Improving English education in Japan, with an emphasis on ... OTOMO THESI… · Improving English...

Improving English education in Japan, with an emphasis on

promoting communication skills in elementary schools

Inspiration from the Icelandic national curruculum

Sherine Otomo

Thesis for B.A. degree

International Studies in Education

Improving English education in Japan, with an emphasis on promoting communication skills in elementary

schools

What can be learned from the Icelandic national curriculum?

Sherine Otomo

Thesis for the B.A. degree in International Studies in Education

Supervisor: Renata Emilsson Peskova

Education Department University of Iceland School of Education

February, 2018

ImprovingEnglisheducationinJapanwithemphasisonpromotingcommunicationskillsinelementaryschools

Thisthesissatisfies10creditstowardsaB.A.inInternationalStudiesinEducationinEducationDepartment,UniversityofIcelandSchoolofEducation

©SherineOtomo,2018Thisthesismaynotbecopiedinanyformwithouttheauthor’spermission.

Reykjavik,2018

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Abstract

ThisthesisfocusesonimprovingJapanesepupils’Englishcommunicationskillsby

examiningthecurrentJapanesecurriculumfromaperspectivethatreconsidersthe

teachingmethodsemployedandemphasizesinternationalizingtheclassroom.Thereare

threemainreasonsforthewritingofthisthesis:First,Englisheducationhaslongbeenan

interestoftheauthor.Second,livingasaJapanesestudentinIcelandforthepastfew

years(andhavingspentoneyearinEngland)hasbroughtaboutacertainawarenesson

theauthor’spartoftheextremelylowlevelofEnglishabilityinJapan;thisisparticularly

apparentincomparisontoIcelandicstudents’highperformanceinEnglish.Third,Japanis

experiencingawaveofrapidglobalizationasaresultofpreparingforthe2020Olympic

Games.ThesereasonsrepresentthemainmotivesforreconsideringEnglisheducationin

theauthor’shomecountry,Japan,bywritingthisthesis.Thepaperconductsaliterature

reviewinordertoexaminethecurrentJapanesecurriculumandtopresentacomparison

oftheJapaneseandtheIcelandiccurricula.TheexistingIcelandiccurriculumhasan

excellentpolicystructurewhichidentifiesteachingobjectivesandtherecommended

teachingmethod.Itservesasaninspiringsourceofcomparisonandprovidesideasfor

improvingtheJapanesecurriculum.

Thispaperfocusesonthefollowingtworesearchquestions:

1. WhatarethedifferencesbetweentheJapaneseandtheIcelandicnational

curriculaintermsofteachingmethodsandinternationalization?

2. WhatcanbelearnedfromtheIcelandicnationalcurriculumconcerningthe

communicativeapproachandinternationalization,andhowcouldsuchfindingsbe

adoptedintheJapanesenationalcurriculuminordertoimprovestudents’

communicationskillsinEnglish?

ThefirstchapterexaminesEnglisheducationinJapanandidentifiestheproblems

currentlyaffectingit;furthermore,itintroducesthecurrentJapanesecurriculum.The

secondchapterexaminestheIcelandicnationalcurriculumwithregardtothemethodsof

Englisheducationthatitrecommends.Thethirdchapterfocusesoncomparingthe

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perspectivesonteachingmethodsandinternationalizationfoundinthetwonations’

curricula.Followingthiscomparison,aproposedreformissuggested,andadiscussionis

presented.Thereafter,inChapters4and5,thecommunicativeapproachand

internationalizationareintroducedassuggestionsforimprovingEnglisheducationin

Japan.Inthefinalchapter,theauthorstronglysuggeststhattheJapanesecurriculum

shouldbechangedinordertomeetthegovernment’sgoalfor2020.

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TableofContents

Abstract.............................................................................................................................3

TableofFigures..................................................................................................................6

Preface...............................................................................................................................7

1 Introduction................................................................................................................8

2 EnglishEducationinJapan.........................................................................................10

2.1 EnglishinJapan...........................................................................................................10

2.2 HistoryofEnglishEducation........................................................................................10

2.3 ProblemswithEnglishEducationinJapan..................................................................11

2.3.1 Traditionalteachingmethod................................................................................122.3.2 LackofopportunitiestouseEnglish,bothinsideandoutsidetheclassroom......12

2.4 Theoreticalframework................................................................................................13

2.5 ThecurrentJapanesenationalcurriculumforEnglisheducation...............................14

2.5.1 TeachingmethodusedintheJapanesecurriculum.............................................152.5.2 InternationalizationintheJapanesecurriculum..................................................16

3 InspirationfromEnglisheducationinIceland.............................................................18

3.1 EnglishinIceland.........................................................................................................18

3.2 EnglishEducationinIceland........................................................................................18

3.3 TheIcelandicNationalCurriculum..............................................................................19

3.3.1 TeachingmethoddiscussedintheIcelandicnationalcurriculum........................203.3.2 InternationalizationintheIcelandicnationalcurriculum....................................21

4 RespondingtoneweducationalreformbytheMinistryofEducation,Culture,Sports,Science,andTechnologyinJapanfor2020.....................................................23

4.1 Proposedreform.........................................................................................................23

4.2 Furtherimprovement..................................................................................................25

4.2.1 ChangingofMethodologytoCommunicativeApproach.....................................264.2.2 CreatingtheInternationalizingmindset...............................................................28

5 Discussion..................................................................................................................30

6 Conclusion.................................................................................................................31

References.......................................................................................................................32

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TableofFigures

Figure1ExamplesofCommunicationSituations....................................................................15

TableofTables

Table1:ComparisonoftheJapaneseandIcelandicnationalcurriculaforteachingforeignlanguagesintermsofteachingmethods,internationalization,andoverall...............................................................................25

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Preface

Thisthesiswaswrittensolelybyme,theundersigned.Ihavereadandunderstandtheuniversity‘scodeofconduct(November7,2003,http://www.hi.is/is/skolinn/sidareglur)andhavefollowedittothebestofmyknowledge.Ihavecorrectlycitedtoallotherworksorpreviousworkofmyown,including,butnotlimtedto,writtenworks,figures,dataortables.Ithankallwhohaveworkedwithandtakefullresponsibilityforanymistakes

containedinthiswork.Signed:

Reykjavík,____.__________________20__

_________________________________ _________________________________

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1 Introduction

StudentsinJapanspendanextensiveamountoftimestudyingEnglishasaforeign

language.Thisperiodusuallyexceedseightyears,asstudentsengageinlanguageactivity

classesstartingfromthefifthgradeofelementaryschoolandtakecompulsoryEnglish

classesinjuniorhighschool.StudentsthencontinuetheirEnglishstudiesinhighschool

and,often,incollegeanduniversity.Despitethesubstantialamountoftimedevotedto

learningEnglish,studentsrarelyachievefluencyandaccuracyinthelanguage.

