The Latest News in ELT

August 2005

American ALT in Drug Arrest
An American English conversation teacher was arrested in Shizuoka Prefecture yesterday for marijuana possession. Police found two packets of the drug, about 20g, at the home of Joseph Edward Hughes at around 7:20am on Tuesday. Authorities at Shimizu Police Station are investigating the route by which Hughes obtained the drugs. The 44-year old teacher has been working as a part-time ALT in elementary schools in the city of Fujinomiya since April. The arrest was reported on local TV news.
Shizuoka Shimbun article with video (Japanese)
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Young American Teacher Missing in Hokkaido
There appears to have been no progress in the investigation into the disappearance of 20-year American English teacher Andrew Lathrop. Lathrop went missing in Hakodate in Hokkaido on August 15, and his family arrived from the US a week later to help in the search. Lathrop came to Japan last August and spent the year teaching English to children in and around Tokyo through Labo International Exchange Foundation. He and a travel companion were visiting Hakodate before his planned return to the US on August 20. He arranged to met his companion at a train station on the afternoon of his disappearance and sent mail from his mobile telephone several times during that day. His last communication is believed to have ben made from a beach area. A fund has been set up to help Lathrop's family in their search efforts.
Missing American in Japan
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Japanese Stars With an International Future
Entertainment agency Hori Pro recently formed a capital tie-up with Japan International Education Center Inc. (JIEC), a company with a 20-year history of teaching English through an international approach. In a recent third-party allocation of shares, Hori Pro invested almost ¥24 million in JIEC, acquiring 20% of voting rights in the company. The contract also allows Hori Pro to acquire up to 49% of the company over the next four years. The major talent agency represents dozens of established female celebrities, including Akiko Wada, Mami Yamase and Yuka and the tie-up reflects the agency's move towards preparing young stars for the international stage. The companies will also cooperate in producing children's educational programs and promoting the educational ideas of JIEC founder Ikuko Newell Tsuboya. Tsuboya opened the first English Studio in Mita in 1985, and incorporated this and several other businesses as JIEC in 2001. There are currently three English Studio schools in Tokyo, with about 800 students. JIEC also runs ES Consulting and the International Secondary School and has annual sales of around ¥450 million.
JIEC website
Hori Pro website (Japanese)
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Hokkaido Language Conference
The 22nd Hokkaido Language Conference will be held on Friday, September 23, 2005 at Hokusei Gakuen University, Oyachi (a 10 minute walk from Oyachi subway station). Admission is free for JALT members; one-day guest members who do not preregister pay ¥2,000, or ¥1,000 with registration before noon, September 22! The keynote speaker is regular ELT News contributor Curtis Kelly, who will be speaking on the topic "Psychology of Difficult Students." The event is a day of presentations by teachers, both Japanese and native speakers on topics ranging from teaching children to older learners, from games to using computers. Lunch and childcare facilities are also available, though pre-registration is required. Register online or by telephone/fax to the JALT Hokkaido office at 011-584-7588.
Hokkaido Language Conference registration
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ETJ Expos 2005
The lineup of expos being organized nationwide this autumn by English Teachers in Japan (ETJ) has been finalized. The expos are a great chance for teachers across the country to get together, see presentations by leading names in ELT, share ideas and resources, and make new friends and contacts. Admission is ¥1,000, ¥500 for ETJ members (discount also for JALT and TALE members at some events). Membership of ETJ is free.

