Category: Talk

  • Upcoming: Sept 25- David Gann – Sustainable Language-based Critical Thinking Instruction

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    Date and Time: Sunday, 25 September – 1:30pm – 4:30pm
    Speaker: David Gann
    Location: AIINA Rm 817 (map https://goo.gl/maps/kEQo5UV2jPr)
    Fee for JALT members: Free
    Fee for one-day members: 1,000 yen (500 yen for students)

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    I hope everyone had a great summer. I’m back from a short sojourn to  Canada and the U.S. Now that I’ve returned, we can get down to business for the fall season. Here is our September event. I’m looking forward to this one.

     

    Sustainable Language-based Critical Thinking Instruction

    The presenter will report on the first in his multi-step course design for aiding students in the development of critical thinking competence and dialectical discourse. These steps include (1) intake of explicit instruction in argument analysis delivered via podcast; (2) completion of two types of online text reconstruction exercises specially designed to facilitate noticing of (a) salient textual features associated with various premise-conclusion constructions; and (b) dialectical discourse items used in professional, academic and civil discourse; (3) online discussion threads concerning either (a) issues raised in the textbook during Freshman English; or (b) problem solving, hypothesis testing and data interpretation during subsequent Integrated Skills courses; and collaborative writing via online documents; (4) speaking tests, during which students draw upon their recent discussion thread communications; (5) assessment based on the use of the aforementioned language items, followed by meaningful feedback; and (6) how a technological solution helped the course design and approach reach sustainability. The presenter will explain the rationale behind the various steps; pedagogical considerations that informed various technological aspects of production and delivery; how the podcast material was connected to in-class activity; and how well the course design was received by our students.

     

    Bio

    Originally from the U.S., David Gann moved to Japan and began teaching in 1996, after earning an M.A. in English literature. In 2010, he began co-producing Critically Minded Podcast. That same year he also co-founded JALT Critical Thinking SIG. Since 2012, he has taught as Assistant Professor at Tokyo University of Science, where he has continued to develop materials for critical thinking instruction. In 2013, he completed a second M.A. in Educational Technologies and TESOL at the University of Manchester. His main interests include critical thinking instruction, CALL and learner autonomy.

  • Upcoming: April 24 – Patrick Dougherty (Akita International University)

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    Date and Time: Sunday, 24 April – 1:30pm – 4:30pm
    Speaker: Patrick Dougherty
    Location: AIINA Rm 602 (map https://goo.gl/maps/kEQo5UV2jPr)
    Fee for JALT members: Free
    Fee for one-day members: 1,000 yen (500 yen for students)

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    Imbuing Student Heritage into the English as a Foreign Language Classroom: Projects from Japan and the United Arab Emirates

    The idea of using students’ native culture in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) or English as a second language (ESL) classroom is not new. The topic has been researched and the benefits identified. One of the primary reasons the use of native culture is beneficial in the EFL/ESL classroom comes from schema theory research. Studies have shown that students’ comprehension and retention of target language material is improved when familiar cultural contexts are used in the classroom (Post and Rathet, 1996). If a goal of learning a language is improved cultural understanding, than the question may be asked, why should this not extend to a cultural understanding of one’s native culture and heritage? As Rebecca Chism (2005) stated, the “goal in a language classroom is intercultural understanding, not only the understanding of another culture but of one’s own culture as well (p. 2).” Chism’s study of the inclusion of Chinese culture in English language classrooms in Taiwan pointed out that the vast majority of textbooks being utilized in the local classrooms were focused on American or world culture and cultural constructs. This resulted in a situation where Taiwanese students were comfortable and able to discuss American and world culture but had not learned the vocabulary or enough background to dialogue on their own culture (Chism, 2005, p. 2). The same situation can apply to students from a variety of cultural and heritage backgrounds (Dougherty and Dougherty, 2006). What this presentation will do is introduce three projects that have been undertaken to encourage EFL students to explore their own heritage. They are applicable to any teaching environment from primary to adult, and have been used in both EFL and ESL settings.

    Bio

    Prof. Patrick Dougherty, Ed.D.
    Patrick Dougherty holds a Doctorate in Education from Northern Arizona University. He is currently a professor of International Liberal Arts and Director of the English for Academic Purposes Program and Foreign Language Education at Akita International University in Japan. He is also the Chair of Publications for Teachers Helping Teachers and the President of the Akita Chapter of JALT.

    Prior to that he lived and worked in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where his last post was as Chair of Graduate Programs in Education for the Higher Colleges of Technology. While serving in that capacity, he worked with colleagues to create a tele-presence supported distributed course delivery (TSDCD) system to allow students in remote locations to participate in degree programs. Additionally, he served as the editor for two volumes of a book series he began entitled, Perspectives from Experience: Education in the United Arab Emirates. These volumes were an effort to bring research from Emirati and UAE-based education professionals to the attention of the world-wide academic community.

    His own research interests are in teacher training and development, the uses of creative writing and student heritage in the language classroom, and the impact of distance learning modalities on pedagogy. Lastly, Prof. Dougherty has worked in education for twenty-eight years. He spent fourteen of them as a high school supervisor and teacher in the United States and Japan prior to moving into higher education. He has taught and served as an administrator at universities in the United States, Japan, Bangladesh, and the United Arab Emirates.

  • Late-Winter Meetings Report – 2016

    Today I’m going to report on the meetings we had in January and February. I like putting them together in this format. Let me know in the comments if you’d prefer them to be separate.

    Diane Nagatomo – January 31

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    We were very lucky to have Diane Nagatomo from Ochanomizu University in Morioka at the end of January to talk about the research she is currently undertaking.  Diane is tackling professional identity development of English teachers in Japan who have chosen to reside in the country permanently.  He research focuses specifically on foreign women who are married to Japanese men and what they must deal with on a daily basis.

    Diane gave us an account of Victoria. Victoria is a woman from Australia who came to live in Japan and teach here. However, she also became the manager of a temple and the mother and wife. Diane explored all the ways in which Victoria identities cause her issue in a typical Japanese town.  The daily struggle of a foreign woman in the Japanese work world is perhaps not surprising, but the ways in which Victoria deal with the identities placed on her as well as the identities she places on herself give an insight into her live.

    After the presentation Diane held a workshop in which we explored identity and how it impacts the way people are treated.

     

     

    John Campbell-Larsen  – February 28

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    John Campbell-Larsen from Kyoto Women’s University was our plenary speaker last year at MEES 2015. We were so enthralled by his talk on using discourse makers, that we asked him to come back and give a full ninety minute presentation on the topic. He did not disappoint.  Not only did John give us an overview of the history of of discourse markers and some of the negativity that has been shown towards them, but he also taught us how to teach them to students and gave us an account of how he does it in his classes. I am now convinced that these once disregarded “filler” words such as ‘so’ ‘uh’ ‘you know’ and ‘I mean’ might just be the ticket to English language fluency.

     

    We want to thank both Diane and John for taking the time out of their busy schedules to join us this year.

     

    Reported by: Jason Hill

    All photography ©2016 Jason Hill