Intheeraofglobalization,Japanisbeginningtorealizethetrueimportanceof

improvingtheEnglishskillsofitspopulation.OnerelevantexampleisJapan'soffertohost

the2020OlympicGamesinitscapital,Tokyo;thiswillrequireagreatdealofintercultural

cooperation,inwhichEnglishwillbethelanguageofcommunication.ImprovingEnglish

skillscouldalsobenefitindividuals,asagreaternumberofpeoplecouldtraveland

discoveropportunitiestoworkorstudyabroad.Englishisalsothekeytoeconomic

competitivenessattheindividualandnationallevels(EFEducationFirst,2017).

AsastudentfromJapanwhoisstudyingeducationinIceland,theauthorbelieves

therearesomeimportantkeypointsthatcouldbelearnedfromtheIcelandicnational

curriculumintermsofdevelopingpupils’proficiencyinareassuchascommunication

skills.TheIcelandicnationalcurriculumhasbeendevelopingoverrecentdecades

(Lefever,2009)andprovidesexcellentexamplesofhowtheJapanesegovernment’sgoal

canbeachievedbyusingavarietyofapproachesandtheconceptofinternationalization

inEnglishteaching.

ThispapercomparestheJapaneseandtheIcelandicnationalcurriculafortheteachingof

Englishinelementaryschools,focusingonteachingmethodologiesandthe

internationalizationofclassrooms.Theseareareasthatrequireimprovementwithinthe

JapaneseEnglishcurriculum;identifyingthedifferencesbetweenthetwodifferent

curriculamayindicatewhattheshortcomingsofJapaneseEnglisheducationare.

Moreover,comparingtheIcelandicandJapaneseeducationalcurriculaforEnglish

educationinelementaryschoolintermsofteachingmethodologyand

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internationalizationcouldprovideanimpressionofhowtheJapanesecurriculumcouldbe

improvedinrelationtotheJapanesegovernment’sneweducationalreformgoalsfor

2020.

Finally,suggestionsfornewnationalguidelinesareproposedanddiscussed.These

couldprovehelpfulforJapaninreachingitsreformgoal,whichwouldthenhelpJapanese

pupilstonotonlyhavebetterexperiencesintheirclassroomsbutalsotobecome

confidentEnglishspeakersinthenearfuture.

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2 EnglishEducationinJapan

2.1 EnglishinJapan

AccordingtotheTestofEnglishforInternationalCommunication(TOEIC)reporton

theTestofEnglishasaForeignLanguage(TOEFL)worldscorerankingsfor2017,Japanis

ranked105thoutof115countries,withanaveragescoreof70points;thisissignificantly

lowerthanmostothercountries.Incomparison,Icelandscored94pointsandplaced15th

intheworldrankings.EvenwithintheAsianregions,Japanranks26thof31countries.This

reportclearlyindicatesthat,whileJapanesestudentswerekeentotakethetest,their

manyyearsofeffortdidnotyieldgoodresults.

Furthermore,Japaneseuniversitygraduatesandworkersusethetargetlanguage

poorlyinhighereducationinstitutionsandinworkplaces.TheTOEICstatisticsfor2017

indicatethat,amongAsiancountriessuchasChinaandKorea,Japanrankedverylowin

Englishcommunicativeability.ThisalsoshowsthatJapanesecommunicativeabilitiesare

presentlydeemeduncompetitiveinthebusinessenvironment.

ThereisnotonlyalackofacademicEnglishabilitybutalsopracticalEnglishability,

suchasspeakingabouteverydaytopicsandlistening.WhileotherAsiancountries

continuetoimprovetheirresultsinEnglisheducation,Japanneedstoreconsiderhowit

prioritizesEnglisheducation(Choi&Lee,2008).Asthenationalcurriculumprovidesthe

mainguidelinesforteachingandhasamajorimpactonbothschoolsandteachers,re-

consideringthecurriculumcouldbeoneapproachtoimprovingthesituation

(MinistryofEducation,Culture,Sports,ScienceandTechnology[MEXT],2017).

2.2 HistoryofEnglishEducation

Englishhaslongbeenacompulsorysubjectatthejuniorhighschoollevel.However,it

wasnotuntil2002thattheJapaneseMinistryofEducationstartedtoimplementEnglish

languageactivitiesinto“theperiodofintegratedstudy”inelementaryschools,starting

fromthefifthgrade(BenneseEducationalResearchandDevelopmentInstitute,2006).To

explain,theperiodofintegratedstudyisdefinedasacoursethatincludesseveral

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subjectsthatareorganizedbytheme(CollinsDictionary,2017).Englishlanguageactivities

wereonlyapartofthisclass.Eventhoughtheconceptwastoencouragepupilstolearn

basicEnglish,suchasbecomingfamiliarwiththealphabet,singingchildren’ssongs,and

playingsimplegamesinthelanguage,themajorityofschoolswerenotreadyforthisnew

curriculum;therefore,notextbookswereavailable,andnospecifictrainingwasprovided

forteachers.Theobjectiveoftheactivitiesshiftedtoexposingelementaryschoolchildren

toaforeignlanguageandlearningaboutforeignculturesinJapanese.ManyPupilsand

eventeacherswereconfusedbythischangeandcouldnotbenefitfromtheseclassesasa

resultofthischallenge(BenneseEducationalResearchandDevelopmentInstitute,2006).

In2011,MEXTintroducedanothereducationalreform,introducingGaikokugo

Katsudo(aforeignlanguageactivityclass)onceaweekforfifthandsixthgradestudents

(MEXT,2011).Englishlanguageactivitieswerepreviouslypartoftheperiodofintegrated

study,but,in2011,itbecameanindependentclasswhichfocusedsolelyonteaching

English.ThisforeignlanguageactivityclasshadatextbookcalledEigoNote(English

Notebook),inwhichstudentscouldwriteandreadsomebasicEnglishwordsandphrases.

ThebasisofEnglisheducationhasnotbeenalteredsince2011.

2.3 ProblemswithEnglishEducationinJapan

Despitethegovernment’svariousefforts,manychallengesstillremaininEnglish

educationinJapan.Someofthemainobstaclesincludethefollowing:

u Astrongfocusonentranceexaminationsandtest-basedclasses(Jardine,2012);

u Textbooksthatfailtofacilitatemeaningfuloralcommunication(Yuasa,2012);

u TeachingmethodsthatonlyrequirestudentstotranslatefromJapanesetoEnglish

(the“grammar-translationmethod”)(Miller,2014);

u Low-qualityEnglishteachersandalackofteachertraining(Yokoi,2012);and

u AlackofopportunitiestouseEnglish,bothinsideandoutsideoftheclassroom

(Wakabayashi,2017).

