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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