http://www.eltnews.com/news/ Keep up to date with all the news and developments in English teaching, in Japan and around the world.This page contains stories from the last seven days. Click on the calendar to the right to see any news stories from this month. They will open in a new window. en Copyright 2012 Mon, 07 May 2012 08:11:14 +0900 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss
Read more at the Daily Yomiuri ]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/05/toeics_populari.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/05/toeics_populari.html Mon, 07 May 2012 08:11:14 +0900 ELTBOOKS.com, a discount online book service selling English teaching books, has added the Extensive Reading Foundation's free Guide to Extensive Reading to its catalogue, making it available for no charge at all to new and existing customers. Customers can order as many copies as they need, with ELTBOOKS paying for the shipping.

Currently, only the Japanese version is available as a brochure, whereas the English version can be downloaded as a PDF from ER Foundation. Matthias Reich, president of ELTBOOKS, commented: "The ER Foundation's Extensive Reading guide is an excellent introduction to the topic, and it's great to see this guide be made available in Japanese as well, so that every Japanese English teacher can easily get an idea of what Extensive Reading is about. In order to make this guide available to everyone, we are happy to cover the shipping fee. Every teacher is welcome to order copies for their fellow Japanese colleagues."

See also:
• Order Site for the Extensive Reading Guide (Japanese version)
• Download Extensive Reading Guide (PDF, English version)
• Extensive Reading Foundation Website
• ELTBOOKS
]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/04/free_guide_to_extensive_reading.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/04/free_guide_to_extensive_reading.html Tue, 03 Apr 2012 09:56:49 +0900 The Sendai chapter of JALT is organizing two presentations on Extensive/Graded Reading next Sunday (25 March 2012) in Sendai.
The presentations are sponsored by ELTBOOKS.com and will be held by our very own Russell Willis about Issues in the Design of Extensive Readers for the iPhone and by Ken Schmidt (Tohoku Fukushi University) about Building a Course in Extensive Reading for Non-English Majors.

These presentations are not limited to members but can be visited by everyone interested.
Pre-registered teachers are entitled to free admission and to a triple chance to win prizes.

See also:
• Pre-Registration form
• JALT Sendai site with further details about the venue, time, and presentation contents
• ELTBOOKS.com
]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/03/jalt_sendai_lec.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/03/jalt_sendai_lec.html Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:22:37 +0900 We're on holiday until March 28th, when we'll be back with all the important news related to English teaching in Japan. http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/02/were_on_holiday.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/02/were_on_holiday.html Thu, 23 Feb 2012 02:34:39 +0900 Speakers wanted for TEDxTeachers event on March 2nd
Many people will be familiar with the TED and TEDx (e.g. TEDxTokyo) events, where inspirational speakers give talks to remember and via Tom Sweeney at Pearson we hear that the world's first TEDxTeachers event is to be hosted at the Tokyo International School on March 2nd. There are a few slots left for speakers. There is no charge and the event includes food and drinks so is tough to pass up :) For more information visit the TEDxTeachers page here.

Japan Loves English on Valentine's Day
On this most romantic of days, English has captured the heart of Japan. After a 4-day special promotion by language-learning portal site eigoTown.com, the Oxford Bookworms-based Alice in Wonderland and Sherlock Holmes apps have taken the top positions in the iTunes charts, with Alice becoming the best-selling iOS application in Japan, topping both the iPhone and iPad charts on iTunes.

The apps are a collaboration between cutting-edge software developer iEnglish.com Limited and the venerable Oxford University Press, and feature specially written versions of classics such as Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, Aladdin and Anne of Green Gables. iEnglish president Russell Willis -- a Brit -- devised a special Valentine's day promotion for the apps and commented: "We set out to play cupid on Valentine's Day, and bring English and Japan together, and it does seem that Japan loves English!" With thousands of English-learning iEnglish-developed apps now being bought each day in Japan, and Alice being the No.1 app in Japan, it looks like the matchmaking was a success.

British School in Tokyo rated "Excellent"
The British School in Tokyo (BST) is celebrating success after being confirmed as an “excellent” education facility, the highest mark possible, by a team of independent inspectors from the International Schools Inspectorate (ISI). The Japan School News site has the story. If only there were such a system to confirm the quality of English schools in Japan, students would get a much better deal.

Stephen Krashen to Speak at JALT Extensive Reading Seminar
The JALT Extensive Reading SIG has announced the Fifth Annual Extensive Reading in Japan Seminar. There will be a full day of speakers, including plenaries from Stephen Krashen and Junko Yamanaka, as well as a wide range of books on display. The SIG has also announced a call for papers. For more information visit the Extensive Reading Foundation website.