ThesearefiveofthemainreasonswhyJapaneseEnglisheducationhasnotproduced

significantresults.Theauthorbelievesthesignificantfactorsintermsofthelowqualityof

EnglisheducationinJapantobetheteachingmethodusedandthelackof

internationalizationinclassrooms.Anotherreasonforfocusingontheseareasisthat

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potentialimprovementscouldbemadetothemmorerapidlythanotherareassuchas

changingtextbooksorimprovingthequalityofteachers.

2.3.1 Traditionalteachingmethod

ManyJapaneseteachersofEnglishstillusethegrammar-translationmethod,whichhas

longbeenconsideredoutmodedintheWest(Saito,2012).Toclarify,thegrammar-

translationmethodis“amethodoflanguageteachingwherestudentspracticegrammar

luresthroughtranslationexercisesbetweenthenativeandthetargetlanguage”

(Zainuddin,Yahya&Morales,2011).AsZainuddin,Yahya,andMorales(2011)claim,the

mainpriorityofthegrammar-translationmethodisnotspeakingandcommunicationbut

insteadfocusingonwrittenlanguage.Therefore,studentslearnthelanguageinquestion

passively,withoutadequatepracticeintermsofusingit.

Itisclearthat,inordertodevelopstudents’communicationskills,theyneedto

communicateusingthetargetlanguage.Simplylisteningtoteachers’explanationsof

grammaticalrulesiscertainlyadifficultwaytoacquirecommunicativeabilities

(Kurahachi,1993).Tobeableto“makeuse”ofEnglishandimproveone’sfluency,itisnot

onlynecessarytohaveknowledgeofthegrammarandvocabularyofthelanguagebut

alsotoregularlypracticeone’scommunicationskills.Therefore,theclassicteaching

approachusedinJapan,thegrammar-translationmethod,isconsideredanobsolete

meansofteachingaforeignlanguage.

2.3.2 LackofopportunitiestouseEnglish,bothinsideandoutsidetheclassroom

WhenJapanesestudentsareaskedthequestion“WhydoyouwanttolearnEnglish?”,

themajorityofthemwouldlikelyprovideresponsesalongthelinesof“BecauseIwantto

beabletoworkglobally”or“Iwanttobeabletocommunicatewithmanydifferent

peoplefromallovertheworld.”However,themannerinwhichtheystudyEnglishin

schooldoesnotresonatewiththeirperceivedgoals.StudentsmainlystudyEnglishfor

schooltestsandexams,TOEICtests,entranceexamsforfurthereducation(Wakabayashi,

2017).Assuch,itishardtoimaginethatwhattheystudyinschoolisconnectedtowhat

theywanttolearnorachievewithEnglish.

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AccordingtoWakabayashi(2017),itisimportanttocreateanopportunityto

communicatewithpeoplewhoisonlypossibletocommunicateinEnglishinorderto

allowpupilsto“broadentheirhorizonsthroughEnglish.”Itisnecessarytoensurethat

theyareplacedinsituationsinwhichtheyarerequiredtolearnEnglish,as,otherwise

theywillnotbroadentheirhorizonsthroughthelanguage.Clearly,JapaneseEnglish

classesdonotprovideanyopportunitiesforstudentstoaccessothercultures,languages,

andpeopleinordertolearnwhenandwithwhomtousethetargetlanguage.As

Wakabayashi(2017)claims,themostimportantpriorityforpupilswithregardtothe

processoflearningEnglishisthattheyinwhichsituationsandwhentousethelanguage

thattheyarelearning;thelanguageisnotjustasubjectthattheyshouldlearn,butatool

thatcanbeusedtocommunicatewithotherpeoplefromdifferentnations.

Howarethesetwofactors—theoutdatedteachingmethodandlackof

opportunitiestouseEnglish,bothinsideandoutsidetheclassroom—addressedinthe

nationalcurriculum?Sincethenationalcurriculumisgenerallyusedasaguidelinefor

teachingmethodologybyfacultymembersthemselves,studyingdetailedcurriculafrom

othercountriescanbehighlybeneficial.Moreover,studyingsuchcurriculacanhelpto

identifydifferentapproachestotheteachingmethodologyandinternationalization

conceptsthatarediscussedinthefollowingchapters.

2.4 Theoreticalframework

Thischapterservestoprovidebasicintroductionstoanddefinitionsoftheteachingmethodandinternationalizationconcepts.

Theteachingmethodsinlanguageteachinghavealonghistory,withavarietyofmethodshavingbeeninventedanddiscarded.Inparticular,variouseffectiveteachingmethodswerecreatedduringthe1970sand1980s.Thistimeperiodisknownasthe“post-methodsera”andwitnessedthedevelopmentofmethodssuchasthegrammartranslationmethod,thedirectmethod,theaudio-lingualmethod,suggestopedia,thesilentway,totalphysicalresponse,thenaturalapproach,andthecommunicativeapproach(Richards&Renandya,2002).

Theseteachingmethodshavebeeninuseforsometimenow,andanumberofthemhavebeenabandoned.Theuseofavarietyofteachingmethodsisrecommended,asitmakesitpossibletocatertotheneedsofdifferentstudents.Theseneedsvarydependingonstudents’settings,abilities,andlevels.

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Internationalizationineducationisbestintroducedwithreferencetovarious

researchers’definitions.Internationalizationinhighereducationisdefinedas“the

processofintegratinganinternationalandinterculturaldimensionintotheteaching,

researchandservicefunctionsof[an]institution”(Knight,1994,p.7).Inthecontextof

theelementaryschoollevel,LinandChen(2013)explainthepurposeofthisconceptas

follows:

At the elementary school level, the intention and focus of internationaleducation are to give students early exposure to international contacts,networks, and relationships in order to share knowledge, develop aninternational perspective, and gain early training and experience incooperatingand/orcompetingwithinternationalpartnersandcompetitors.

Inotherwords,internationalizationinearlyeducationreferstothecreationofan

internationalenvironmentinwhichpupilscanusethetargetlanguageinthesetting

similartoreal-lifeinordertoimprovetheircommunicativeskills.Sucheffortshavebeen

provenessentialindevelopingstudents’Englishabilitytoalevelatwhichcan

communicateandcooperatewithforeignpeople.