Tohoku ELT Expo: Oct. 16th (Sun) - International Center, Sendai
Kyushu ELT Expo: Oct. 23rd (Sun) - Seinan University, Fukuoka
Tokyo ELT Expo/TEL Book Fair: Oct. 29th (Sat) / Oct. 30th (Sun) - Sunshine City, Ikebukuro, Tokyo
Hokkaido ELT Expo: Nov. 6th (Sun) - Fuji Women's College, Sapporo
Kansai ELT Expo: Nov 13th (Sun) - Pia NPO, Minato-ku, Osaka
Chubu ELT Expo: Nov 20th (Sun) - Chukyo University, Nagoya
Chugoku ELT Expo: Dec 4th (Sun) - Kokusai University, Tatemachi Campus, Hiroshima
ETJ website
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ACTJ Mini-Conference
The Association of Canadian Teachers in Japan will be holding their annual mini-conference on September 23rd, 2005 at the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo from 9:20am to 1:30pm. The mini-conference will feature a total of 12 presentations in four sessions, dealing with various aspects of language teaching, learning, acquisition and other related information that attendees will be able to apply to the classroom. The fee for the event is ¥1000 yen. Coffee will be served. Anyone interested in attending can send an e-mail message to our president and conference organizer, Rob Mclaughlin. In the message area, please give your name and indicate that you will be attending the conference.
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Sharp Announces New Dictionary for Kids
Sharp recently announced the latest addition to its lineup of electronic dictionaries. The Papyrus PW-J5000 has a color screen and is the first in the industry to be aimed specifically at young learners of English. It uses images of popular cartoon character Moomin while guiding learners through the basics of English. The domestic market for electronic dictionaries is said to be about ¥50 billion a year. With the declining birthrate, parents are expected to spend more per child on education-related expenses. Sharp say the main target for the new product is an estimated 1.8 million children between the ages of 4 and 8 who are currently studying English conversation, with a potential market of almost 6 million. They hope for initial sales of about 8,000 units per month and that the new dictionary will achieve a 10% share of the market by 2007. The PW-J5000 will go on sale on September 7 at a price around ¥50,000.
Sharp press release (Japanese)
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Input vs output in the classroom
In his regular Indirectly Speaking column in the Daily Yomiuri today, Mike Guest looks at the theme of input-output in the classroom. He examines the idea, commonly held in Japan, that students have already "been fed enough 'input' but are weak in interactive skills only because they haven't had enough chances to practice them." He points out that in many cases the quality of this input is not very meaningful and often hardly even qualifies as language input. It is then followed by an over-emphasis on output, with students often simply end up repeating the same mistakes over and over. What is needed, says Guest, is "massive amounts of...comprehensible, meaningful, interesting and extended input."
Indirectly Speaking: Input vs output in the classroom (link will expire)
ELT News Think Tank - Increasing input in the classroom
ELT News Think Tank - Increasing output in the classroom
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ERF Announces Award Winners
The Extensive Reading Foundation recently announced the winners of the 2005 Language Learner Literature Awards, according to Richard Day of the University of Hawai'i and chair of the non-profit organization. The awards are for the best readers published in 2004 and were chosen from books nominated by publishers around the world. They were juried and the finalists underwent Internet-based voting. Although the ERF is a world-wide organization, the awards will be presented at the JALT2005 conference in Shizuoka in October, since that is the first major ELT conference after the award announcement. The awards will be presented at the end of the ELT News Think Tank Live event on Saturday, October 8. And the winners are... (photo shows the award recipients from 2004)
ELT News feature on the award winners
Extensive Reading Foundation website
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Language Learning Industry Sees Small Drop
The language learning industry as a whole decreased in fiscal 2004, according to a recent survey. The survey, carried out this spring by Yano Research Institute, found that the industry as a whole (language schools, materials and peripheral businesses) was worth over ¥630 billion. This was a decrease of 2% from the previous year. The drop was caused mainly by the May 2003 changes in the government's subsidy system that covered much of the cost of studying, and which was heavily featured in the marketing of the major eikaiwa schools. School revenues make up over 40% of the overall industry total, and maintaining student numbers has become increasingly difficult. The survey found that study of the Korean and Chinese languages are on the increase however, up 19% and 2.9% respectively.
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August News Roundup
This is a brief summary of some ELT-related stories that appeared during our holiday month.

- On the topic of new deregulation zones, Saitama City plans to start English conversation classes at five elementary schools and two junior high schools from September, with all public schools joining the program by 2008. Junior high students will have classes based around native English-speaking teachers. Classes will teach not only language but also international culture and customs.

- A recently discovered notebook records the thoughts of students at Doshisha University in the days before they were drafted into the military in WW2. They were members of a group that studied English, a taboo at the time. The university has its roots in one of Japan's first English language schools, and the irony of the students' passion for the language of their enemy was not lost on them.
Notebook records thoughts of English study group members who were sent off to war

- The Shizuoka Shimbun carried an article on the growing number of new eikaiwa schools in the prefecture - a 10% increase in the last three years. It mentioned several schools which have been started up in the last couple of years by Japanese teachers or former teachers of English: Englishbox in Shizuoka City, ESL College in Hamamatsu, and Happii English in Yaizu.
Article in Japanese

- The campus of the recently opened Digital Hollywood University, run by the operator of a vocational school for people hoping to work in IT, is a whole floor of a new high rise in the rejuvenating Akihabara district of Tokyo. A feature of the school is that it allows its third-year students to study for a year abroad, so the emphasis for freshmen - whose entrance ceremony is held in Los Angeles - is on English study. Students have lessons with native English-speaking teachers five days a week.