Kameoka Diaries Part 5
The fifth installment of award-winning cartoonist Lars Martinson's Kameoka Diaries is now online. Lars is the author behind Tonoharu an acclaimed graphic novel concerning the life a JET teacher in a small town in Japan.]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/02/the_week_in_eng_3.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/02/the_week_in_eng_3.html Tue, 14 Feb 2012 08:46:45 +0900

For more frequent updates and breaking news, please "Like" our Facebook page.

Grammar Books Not Implements of Torture But Humanitarian Aids
Raymond Murphy, the author of the ubiquitous English Grammar in Use has received and honarary MA from Cambridge University. In a press release the University recognized Murphy's contribution to ELT but also honoured him for -- through his grammar books -- being "a quite exceptional humanitarian". The fourth edition of English Grammar in Use is out in February and you can read the ELTNEWS.com interview with Murphy from last year here

Week 4 of the Kameoka Diaries by Lars Martinson
Lars Martinson is still teaching in Japan on the JET scheme and is very cold. Follow the Japan teaching adventures of this award-winning graphic novelist on his site.

40% of Universities Mull Shifting Aademic Year
More than 40 percent of the national universities are warming to the University of Tokyo plan to shift the start of the undergraduate academic year from spring to fall, a survey found.

"Only" 11% of Japanese Middle School Students Want to Get a Job Using English
The Daily Yomiuri reports: "Seventy percent of middle school students think English ability would be useful for obtaining a job in the future, but only 11 percent want to get a job that requires English, according to an education ministry institute survey, with 43 percent asserting, "I don't want to get a job that requires English skills," up from 36 percent in the previous survey.Kenji Miyauchi, head of the research and development section at the institute's Curriculum Research Center, said, "[Students] are keenly aware of the importance of English in this age of globalization, but at the same time, they don't seem to want to study English or they think it's troublesome to do so."

Clearly the students haven't been made aware of the dire consequences of not speaking English as outlined in the following story...

Megan Fox and Mike Tyson selling English in Brazil
Transformers star Megan Fox, and boxing bad boy Mike Tyson team up to explain to the youth of Brazil the consequences of having the atttitudes of their Japanese counterparts in this interesting video sponsored by an English school chain.

Yes, English is Crazy
If you think English school ads are weird, then blame it on the language. A poem makes the rounds:

Let’s face it – English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger;
Neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren’t invented in England.
We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,
We find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square,
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

and much more...

TOEFL has YouTube Channel
If the Megan Fox/Mike Tyson video has your students desperate to learn, then they might be interested in the TOEFL YouTube site with hints and tips on how to pass the test.

English is an Optimistic Language
We'll leave on a positive note and see how English predisposes its speakers to be positive and pro-social. Or is that the other way around?

For more frequent updates and breaking news, please "Like" our Facebook page.

]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng_2.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng_2.html Mon, 30 Jan 2012 07:06:52 +0900

For more frequent updates and breaking news, please "Like" our Facebook page.

Fun Phonics for Free
ELTBOOKS.com announced that while stocks last, their customers can get 1 free copy of Fun Phonics Readers for each 5 copies ordered. Greg Crawford's Fun Phonics Readers support the syllabus of Finding Out and other phonics-based courses.

Oxford Teaching Workshops
OUP Japan announced that its series of Teaching Workshops would begin on Sunday, February 5th in Sendai and invited teachers of children to pre-register. The Workshops will be held in 11 cities around the country.

Free English Tests for Some Students
The Japanese education ministry announced that it will pick up the tab for students at selected publich high schoools to take Eiken and other English proficiency tests. Japanese students have not done well on international tests with Japan ranking 27th out of 30 Asian countries on the TOEFL. The Daily Yomiuri has the full story. Any bets on how successful this new plan by those brilliant minds at the ministry will be?

English Camp Becomes God Camp in Mexico
The New York Times reported on American university students being duped into volunteering for what they thought was an English teaching camp in Mexico only to find themselves part of "a much different and larger agenda centered on the religious theories of Ock Soo Park, a Korean preacher and founder of Good News Corps, with 300 churches in Korea and 120 churches in 43 other countries. The gullibility of these teachers leads us to suspect they may well be signing up for some "TEFL Certificate" training courses soon...

Cambridge Boss to Step Down
Another big change at the top for CUP. Last week, Dr. Richard Ziemacki stepped down as managing director of its US operation after 37 years at the press. This week the Chief Executive, Stephen Bourne (pictured above), announced he's leaving at the end of April. Bourne, a Chartered Accountant, joined the Press in 1997, and became Chief Executive in 2002. The Press Syndicate, made up of 18 senior academics from the University of Cambridge has begun the process of selecting Bourne’s successor.