2.5 ThecurrentJapanesenationalcurriculumforEnglisheducation

ThecurrentnationalcurriculumisavailableonMEXT’swebsite;however,itisimportant

tonotethatthelatestversionisalreadysixyearsold(MEXT,2017).Thesectiontitled

“Foreignlanguageactivity”isfoundinChapter4andisonlythree-and-a-halfpageslong,

includingI.OVERALLOBJECTIVE,II.CONTENT(forgrade5and6),andIII.LESSONPLAN

DESIGNANDHANDLINGTHECONTENT.Asthisistheonlysourcethatpresentsanational

guidelineforEnglisheducationinelementaryschools,itisclearthattheinformation

providedisnotsufficienttoallowonetodevelopaclear,detailedunderstandingofthe

teachingmethodologythatitsuggests.Itisimportanttonotethatthecurriculumdoes

notdistinguishbetweenskillssuchasreading,writing,listening,andspeaking.

Furthermore,althoughJapanseemstounderstandtheimportanceofimprovingits

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Englisheducationsystem,thesectionontheplaceofforeignlanguagesinthenational

curriculumisbarelyfourpageslongandlackingindetails.

2.5.1 TeachingmethodusedintheJapanesecurriculum

Aswasmentionedonpage12,Japanhasusedthetraditionalgrammar-translation

methodforthepasthalf-century.Whilenosectionofthenationalcurriculumfocuseson

teachingmethodinparticular,oneofthefewsectionsthataddressesrecommended

teachingmethodsisII.LESSONPLANDESIGNANDHANDLINGTHECONTENT,whichstates

thefollowing:

Teachersshouldgiveconsiderationsettingpupilscommunicationsituations

familiartotheminordertoletthemexperiencecommunicationusingthe

targetlanguage(MEXT,2011).

Thedocumentalsoprovidesexamplesofcommunicationsituationssuchas

“situationswherefixedexpressionsareoftenused”and“situationsthatarelikelyto

occurinpupils’lives.”Asanexample,Figure1(MEXT,2014)(below)showsthatthe

curriculumrecommendsusinga“theme-basedstudy”whichincludesdifferentactivities

thatarelinkedtogetherbytheircontentandintertwineswithacommunicativeapproach

toteachinglanguage(Cameron,2001,p.180).EventhoughtheJapanesenational

curriculumdoesnotidentifyaparticularteachingmethod,somesectionsclearlysuggest

theuseofthecommunicativeteachingmethod.

Figure1ExamplesofCommunicationSituations

(a)Situationswherefixedexpressionsareoftenused

・Greeting・Self-introduction・Shopping・Havingmeals・Askingandgiving

directionsetc.

(b)Situationsthatarelikelytooccurinpupils’lives

・Homelife・Learningandactivitiesatschool

・Localevents・Childhoodplay

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Incontrast,anotherpartofIII.LESSONPLANDESIGNANDHANDLINGTHE

CONTENTstatesthataudio-visuallearningisthebestwaytodevelopchildren’s

communicationskills,meaningthatstudentsshouldlistentoCDsandDVDstolearn

correctpronunciation.

Thecurriculumfeaturesacontradictioninthat“theme-basedstudy,”whichispartof

communicativelanguageteaching,ishighlyrecommended,whereasitalsomentions

methodologythatemphasiseslisteningtoaudiomaterialsaskeyindeveloping

communicationskills.AccordingtoWang(2009),usingaudio-lingualmaterialstogain

listeningandspeakingskillsinlearningaforeignlanguageisdefinedasbeingin

oppositiontocommunicativelanguageteaching.

Thecurriculumdoesnotidentifyaclearmethodologyandseemsconfusinginthatit

supportsusingopposingmethodologieswhenitcomestodiscussingwhichteaching

stylesareappropriateforenhancingstudents'communicationskills

2.5.2 InternationalizationintheJapanesecurriculum

Internationalizationneedstobemorewidelyadoptedinordertocreatemore

opportunitiesforstudentstoconnectwithindividualsandculturesfromdifferentnations.

(Lin&Chen,2013)BothII.CONTENT(forgrade5and6)andIII.LESSONPLANDESIGN

ANDHANDLINGTHECONTENTmentionthat“interculturallearning”shouldbepartof

Englishlessonsandthatitplaysanimportantroleinlanguagelearning.Thecurriculum

goesontoidentifythefollowingobjective:“Toexperiencecommunicationwithpeopleof

differentculturesandtodeepentheunderstandingoftheculture”(MEXT,2011).

Thissentencestatesthatforeignlanguageclassesshouldprovidestudentswith

opportunitiestocommunicatewithpeoplefromdifferentcultures.However,noclear

instructionsaregivenregardinghowtheseopportunitiescanactuallybeprovidedwithin

theclassroom.Itshouldbenotedthatthecurriculumseemstofocusmoreon

“interculturallearning”,inwhichstudentslearnaboutotherculturesandpeople,rather

than“internationalization”.Thereisnoneedforactualcommunicationembeddedinthis

term;inotherwords,thecurriculumdoesnotprioritizeprovidingopportunitiessuchas

internationalexchangesbutratheremphasizesinterculturalunderstanding:“Teachers

shouldenablepupilstodeepentheirunderstandingnotonlyoftheforeignlanguageand

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culture,butalsooftheJapaneselanguageandculturethroughforeignlanguage

activities”(MEXT,2011).

Enhancinginterculturalcompetenceisimportantinlanguagelearning;however,

giventhecurrentsituationofJapan’sEnglisheducationsystemanditsgoalofimproving

pupils’communicationskills,increasingthenumberoftheopportunitiestousethetarget

languageandallowingstudentstodevelopasenseofwhentouseitareofgreater

importance.ThesetopicsarecomparedtocertainaspectsoftheIcelandicnational

curriculuminsubsequentchapters.

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3 InspirationfromEnglisheducationinIceland

3.1 EnglishinIceland

AccordingtotheresultsoftheTOEFLiBTScore(2017)thatwerepreviouslydiscussed

intheintroduction,Japanplaced105th,withascoreof70points.Iceland,ontheother

hand,scored94pointsandplaced15thintheworldrankings;thisnumberreflectsthe

Icelandicpeople’shighlevelsofproficiencyinEnglish.TodescribeIcelandbriefly,ithasa

populationof332,529andanareaof103,000km2(StatisticsIceland,2017).Similarly,to

Japan,Icelandisanislandcountrylocatedintheocean,anditsnaturalbeautyhas

becomeincreasinglyimportanttotheIcelandictourismindustry.

AsastudentstudyinginIceland,itisinterestingtoinvestigatetheoriginsofthishigh

levelofEnglish.Therearesomeprominentreasons,oneofwhichisthemajorinfluence

ofEnglish-languagemedia,suchasmovies,books,computergames,andmagazines.

