A Journey in English (2), 2008.08.01

A Journey in English
About English
From Here to There
& Back Again
By Paul Beaufait
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Journey in English (Beaufait) 2
How Many Languages? (1)
 "'They say if you
speak two
languages,
 you are bilingual;
 Three languages,
 you are
trilingual.
 But if you only
speak one
language,
 then you are an
American.'"
 (Pete Groux; in
Mervine, 2005)

Benefits of Learning English
20050909, 20080801,
201107--

Policies for Learning English
20050909, 20080801,
201107--

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
A Quick Look Around
Czech Republic
(Central Europe)
Thailand
(Southeast Asia)
South Korea
(East Asia)
Language Outlooks:
Snapshots of English Education

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Europe

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
How Many Languages? (2)
 "According to the
[European
Commission's]
plan,
 every European
citizen should have
command of at
least two
languages,
 apart from his or
her native
language."
 (Hospodarske
noviny, August 30,
2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Which Language? Czech Loss of
Choice
 "There is a
possibility that in
three years Czech
children will not ...
 be able to choose
which of foreign
languages they will
start learning at
schools and...
 English will
become the first
mandatory
foreign language
to be learnt."
 (Hospodarske
noviny, August
30, 2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
When? Czech Lifelong learning
 "All schools -
beginning with
nurseries and
ending with high
schools -
 will pay more
attention to the
teaching of foreign
languages."
 "Adults will be
able to attend
foreign language
courses partly
paid by the
state."
 (Hospodarske
noviny, August 30,
2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
South Asia

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
When? Pakistani primary schools
 "The government in
Pakistan's Sindh
province has decided
to teach English to
students from Class I
in all schools run by
it."
 "Sindh Minister for
Education Dr Hamida
Khuhro said... the decision
had been taken keeping in
view the growing
dependability of the world
on English language
skills."
 (The Peninsula,
2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Southeast Asia (1)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Southeast Asia (2)
 Thailand
 Malaysia

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
When? National-type Chinese
schools in Malaysia
 Educators wanted the
Malaysian
"Government to
abolish [stop] the use
of English to teach
Science and
Mathematics."
 Just two years after...
 "The use of English in
the teaching of
Mathematics and
Science in Standard
One was introduced in
2003."
 (New Sunday
Times Online,
2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"Rethink on classes for 1st graders"
 Thai government
officers reconsider,
 "Starting too early
may do more harm
than good."
 Because students who
cannot communicate
"after years of learning"
 May have had "bad
experiences in compulsory
classes"
 Starting in the first grade.
 (The Nation, September 19,
2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"Inability to communicate in
English" (1)
 Thailand's
"Education
Minister Chaturon
Chaisang said that
 most students’
inability to
communicate in
English
 despite spending
years learning the
language
 pointed to a clear
failure in language-
teaching in
Thailand."
 (The Nation,
August 28, 2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"Inability to communicate in
English" (2)
 Minister Chaisang
"added that
 the practice of
encouraging students
to memorise
grammatical rules by
rote
 must be discontinued
 in favour of
providing them
with opportunities
to practice
speaking, listening
and writing."
 (The Nation, 2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
East Asia (1)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
East Asia (2)
 Korea
 Japan

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Korea: TOEFL reforms (1)
 Major English exams
did not require
practical
communication.
 As a result, students
could score highly on
tests and yet not be
able to communicate
in real life.
 In other words, real
communication or
interaction was not
needed either between
people or between
areas of language use.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Korea: TOEFL reforms (2)
 New test to be used in
Korea as of May 2006
 The new form of
TOEFL test will
measure the language
ability of students,
 not only academic
understanding but
 also communication
skills in various
settings.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Korea: "Why TOEIC for All?"
 "... [I]t does not make
sense that people with
excellent English
abilities should have
to take TOEIC to
apply for a company."
 "TOEIC is not the best
option for evaluating
someone's English
skills...."