Bits and Bobs
Abax moved to bigger offices -- across the hall. iEnglish (sister company of ELT Services Japan, which owns ELTNEWS.com) annouced it would offer services to support those wishing to publish textbooks using Apple's iBook Author. We announced that our jobs page is now completely free to advertise on for schools and publishers in Japan. Lars Martinson released the third installment of his "Kameoka Diaries", his take on the life of JET in Japan.

For more frequent updates and breaking news, please "Like" our Facebook page.

]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng_1.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng_1.html Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:06:40 +0900 From this week onwards, ELTNEWS.com will be rounding up notable news from the world of language learning and ELT and publishing them here. For more frequent updates, please check out our Facebook page.

FT on Language Books
The Financial Times rounded up and reviewed a selection of notable books on language, including David Crystal's The Story of English in 100 Words and David Bellos' Is That a Fish in Your Ear?

Big in China
Pearson-owned Wall Street English confirmed it will open 15 new English schools in China, taking its total to 70 whilst EF which has nearly 150 centres in more than 50 cities, plans to open 200 new premises. Disney now runs 30 schools in Japan, aimed at children.

Grammar Comics
We discovered a delightful series of comic strips that amusingly and effectively covered issues such "Ten Worlds You Need to Stop Misspelling" and "How to Use a Semi-Colon".

Signs and Apostrophes
Language Log covered some rather shocking "Sale!" signs in Japan and looked at how Japanese is also being misused in a similar way. LL also had some interesting comments on the Waterstone's / Waterstones rebranding and the debate that ensued on the apostrophe on Radio 4. Peter Viney updated an article of his on "Intelligent Apostrophes and Dumb Apostrophes" for his blog.

New CUP Head
Cambridge University Press said goodbye to Dr. Richard Ziemacki, the president of its US operations who worked for 37 years for the press. To replace him, Michael Peluse has joined the New York office as Managing Director and will also serve as global Managing Director for English Language Teaching, a division which accounts for over a third of Cambridge's publishing sales revenue.

Hilary Takes on British Council
The US state department announced it would be seeking to promote its ELT expertise more aggressively to help meet the growing demand for language learning. The department's partner for what is being seen as a shift in strategy will be the main US ELT professional association Tesol, which has 9,000 members in the US and a further 3,000 abroad. The new partnership is likely to be similar to the model created by the British Council, the UK government-sponsored cultural and education promotion organisation, which actively markets UK ELT goods and services internationally and sells its own language courses and tests. Tesol spokesman John Segota acknowledges that US ELT providers have lagged behind the UK's export efforts, in part because they have been occupied with the massive domestic ELT market.

Lexile for TOEIC
In Japan, MetaMetrics partnered with with the Institute for International Business Communication (IIBC). The Lexile English Reading Guide is now offered through IIBC and provides TOEIC test-takers in Japan with access to a personal library of targeted books and a limited number of daily recommended articles. To date, more than 3,600 Japanese TOEIC test takers have registered for this free service.

More Great JET Comics
Cartoonist Lars Martinson released the second of his "Kameoka Diaries". The author of the Tonoharu graphic novel is back teaching on the JET scheme.

ELTNEWS Partners with Newsweek
ELTNEWS.com teamed up with Newsweek to offer the cheapest subscription rates in Japan for the venerable weekly. Teachers and schools can now become "resellers" of Newsweek by providing their students with a special code that provides a special student discount for subscriptions ordered from ELTNEWS.com]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/the_week_in_eng.html Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:44:08 +0900 Lars Martinson, the award-winning author of Tonoharu is back teaching in Japan for the second time on the JET scheme. What has he been up to? Well, he's published a delightful little strip based on his experiences so far: The Kameoka Diaries which can be viewed on his website or downloaded for free.

Martinson,who hails from Minnesota in the US midwest, won a Xeric Foundation award to publish Tonoharu, the intricately-drawn graphic novel based on his first teaching stint in Japan. The book generated a large wave of publicity, being featured in Entertainment Weekly, The Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly, amongst others.]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/free_comics_abo.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/free_comics_abo.html Fri, 06 Jan 2012 08:15:32 +0900 Lake Superior University has released its list of banished words for 2012, including "blowback", "occupy" and amazingly, "amazing". The small public university on the border with Canada releases an annual list based on nominations from word-watchers around the United States. The "List of Words and Phrases Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness" for 2012 is as follows:

• amazing
• baby bump
• shared sacrifice
• occupy
• blowback
• man cave
• the new normal
• pet parent
• win the future
• trickeration
• ginormous
• thank you in advance

CNN's Anderson Cooper received blowback as a ginormous user of the word "amazing". The Lake Superior website has more details on why we should make the shared sacrifice to win the future and make the avoidance of these words the new normal. The university thanks you in advance for visiting their site. ]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/blowback_from_l.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2012/01/blowback_from_l.html Thu, 05 Jan 2012 08:01:49 +0900 ELTNEWS.com is closing down for the holidays and we will be back posting news etc. from January 5th onwards.