Moreover,“thecontextofusingEnglishinIcelandincludeshugepartintourism,business,

commerce,finance,andeducation”(Lefever,2009).Itisafactthattheirdaily

environmentshaveasignificantimpactonpeople’sEnglishskills.Therearealsoother

educationalfactors:Asamatteroffact,theapproachtoEnglisheducationinIcelandhas

beendevelopedindetailbytheIcelandicMinistryofEducation,Science,andCulture.The

followingparagraphsprovidefurtherdetailconcerningthecurrentstateofEnglish

educationinIceland.

3.2 EnglishEducationinIceland

CompulsoryeducationinIcelandisstructuredasfollows;Primaryeducation(Grunnskóli)

forages6-13andlowersecondaryeducation(Gagnfræðiskóli)forages13-16(Icelandic

MinistryofEducation,ScienceandCulture,2017).Duetotheexpandinginfluenceof

globalizationonIceland,since2007mostIcelandicelementaryschoolshavetaught

Englishfromthefirstgrade(Lefever,2009).Similartrendsarefoundelsewhere,asmany

oftheEuropeancountriesareadoptingearlyEnglisheducation.Accordingtothe

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EuropeanCommission(2012),mostschoolsinEuropeencouragechildrentostart

learningforeignlanguagesfromanearlyage,suchassixtonineyearsold,andthe

numberofschoolsdedicatedtoearlyEnglishinstructionisincreasing.Thisfactshowsthat

Europeancountries,includingIceland,placestrongemphasisonteachingEnglish.

Second,accordingtoasurveyconductedbytheIcelandicMinistryofEducation,

Science,andCulturein2001,themajorityofparticipantsfoundEnglishtobethemost

importantsecondlanguagetoknowandadmittedthatEnglishisthelanguagetheymost

useindailylifeafterIcelandic(Lefever,2009).Therefore,onecouldconcludethat

IcelandicpeopleseemtobeawareoftheimportanceoflearningEnglishtotheirpersonal

lives.

3.3 TheIcelandicNationalCurriculum

Thefollowingparagraphsexaminehowthesubjectofforeignlanguagesispresentedin

theIcelandicnationalcurriculum.First,thegeneralcurriculum,frompreschoolstoupper

secondaryschool,hassixfundamentalpillars:healthandwellbeing,literacy,

sustainability,democracyandhumanrights,equality,andcreativity.Thesepillarsarewell

connectedtoallsubjectareas,includingforeignlanguages(IcelandicMinistryof

Education,ScienceandCulture,2014).

Onecanfindthenationalcurriculumforcompulsoryschoolingonthewebsiteof

theIcelandicMinistryofEducation,Science,andCulture.Thecurriculumisdividedintoa

generalsection,establishedin2011,andcurriculabysubjectarea,establishedin2014;

the“ForeignLanguage”sectioncanbefoundinthepagesthataddressthesubjectarea.It

has15pages,whicharedividedintofourdifferentchapters:1.Educationalvaluesand

mainobjectivesofforeignlanguages,2.Competencecriteriaforforeignlanguages,3.

Teachingmethodsandassessmentinforeignlanguages,and4.Assessmentcriteriafor

foreignlanguagesatthecompletionofcompulsoryschool.

Second,theIcelandicnationalcurriculumismoredetailedthantheJapaneseand

focusesnotonlyongoalsbutalsoonhowthosegoalscanbemet.

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Ithasdetailedcriteriaforeachskill,suchaslistening,readingcomprehension,spoken

interaction,spokenproduction,writing,culturalliteracy,andlearningcompetence.

ComparedtotheforeignlanguagesectionoftheJapanesenationalcurriculum,ithasa

moredetaileddescriptionofwhatteachingmethodshouldbeusedandgivesclear

examplesofhowteachersshouldconductclasses.

TheIcelandiccurriculumclaimsthatteachersshouldfirstemphasizespoken

languageandlistening,asreadingandwritingwillfollow.Asdiscussedpreviously,the

authorbelievesthattheteachingmethodemployedandthelackofinternationalization

withintheclassroomarethetwofactorsthathavethestrongestinfluenceonthestateof

EnglisheducationinJapan.Inordertoprovideacomparableexample,thefollowing

chapterexamineshowtheIcelandicnationalcurriculumapproachesthesefactors.

3.3.1 TeachingmethoddiscussedintheIcelandicnationalcurriculum

Themethodologyusedinforeignlanguageeducationcanbefoundinthethird

chapterofthenationalcurriculumsetbytheIcelandicMinistryofEducation,Science,and

Culture(2014),Teachingmethodsandassessmentinforeignlanguages.

Itstatesthatateachingmethodshouldbesuitableforthegradeandthecontentofa

class(135p).Inaddition,itmentionsavarietyofteachingmethods,suchascooperative

learning,pairwork,groupwork,peerteaching,portfolioeducation,carousellearning,the

story-tellingmethod,outdooreducation,andlearningstations,whichshouldbeapplied

differentlyindifferentsituations(Iceland’sMinistryofEducation,Science,andCulture,

2014,135p).Thecurriculumencouragesteacherstoapplydifferentmethodsinsupport

oftheirteachingobjectivesandtomaketheirclassroomsplacesinwhichstudentscan

practicecommunicatingwitheachother.

Otherimportantfactorsareidentifiedasspeechandlistening:“Pupilsgetusedto

hearingthelanguageandunderstandhowitisusedinrealsituationandhaveample

opportunitytodotheirbestatusingthemselvesinameaningfulcontextandontheirown

terms”(135-136p).Pupilsareencouragedtolistentothelanguageinreal-lifesituations.

Itispreferredthatteachersusediversemethodstoallowstudentstopracticethespoken

language.Itisalsotheteachers’roletoencouragestudentstousethelanguage,bothin

andoutsideoftheclassroom,byfindingrelevantsources,suchasbooks,CDs,andage-

21

appropriatetelevisionprograms(136p).Whileitisclearthattherearesomedifferences

betweentheJapaneseandIcelandiccurriculawhenitcomestoteachingmethods,a

similaritycanbefoundinthatbothemphasizegainingcommunicationskills.

3.3.2 InternationalizationintheIcelandicnationalcurriculum

ThefollowingparagraphsexaminehowinternationalizationisaddressedintheIcelandic

nationalcurriculum.