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Job Korea's Enquête:
Company Testing Policies
 193 of top 300
companies in Korea
 27% to change testing
methods in 2008
 + speaking
 + interviews
 + speeches
 + listening
 + writing
 Samsung Group,
Korea's largest
conglomerate, is
considering:
 OPIc
 "a test for practical
English largely
focused on speaking
ability"

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
From Here
What Why How
English Education
in Japan

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
IntegrativeInstrumentalAcademicNon-
academic
GeneralSpecificNo
apparent
purposes
entrance
exams
TOEIC‘Eiken’CommunicationResearch &
publication
Global
understanding &
cooperation
Self-expressionInter-
personal
relations
TOEFL
Learning English: What for? (1)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
IntegrativeInstrumentalAcademicNon-
academic
GeneralSpecificNo
apparent
purposes
entrance
exams
TOEIC‘Eiken’CommunicationResearch &
publication
Global
understanding &
cooperation
Self-expressionInter-
personal
relations
TOEFL
Learning English: What for? (2)
0. No apparent
purposes;
1. General purposes;
2. Instrumental
purposes;
3. Integrative purposes;
or
4. Specific purposes.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"An important language"
 "English is an
important
language to be
learned
 in order to do
business and
 communicate with
other peoples of the
world."
 (Nakata 2002b)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"An important role in society" (1)
 "Historically we
Japanese people didn't
think any foreign
languages so
important
 as we didn't feel
inconvenient at all in
communicating with
each other in the
closed society.
 But [a] time has come
that Japanese people
must face reality."
 (Language Teacher
Development Project
participant)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"An important role in society" (2)
 "As we were making
an effort to catch up
with other
developing countries,
 we realize[d] that
English is playing an
important role in our
society."
 (Language Teacher
Development
Project participant)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
English education:
When & where?
 K-12
 Pre-school -
Primary
 Kindergartens
 Elementary schools
 Cram schools
 Secondary
 Junior high schools
 Cram schools
 Senior high schools
 Cram schools

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
English education:
When & where?
 Adult
 Tertiary
 Colleges &
universities
 Students
 Auditors
 Vocational-
technical schools
 Skills
 Trades

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
English education:
When & where?
 Adult
 Other:
 Self-development
plans and activities;
 'Conversation'
schools; or
 Online learning:
 Almost
 Anywhere,
 Anytime!

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"A complete & systematic approach"
 "There has to be a
strong lead
connecting English
teaching from
children all the way
up to adults
 in order to have a
complete and
systematic
approach to English
education."
 (Nakata, 2002a)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Bridging the gaps
 Getting more
input:
 Listening,
 Reading, &
 Viewing.
 Making more
output:
 Producing;
 Speaking; &
 Writing.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Models & motivation
 "Many high school
teachers are highly
proficient in
English and
 motivated to
integrate new
theoretical and
research insights
into their teaching."
 (Matsuda, 2002, p.
53)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
To Get There
 You'll need:
 Vision,
 Passion, &
 Action.
 (Murphey, 1998)
 Based upon:
 World views;
 Local
knowledge; &
 Personal
objectives.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"Passion, Vision, & Action"
 All three are required
for what Tim Murphey
has called "Olympian
Technology."
 Language Hungry
 MACMILLAN
LANGUAGEHOUSE
(1998), Chapter 15
 Without action:
 Dreamers;
 Without vision:
 Workaholics;
 Without passion:
 People going for
average (or less).

