offering those teachers work this year, according to Association of Private Providers of English Language chairwoman Barbara Takase. She added that the deadly Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is one reason for the worrying trend. "There have been lay-offs of teachers and these are continuing. This is a real concern for the motivated, well-qualified teachers who have lost good professional jobs," says Ms Takase, who is also director of the Auckland English Academy. "There have been a big number of cancellations of tour groups from Thailand, Japan and Korea. These cancellations are SARS related," Ms Takase says. (June 06, 2003 )

Over 2,000 Schools Close in Decade
Underpopulation and decline in birth rates led 2,125 schools from elementary to high school level to close nationwide during a 10-year period between fiscal 1992 and fiscal 2001, an education ministry panel said Wednesday. Of the closed schools - 70% of which were elementary schools - 248 are in Hokkaido, followed by 165 in Tokyo and 143 in Niigata Prefecture, the research panel said. It said 61% of the closed school facilities are still used for various purposes - from public gyms to offices for venture capital companies - while 13% are not utilized at all and the rest have been razed. (Kyodo) ()

UN Looking Out For Foreign Students
The government has failed to address the problem of many non-Japanese children not going to school due to bullying and discrimination despite calls by a U.N. child rights panel, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations said Wednesday. The group sent the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva an "alternative report" on problems affecting children in Japan that the government failed to mention in its report submitted in November 2001 in which it was supposed to report its responses to a range of recommendations the panel made in 1998, the group said.

Regarding the education of non-Japanese children, the U.N. report said, "To rectify the status of many non-Japanese children not going to school, an environment allowing them to attend should be provided by eradicating bullying and discrimination against them," according to the group. But Tokyo did not touch on the issues of bullying and discrimination, and only said, "Each school is making efforts to help them adapt in deference to their homeland tongue and customs," it said. "It can be hardly said the government perceived the (committee's) views faithfully as Japan referred to them only briefly in the second report," the association said in releasing the report.

As one of the few available statistics on truancy among non-Japanese children, the group cited a 1999 survey by a city in Aichi Prefecture that found 85 of the 187 registered foreign residents of junior high school age, or 45.5%, were not in school. It also said some 30,000 children were of high school age in a fiscal 2000 tally of registered foreign residents, but an education ministry survey the same year on students who need Japanese language training found only 197 non-Japanese at high schools. All foreign nationals are required to register upon entry into the country. (Kyodo) (June 05, 2003 )

Volunteer in Thailand this Summer
Volunteer Education Network (VEN) is looking for volunteers for its upcoming English Language Professional Development Workshop taking place this summer in Surin, Thailand from July 27 - August 1. VEN is a group of professionals who are dedicated to enhancing education in economically disadvantaged regions of South-East Asia, by promoting sustainable educational development. All who are involved volunteer their time, money and/or ideas to provide professional development opportunities and support to the local teachers. This summer's workshop will take place in Surin in the north-east of Thailand, an area where teachers do not have the same opportunities to participate in professional development as their counterparts in Bangkok or Chiang Mai. VEN offers a workshop that attempts to go some way towards helping the local teachers redress that imbalance. For a small cost of time and effort, VEN teachers can contribute something towards a better future for the education of the area. Contact projects@vol-ednet.com for more information or see the VEN web site. ()

Teachers With a Conscience
The Mutual Aid Association for the Tokyo Metropolitan Teachers and Officials is engaging in so-called socially responsible investment (SRI) by selecting fund-investment targets on the basis of their eco-friendliness and other ethical and social factors. Although the practice is common in the West and is winning attention in Japan, this is the first case of a pension fund going down the SRI road. A securities firm official said, "This is probably the first pension fund invested with SRI in mind in Japan." The association, with about 112,000 teachers and other staff, has ¥84 billion yen in its pension pot, of which ¥2 billion was invested this year according to SRI principles. With green issues to the fore, companies that have introduced environmental accounting or are focused on reducing waste score heaviest on the SRI scale. The next criteria are companies' educational systems, quality of employee treatment, and social contributions. Commitment to student internship programs, the ratio of female managers and the corporate image are also considered (excerpt from Asahi Shimbun). (June 04, 2003 )

Foreign Population Up 4.1%
A record 1,851,758 foreigners were registered with immigration authorities in Japan as of Dec. 31, 2002, a 4.1% increase from the previous high recorded a year earlier, according to data released Friday by the Justice Ministry's Immigration Bureau. The number of foreign nationals staying in Japan to study came to 110,415, breaking for the first time the 100,000 mark targeted by the government in 1983. The number of registered foreigners is equivalent to 1.45% of the nation's total population of 127,435,350 as of Oct. 1. While the nation's overall population grew 2.3% in the past decade, the number of registered foreigners grew 44.5% in the same period. The registered residents are from 183 countries and territories, with Koreans comprising 33.8% of the total, followed by Chinese (22.9%), Brazilians (14.5%), Filipinos (9.1%), Peruvians (2.8%) and Americans (2.6%). Tokyo accommodates the largest proportion of foreign residents, accounting for 18.1%. Osaka, Aichi, Kanagawa and Hyogo prefectures followed. (Kyodo News) (June 03, 2003 )

Listen Up
The university entrance exam subjects that will face students who started high school this spring have been decided. Under new study guidelines, the number of test subjects for 2006 has been reduced from 32 to 28, which includes some tests being combined and others added. A new English listening test is among the additions. The grading system has yet to be finalized but it will be in addition to the 200-point written test. It will be left up to individual universities whether or not to make it compulsory. (June 02, 2003 )

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