First,internationalizationismentionedfrequentlyintheIcelandiccurriculum,yet

withouttheuseoftheword“internationalization.”TheIcelandicMinistryofEducation,

Science,andCulture(2014,136p)encouragesstudentstoreadmanysourcesthatcan

broadtheirhorizons,suchasthoserelatingtocurrentaffairs,cultures,andlifestylesin

othercountries.Whatisimportanthereisthatstudentsdonotsimplyreadtextsfrom

outsidesourcesandtheirsetworks;rather,theyareencouragedtocollectknowledge

fromvariousresources.

Second,italsomentionsthatlanguageandcultureareinterlinkedinmanyways:

Forexample,studentsgainunderstandingofothernationsthroughlearningforeign

languages.Similarly,learningaforeignlanguagecangivepupilstheopportunitytosee

theirowncultureandlifestylesfromadifferentperspective(138p).Thecurriculumalso

statesthat“[i]nordertomakerelationswithothernationsmorerealistic,itisidealto

organizecooperationwithpupilsinothercountries”(Iceland’sMinistryofEducation,

Science,andCulture,2014,138p).ItisclearthattheIcelandicnationalcurriculum

mentionsthatthereshouldbeinternationalizationinaforeignlanguageclassinthat

learnersshouldbeabletocooperatewithstudentsfromothercultures.“Cooperate”

referstosituationsinwhichpupilscanengagewithotherforeignstudentsthroughschool

visits,exchangeprograms,workshops,andSkype.

Asonecansee,theIcelandicnationalcurriculumemphasizes

“internationalization”heavily,notjusttodeepenunderstandingofandrespectforother

culturesandpeoplebutalsotodeveloprelationshipsbetweenIcelandicstudentsand

thosefromothercountries.WhiletheJapanesenationalcurriculumfocusesmoreon

22

interculturallearning,theIcelandiccurriculumfocusesonestablishing“realconnections”

withotherculturesandlifestyles.

23

4 RespondingtoneweducationalreformbytheMinistryofEducation,

Culture,Sports,Science,andTechnologyinJapanfor2020

In2013,theneweducationalreformplan,“EnglishEducationReformplanrespondingto

theRapidGlobalization,”wasannouncedbyMEXT.Theannouncementincludednew

goalsandsomesuggestedreformplans.

Asanewgoal,studentsarerequiredtodemonstratecompetenceinfourskills,

namelyreading,writing,listening,andspeaking,bythetimethattheycompletetheir

compulsoryeducationbyachievingaTOEFLiBTscoreabove60orgradepre-1tolevel2

ontheEIKENTestinPracticalEnglishProficiency(MEXT,2017).SincetheseEnglishtests

featureoralinterviewtasks,itisclearthattheyplaceemphasisonpupilsgainingbasic

communicationskillsintermsofdevelopinglisteningandspeakingskillsbyengagingin

activitiessuchashavingconversationswithforeignindividuals.Thefollowingparagraphs

highlightspecificreformsthathavebeensuggestedbytheJapanesegovernmentinorder

tomeetthenewgoal.

4.1 Proposedreform

ManyimprovementsaresuggestedintheproposedreformofEnglisheducationinJapan,

suchasempoweringteachersinelementaryschoolsbydevelopingteachertrainingand

materials,developingthecontentofEnglishtextbooks,andincreasingthenumberof

assistantlanguageteachersfromothercountries(MEXT,2017).

However,accordingtothereportpublishedbyMEXT(2017),furtherdialogue

concerningthereformationofthenationalcurriculumforEnglishteachingisrequired,

includingdiscussionsaboutnumberofhours,classcontent,teachingmaterials,teacher

training,andtheuseofnewtechnology.Inordertoachieveitsstatedgoals,MEXTshould

describethenewnationalcurriculumdevelopedinresponsetotheEnglishEducation

Reformplanbeforetheyearof2020.Untilnow,however,MEXThasonlyannounceda

handfulofchanges,suchasmakingEnglishclassesacompulsorypartofthecurriculum

forthefifthandsixthgradeandhavingstudentsstarttakingGaikokugoKatsudo(foreign

24

languageactivityclass)fromthethirdandfourthgradesinelementaryschool.The

purposeofthesechangesistoraisethelevelofEnglishlanguageproficiencyinmiddle

andhighschoolbybeginningeducationinearliergrades(MEXT,2017).Moreover,forthe

thirdandfourthgrades,classesdevotedtoEnglishlanguageactivitiesareheldonceor

twiceaweekinordertoprovidethefoundationsforcommunicationskills.Forthefifth

andsixthgrades,Englishlanguageclassesareheldthreetimesaweek(includingmodule

classeswhereinstudentsreviewwhattheyhavestudiedinthepreviouslecturefor10

minuteseveryday)inordertonurturebasicEnglishlanguageskills(MEXT,2014).

Thisdecisiontoshiftforeignlanguageactivityclassestoearliergradesisthemost

importantpartofthisreform.Thischangeisclearlynovel,asitissomethingthatisbeing

attemptedforthefirsttime.Asmentionedpreviously,manycountries,includingIceland,

havealreadyintroducedEnglisheducationintheearlygradesofelementaryschool.In

fact,JapanistheonlycountrythathasrecentlystartedofferingEnglisheducationatthe

elementaryschoollevel,asmostotherAsiancountrieshavealreadyintroducedEnglish

languageclassesatthislevel:forexample,Thailanddidsoin1996,SouthKoreain1997,

andChinain2001(Yeon&Hyo,2008).

AccordingtoKatsuyama,NishigakiandWang(2008),earlyEnglishinstructionhas

positiveeffectsonstudents’listeningskillsandgeneralpreferencetowardsEnglish,as

wellastheirscoresonEnglishtestsinJapan.Thus,thischangecouldbeakeyinlighting

thewayforward.

Thefactisthatthereisaneedforreformsinmultipleareasinordertomeetthegoal

ofdevelopingstudents’communicationskillsidentifiedinthe‘EnglishEducationReform

planrespondingtotheRapidGlobalization’for2020.AsdiscussedinChapter2,themost

challengingareasaretheteachingmethodusedandthelackofinternationalization

withinclassrooms.Moreover,thecomparisonmadewiththeIcelandiccurriculum

providestheauthorwithideasforfurtherimprovementoftheJapanesecurriculumand

guidanceastowhatsortofreformsshouldbesought.

25

4.2 Furtherimprovement

Bearingtheseproposedreformsinmind,itisessentialthatJapanesepolicymakerswithin

thegovernmentreconsidertheJapanesenationalcurriculum.Table1,below,presentsa

summaryofthedifferencesbetweenthetwocurricula,JapaneseandIcelandic,from

threedifferentperspectives:teachingmethods,internationalization,andoverallfocus,

suchasvolume,length,anddetails.