- Amy Chavez, who writes the regular Japan Lite column in the Japan Times, related a story of a pointless teaching job interview. Her story also offered an intriguing though frustratingly incomplete insight into her fascination with cows!

- The Tokyo-based Model Language Studio (MLS), a language school that uses drama to teach English, recently participated in a theater production in Santa Monica, California. 'Hands Across the Sea' is described as "a family-friendly bilingual musical journey of discovery of the differences, and similarities, of cultures 8,000 apart." The production was created by MLS artistic director Masa Ota and performed at the Santa Monica Playhouse. MLS has over 5,000 pupils attending its 40 centers throughout the capital. (August 22, 2005 )

Gearing Up for JALT 2005
The annual JALT (Japan Association for Language Teaching) conference will be held in Shizuoka from Oct. 8-10. The conference co-chairs Rob Waring and Marc Helgesen (a regular contributor to the ELT News Think Tank) outlined some of the special features this year:

The JALT 2005 theme is "Sharing our Stories". We have tried to interpret this in many different ways. Firstly, JALT 2005 is a place for the presenters and publishers to share their stories. To that end we have three fine plenary speakers - David Nunan, Jennifer Basset and Torikai Kumiko - who will be able to share with you their insights. In addition, there are many special events during the conference which are connected:
- The "story space" on Sunday featuring storytelling activities;
- Stories, Jazz, Wine & Cheese. A storytelling entertainment event on Sunday evening. Cash bar;
- A Speaker's Corner;
- The ELT News Think Tank Live event where the expert panelists will share their experiences and insights. This is followed by the party (and you're sure to hear stories from old and new friends there!);
- In addition to the hundreds of regular presentations, posters and symposiums, JALT2005 has Discussion Sessions. In these sessions the presenter sets a few questions for the audience to discuss and share ideas with everyone;
- Ask the Experts session on Sunday at 5pm. Everyone is invited to ask questions and share their stories with experts from many fields;
- Preconference "skills upgrade" sessions will introduce teachers to NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming), teach computer skills such as Powerpoint and basic website construction for beginners and higher level computers skills such as Moodle, and managing digital sound for other teachers.

People can preregister for the conference before Sept. 9 at discounted rates. Information is available at:
JALT 2005 website
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"EasyTech Challenge" - English + ICT for Kids
Kyoiku Solutions, a Japan NPO focused on the development and use of educational software in K-12 education, will begin in September a pilot offering of the US-based IT skills curriculum EasyTech by Learning.com. The pilot project, called "EasyTech Challenge," will offer free use of the EasyTech system to 2000 students for 3 months to schools and individuals in Japan. (Closing August, 2005)

Learning.com has implemented the EasyTech curriculum in 23 states and 8 countries over the past four years, with over 30,000 teachers and nearly 1.5 million students learning to integrate IT skills into fundamental school instruction. EasyTech is the only IT skills education platform in the US to meet or exceed all of the NETS standards established by the US-based NPO, International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).

Kyoiku Solutions will hold three seminars in August (6, 18, 24) for educators interested in EasyTech and "EasyTech Challenge". For more information please contact Kyoiku Solutions by e-mail or tel: 03-5645-5311 (EasyTech Challenge desk).
Kyoiku Solutions website
Learning.com website
International Society for Technology in Education website
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Call for TOEIC Research Proposals
The Institute for International Business Communication (IIBC) is inviting research proposals from organizations and individuals that would make use of the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC), TOEIC Bridge and their related services. IIBC are seeking research proposals for a variety of subjects, including score interpretation, natural language usage, curriculum development, innovative response formats, and the definition of language constructs. In an effort to continue providing quality research, IIBC has formed a research committee to establish and direct a program in support of TOEIC research.

The deadline for submissions is October 31, 2005. For additional information regarding either the research agenda or the procedures for submitting funding proposals for related research, see the TOEIC Japan website.
TOEIC Japan
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