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
And Back Again: Virtually (1)
 A virtual high
school...
 with real high
goals:
 To create:
Excitement,
Interest, &
Opportunity.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
And Back Again: Virtually (2)
 "Funded by the
National Ministry
of Education,
Sports, Science and
Technology
(MEXT)...
 Kumamoto was
selected
 as one of 16 'kens' to
be the host of a pilot
program with
 the goal of improving
English education for
the entire country."
 (Super Virtual
High School,
2002-2004)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Virtual High Goals (1)
 "Get students excited
about English by
 teaching them in
English
 about topics that
interest them"
[emphasis added].
 "Further facilitate
internationalization
 by increasing student
exposure to non-
Japanese young
people."
 (Super Virtual
High School)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
 "Expose Japanese
students to their role
as world citizens and
 give them enough
information
 to spark an interest in
the world outside of
our 'ken,'
 thus further increasing
internationalization."
 (Super Virtual
High School)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
 "Give our
students the
confidence to
communicate in
English,
 both with native
speakers and
other non-native
speakers alike."
 (Super Virtual
HS, 2005)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Overseas Travel and
Study Abroad (1)
 Overseas travel:
 Developing
awareness &
appreciation of
 target cultures,
 own cultures, and
 global issues;
 While...
 Developing self-
confidence and self-
reliance through
 voluntary,
 school, and
 personal activities.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
State funding for
overseas studies?
 1000 students:
 English speaking
countries;
 Three months or more;
 400,000 yen.
 (Asahi, 2002)
 100 teachers:
 Leave of absence; for
graduate studies;
 A year or more;
 One-half of tuition.
 (Asahi, 2002)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Overseas Travel and
Study Abroad (2)
 Study abroad:
 Studying and
using target
languages;
 Experiencing &
observing
various cultures;
and
 Developing
 attitudes,
 knowledge, &
 skills
 for current and
future use.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Educated, pro-active ciitzens have it,
or get it!
 Awareness of
issues;
 Concerns about
the world around
us;
 Knowledge of
histories;
 Visions of the
future, &
 Passions for
action.

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
"The Action Plan...
 ...to cultivate
'Japanese with
English abilities.'"
 (Ministry of
Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and
Technology
[MEXT], 2004)
 In particular,
 the ability to use
English at work
 (Administrative
studies faculty
meeting; June 24,
2004)

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Ability to use English @ work
 Occupation: Full-time student
 Major: Administrative studies
 Responsibilities:
 Class work:
 Pair work
 Group work
 Class discussion
 Homework
 Self-development

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Administrative studies:
Goals in focus (1)
 Introductory
questions:
 Are your ideas
flexible?
 Do you see things from
diverse angles?
 Are your views
international?
 http://www.pu-
kumamoto.ac.jp/guide-
e/admin-e/admin-e.htm

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Goals in focus (2)
 Reflect for a
moment about
the introductory
questions:
 If so, how so?
 If not, why?

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Goals in focus (3)
 A range of communicative proficiencies:
 "Achieving international communication skills
requires not only [listening] and speaking, but
also writing ability, [and] reading ability….
While the basis is English, ... students are able
to study a range of languages."
 http://www.pu-kumamoto.ac.jp/guide-e/admin-
e/admin-e.htm

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Online communication protocols
 Learn to do it in English with computers: keyboards, mail,
& other programs, & web sites; for example:
 Using English, little by little, for forms, lists, notes, messages,
presentations, research, reports, & reviews, including:
 Names & addresses,
 Subject headings & body texts,
 Numbering & punctuation,
 Electronic signatures, &
 Internet searches.
 Keep doing it to develop and polish listening, reading,
speaking, writing, and computer skills!

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Goals in focus (4)
 Think back:
 In how many
languages can you
answer those
introductory
questions right
now?
 Which languages?

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Goals in focus (5)
 Think ahead:
 In how many
languages do you want
to be able to answer
those questions -
 by the time you
graduate?
 In which modes:
 Speech, writing, or
both;
 Online and off?

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Food for Thought (1)
 In the Faculty of Administrative Studies,
English courses are a world apart from:
 Introductory courses,
 Core courses,
 Applied courses, &
 Seminars.
 http://www.pu-kumamoto.ac.jp/guide-e/admin-
e/admin-curri-e.htm

20050909, 20080801,
201107--
Food for Thought (2)
 A key question:
 How necessary are
English AND other
languages in
administrative
studies, and
 in your careers and
lives beyond?

A Journey in English (2), 2008.08.01

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