Table1:ComparisonoftheJapaneseandIcelandicnationalcurriculaforteaching

foreignlanguagesintermsofteachingmethods,internationalization,and

overall.

Japanesecurriculum Icelandiccurriculum

Teachingmethod • Noparticularteaching

methodismentioned

• Theme-based

study/Audiomaterial-

basedleaning

• Theuseofavarietyof

teachingmethodsis

suggested

• Emphasisonteaching,

listening,andspeaking,

usingadiverserangeof

differentmaterials

Internationalization • Morefocusedon

“interculturalstudy”

• Suggestsorganizing

cooperationwithpupils

inothercountries

Overall,suchasvolume,

length,anddetails

• 3.5pageslong

• Lacksdetailsandclear

explanationofhowto

meettheobjectives

• 15pageslong

• Providesdetailed

informationforboth

teachers/schoolsand

parents/students

26

Table1showsthattheJapanesecurriculumisnotasdetailedorspecificasthatof

Iceland,notonlyfromthetwoperspectivesofteachingmethodandinternationalization

butalsofromtheoverallview.Thecurriculumshouldprovideaclearoutlineforboth

teachersandstudents;thisisimportant,as“theintendedcurriculumistheofficialpolicy

setbythegovernment,whichoutlinesthelearningandteachingobjectives,the

instructionalcontent,recommendedteachingmethodsandorganizationalplanfor

instruction.”(Lefever,2009)Asfurtherimprovements,twosuggestionscouldbeaddedto

thereform:achangeinmethodologyandanemphasisoninternationalizationwithinthe

Japanesecurriculum.

4.2.1 ChangingofMethodologytoCommunicativeApproach

Forthepasthalf-century,EnglisheducationinJapanreliedonthegrammartranslation

method.Inthecontemporarysituation,whichemphasizesthedevelopmentof

communicationskills,thismethodisnolongersuitable.TheIcelandicnationalcurriculum

clearlydefinestheteachingmethodologythatteachersshouldadopt;Japanshouldfollow

thisgoodexample.“Asanalternativetothegrammar-translationmethod,theauthor

recommendsmethodssuchasthecommunicativeapproach,whichidentifiesthegoalof

languageeducationasbeingabletocommunicateinthetargetlanguage”(Sandra,1997).

Adetaileddescriptionofhowteacherscanimplementthismethodwithintheclassroom

isrequired.Thislanguage-teachingmethodplacesstrongemphasisonusingthelanguage

beingtaughtasatooltocommunicatewithothers:“Activitiesofcommunicative

approachincluderealcommunication,carryingoutmeaningfultasks,usinglanguage,

whichismeaningfultothelearner”(Nunan,1989).ThecurrentJapanesecurriculumonly

mentions“theme-basedactivity”;however,noothercommunicativeapproachactivities

areincluded.

Toelaborate,overthelastfewdecades,educatorshaveinventedanddeveloped

manydifferentteachingmethodologiesandapproaches.However,inthe1970s,they

begantoconsiderifthosemethodswereeffectiveoutsideoftheclassroomintermsof

communication.Theydiscoveredthatbeingabletocommunicaterequired

communicativecompetencemorethanlinguisticcompetence(Larsen-Freeman&

Anderson,2011).Inordertoallowstudentstogaincommunicativecompetence,the

27

“communicativeapproach”wasdeveloped;itisspecializedinthedevelopmentof

communicativeabilityinlanguageteaching.Yoshida(1998)notesthat“languageis

meaninglessifitlearnsseparatelyfromtheactualcommunicationsituationthatitisused.

Thelanguageisthereforetocommunicate,oritshouldbelearnedasatoolfor

communication.”Thus,theaimofthisapproachisforstudentstolearnlanguages

throughactualcommunication;italsotakesintoaccountthefactthatthesituationsin

whichcommunicationtakesplacechange.Forthisreason,teachersmayoccasionally

havea“fuzzy”understandingofcommunicativelanguageteaching(CLT)(Larsen-Freeman

&Anderson,2011).Therefore,itisimportanttonotsimplyrelyonusinganappropriate

methodologybutalsotosetuplearningenvironmentsinclassroomsthatallowforthe

methodstofunction.Inclasses,teachersemploycommunicativeactivitiessuchasrole-

play,interviews,groupwork,informationgap,opinionsharing,problem-solvingskillsand

soon.AccordingtoBanciuandJireghie(2012),communicativeapproacheshelplearners

todevelopanactualunderstandingofalanguage,ratherthanfocusingongrammatical

structuresoracquiringnative-likepronunciation.

Infact,itisclaimedthatusingthecommunicativeapproachinsteadofthe

grammar-translationmethodinelementaryschoolsinJapanresultedinimprovementsin

students’performancesinoralexams.Whatisinterestingisthatimprovementsinwriting

examinationsalsofollowed.Moreover,pupilstaughtusingthecommunicativeapproach

demonstratedmoremotivationintermsofcontinuingtoparticipateincommunication

activitiessuchasengagingwithotherstudentsandteachersusingthetargetlanguage

(Kurahachi,1993).

Forthesereasons,thismethodologywouldbeappropriateforconditionsinthe

contemporaryJapaneseclassroomandcouldassiststudentstodeveloptheir

communicationskillsinEnglishinanefficientmanner.However,changingthe

methodologymightnotbeenough;itwouldalsobenecessarytochangetheJapanese

people’swayofthinkingaboutlearningandusingEnglish.Inordertoimprovestudents’

communicationskills,includinglisteningandspeakingskills,whilealsoproducingthe

necessarymindsetforreadingandwriting,theteachingapproachesandmethodology

usedinJapanneedtochange.

28

4.2.2 CreatingtheInternationalizingmindset

Byfurtheremphasizinginternationalizationintheclassroom,itistobeexpectedthat

studentswillfindmorevalueintheskillstheyacquire.AccordingtoKnight(1999),

internationalizationisdefinedastheprocessofcreatinganinternational/intercultural

environmentinteachingandstudying.Thisisdoneinordertosupportthe

international/interculturalinteractionsoftheindividualsinvolved.Internationalization

canhelpstudentsrealizehowalanguageisusedinreal-lifesituationsandhowtheycan

useitontheirown.SinceJapanesestudentshaveveryfewopportunitiestouseEnglish,

bothwithinandoutsidetheirclassrooms,theirlearningenvironmentsarenotsufficient

forthemtodeveloptheircommunicationskills.Englishclassesshouldprovidemore

opportunitiesforstudentstousewhattheyhavelearnedintheclassroomintheirdaily

lives.Inthismanner,theycouldacquiretheskillof“knowingwhenandhowtosaywhat

towhom”(Larsen-Freeman,2013).