Any major breaking news or events will be covered on our Facebook page, so if you haven't done so, please visit us there and "Like" the page.

Best wishes to all in ELT for a fabulous Xmas and a productive and educational new year.

(The cute reindeer is Elly, the star of our sister company's new "Elly the Reindeer" iPhone app. See the previous news item for more information.) ]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/have_a_merry_xm.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/have_a_merry_xm.html Thu, 22 Dec 2011 06:14:31 +0900 eigoTown has published the first iOS app in a series of adventures based on the popular international children's character Elly. Russell Willis, president of eigoTown commented: "The Elly series is ideal as a parent and child reader. For parents looking to bring up bilingual children, the story can be read and listened to in both Japanese and English, simply by swiping the screen up and down. Children will love meeting Elly and all her cute friends, and will want to read the simple, fun, easy-to-follow story again and again."

Elly has already become a hit in over 30 countries around the world, and the new app sees the story translated into Japanese for the first time.

The app features a specially-designed dual-language function - when the child swipes up and down, the story switches between Japanese and English. Both modes come with story narration, sound effects, and illustrations.

Features include:
• 'Read it myself' function for children to read alone or with their parents
• 'Read to me' autoplay function with English and Japanese narration
• Large, colourful illustrations
• Sound effects in every scene
• A word list at the end of the story to help improve your child's vocabulary

Elly creator, Jon Higham, is a published author and illustrator who has created work for a wide range of children's publishers including the BBC, Macmillan, Methuen, and Walker Books. The app is available from Apple's iTunes store for both iPhone and iPad and costs ¥85 yen in Japan and $0.99 in the US.]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/eigotown_releas.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/eigotown_releas.html Wed, 21 Dec 2011 07:29:01 +0900 The Independent on Sunday has published a list list of the 50 Britons who it thinks did most to lift the mood of the nation in difficult times. Amongst the list (which includes pop stars, politicians and authors) – is Robert Bailey from Lincolnshire who was hailed a hero after saving his class of 42 from the Japanese tsunami in March.

With only 8 minutes until the giant wave hit, Bailey led his class to safety as the coastal town of Ofunato was swept away around them. While other expats came home after the disaster, Bailey stayed behind to help find survivors.

The full list is on the Independent on Sunday's website.

The Daily Mail also featured Robert back in March this year, just after the earthquake and tsunami.]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/british_english_1.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/british_english_1.html Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:40:54 +0900 Takako Yamaguchi (center) receives her prizes from the director of the British Council (left) at the live BritQuiz event held at the Britsh Embassy in Tokyo.

The British Council has announced that Takako Yamaguchi from Fuchu in Tokyo has become the Igirisu Expert 2011 (UK Expert). Ms Yamaguchi won the title at the British Embassy last week, facing off against 4 competitors, each of whom had won the monthly online competitions using the iOS BritQuiz app released by the British Council. The quiz tested the contestants' knowledge of British culture, art, literature, sport, politics and busines -- with all the questions and answers in English.

Competition at the live event was fierce with Ms Yamaguchi just beating out Junko Arakawa from Hokkaido for the title. Each of the contestants won 10 iOS apps from the Oxford University Press Bookworms series published by eigoTown.com and the runner-up also won a deluxe collection of Jane Austen DVDs made by the BBC. The winner received a free return flight to the UK, courtesy of Virgin Atlantic, presented by the director of the British Council Japan, Jeff Streeter.

See Also:
• BritQuiz app on iTunes
• British Council launches free iPhone app, chance to win trip to UK
]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/japans_uk_exper.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/japans_uk_exper.html Fri, 16 Dec 2011 07:22:38 +0900 The British Embassy's Chevening scholarship scheme is now open for applications in Japan.

The prestigious scheme offers talented graduates and young professionals from Japan the chance to study for postgraduate qualifications at the UK's world leading universities.

Chevening scholarships cover the full cost of one year of postgraduate study in the UK from 2012-13, including tuition fees and a monthly stipend. Not surprisingly, competition for the scholarships is intense.

The Chevening programme has a reputation for attracting outstanding young people who have the ambition to become leaders in their chosen fields. A typical successful candidate demonstrates the potential to benefit from the scheme and use it to further develop their career.

Some 200 Japanese citizens have been supported by the Chevening scheme so far, which attracts some of the best and brightest young people from around the world. On their return to Japan, the alumni benefit from membership of the Japan Chevening Alumni Association. The association, which is only open to Chevening alumni, provides the returnees with a valuable network of contacts.

For information about how to apply, visit the British Council website..]]> http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/_the_british_em.html http://www.eltnews.com/news/archives/2011/12/_the_british_em.html Tue, 13 Dec 2011 07:09:56 +0900