Itisimportantthatpupilsaremotivatedtolearnandusethetargetlanguage.

Motivationcanbeclassifiedasinstrumental,whenstudentsseektobenefitfromlearning

thelanguage,andasintegrative,whenstudentsbecomeinterestedinthesocietyin

whichthetargetlanguageisused(Gardner&Lambert1972).Itisthereforeimportantto

emphasizeinternationalizationwithintheclassroominordertopromotethesekindsof

motivationinstudents.

Yamamoto(2011)providesanexampleofawritingactivityinwhichstudents

wouldwriteletters,inEnglish,tostudentsinothercountries,particularlythosein

AustraliaandIndia.TheywouldthenreceiverepliesinEnglishfromtheircounterparts

abroad.Teacherswouldthenassisttheirstudentstounderstandthelettersthattheyhad

received.Thistypeofactivitywouldbeconsideredasanexampleofthe

internationalizationofaclassroom,sinceitcreatedanenvironmentthatconnected

studentswithindividualsfromothernations.Infact,over90percentoftheJapanese

studentsstatedthattheyweremotivatedtocontinuelearningEnglishafterthisactivity.

29

However,aletterexchangeactivityisnottheonlyapproachto“internationalizing

theclassroom,”asthereareotherwaystodoso,includingreachingouttootherschools

orstudentsinothercounties.Examplesofsuchapproachesincludeshortexchange

programs,invitingforeigngueststospeakabouttheirculturesandlifestyles,Skype

interactionswithstudentsinothercountries,andexchangingvideoletters.Approaches

tointernationalizationcouldthusvaryfromschooltoschoolandclassroomtoclassrooms

(Yamamoto,2011).

Thiswouldsurelyhelptofillthegapbetweenwhatstudentswanttolearnand

whattheyarelearning.Itwouldalsonotonlyassiststudentstousewhattheyhave

learnedintheclassroombutalsomotivatethemtoseekoutreal-lifesituationsinwhich

theycouldhavefunusingEnglish.

Consideringthesereasons,Ibelievethatashiftinmethodologyfromthe

grammar-translationmethodtothecommunicativeapproachandinternationalizing

classroomsarekeytochangingEnglisheducationinJapan.Thesenewapproachescould

notonlyhelppupilstodeveloptheskillsandknowledgethattheyrequiretoobtaingood

resultsinEnglishproficiencytestsbutalsotoaccomplishwhattheywishtodowith

Englishinthefuture.

30

5 Discussion

Thecomparisonmadebetweentheteachingmethodologiesandapproachesto

internalizationintheJapaneseandIcelandiccurriculahighlightssomeareasofthe

Japaneseeducationalsystemthatrequireimprovement.However,thefactthatthe

educationalreformsthattheJapanesegovernmenthasplannedinordertofulfillits2020

goalshaveastrongfocusondevelopingcommunicationskillshadtobeincludedinthis

discussion.Thus,theauthorbelievesthatthefollowingtwochangeswouldbesuitablein

thenewJapaneseeducationalcurriculumforteachingEnglish:adoptingthe

communicativeapproachandincludinginternationalizationeffortsinthenational

curriculum.

First,inordertoimprovestudents’communicationskills,thecommunicative

approachshouldbeincludedintheJapanesecurriculum.Amoredetaileddescriptionof

whichactivitiesandtechniquesaretobeusedwithinthesetteachingmethodisrequired.

Bycomparingtheexistingcurriculumwithmoredetailedones,suchasthatofIceland,

onecanobtaininsightsconcerningwhichdetailsarelackingandwheretheareasof

improvementlie.

Second,internationalizationshouldalsobeincludedintheJapanesecurriculum;it

shouldstresshowimportantitisforstudentstoengagewithforeignindividualsfromthe

elementaryschoollevel.Inordertoprovideopportunitiesforstudentstocommunicate

internationally,thecurriculumhastochangeandplaceemphasisonthe

internationalizationofEnglishclassrooms.TheIcelandicnationalcurriculum

demonstratesanemphasisoninternationalization,i.e.byrecommendingcooperation

withstudentsfromothercultures.

AlthoughthetaskofinternationalizingtheEnglishclassroommightprovedifficult,it

isimportanttorememberthat“internationalization”alsofunctionstomotivatechildren

tocontinuestudyingtheforeignlanguage(Yamamoto,2011).Therefore,itisnecessary

thatMEXTstartsseekingnewwaysofintroducing“internationalization”intoclassrooms.

31

6 Conclusion

EnglisheducationinJapanfacestheproblemofthelackofadetailedstrategyfor

improvingstudents’Englishability.Giventheupcoming2020OlympicGamesandthe

rapidglobalizationthatJapaniswitnessing,thisisthetimetochangethissituation.There

havebeenmanydiscussionsconcerningthesituationthatJapanisfacing.Examiningthe

currentJapanesenationalcurriculum,ataskthathasrarelybeenundertakeninrecent

researchpapers,providedtheauthorwithcluesconcerningwhatitlacks.Astheauthor

foundtheteachingmethodandinternationalizationtobethemostpressingareasof

improvement,thecomparisonmadeofthetwocurriculaledtotheidentificationofa

greatnumberofEnglishproficiencyteststhatcouldpotentiallybeadoptedtoassistthe

Japanesegovernmenttomeetitsgoalfor2020.

Putsimply,thecomparisonshowedthattheJapanesecurriculumislackingin

detail,particularlyintermsofteachingmethodandinternationalization.Thereshouldbe

morevarietyinteachingmethods,anditshouldbemuchmorethoroughlydescribedin

thecurriculum;thesamecanbesaidfor“internationalization”.TheIcelandicnational

curriculum,ontheotherhand,withitsdetailedguidelinesandobjectives,providesan

exampleofhowacurriculumshouldguideteachersandschools.

Thecommunicativeapproachhasastrongfocusongainingactualcommunication

skillsandsettingupsituationsinwhichstudentscanmeaningfullycommunicatewith

othersusingthetargetlanguageunderconditionsthatfacilitate“internationalization”.

Therefore,theauthorconcludesthatadoptingthecommunicativeapproachand

emphasizing“internationalization”intheJapanesenationalcurriculumwouldprovethe

mostefficientwaysofdevelopingstudents’communicationskillsinEnglish.

Inordertomakethesechanges,itwouldbenecessarytochangethecontentof

thecurriculuminordertodescribehowstudentscanmeetitsobjectivesandgoals,with

clearexamplesbeingprovided.Itistheauthor’svisionthatpresentinganewcurriculum

thatcouldbeefficientlyimplementedby2020shouldbecomethemainobjectiveof

Japan’sMinistryofEducation.

32

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