High School Freshmen’s Responses to Home Economics Conducted in a Non-native Variety of English: A Three-year Survey on Content-based Instruction in Japan
Title
High School Freshmen s Responses to Home Economics Conducted in a Non-native Variety of English: A Three-year Survey on Content-based Instruction in Japan
High School Freshmen s Responses to Home Economics Conducted in a Non-native Variety of English: A Three-year Survey on Content-based Instruction in Japan
Keywords: Englishes, non-native speaker, content-based instruction, Japanese high schoo
Authors
Toshiyuki Takagaki
Onomichi University, Japan
Toshiyuki Takagaki
Onomichi University, Japan
Naoko Tanabe
Yasuda Women s University, Japan
Bio Data
Toshiyuki Takagaki is an associate professor of English at Onomichi University, Hiroshima. His research interests include TESOL and bilingualism, and he has conducted research in the U.S., Canada, and Japan.
Naoko Tanabe is an associate professor of English at Yasuda Women’s University, Hiroshima. She used to be a high school teacher of English, and wants to conduct research to improve English Teaching in normal English classes
Abstract
From 2002 to 2004, a public high school in Japan provided Home Economics lessons for freshmen using non-native varieties of English for instruction. Offering a content course using non-native varieties of English was a significant step in the Japanese education scene since the need for students to be familiar with non-native varieties of English is essential, given the fact that non-native speakers outnumber native speakers of English in the world. This study focused on questionnaire data gathered from the high school freshmen over three years and analyzed the data in terms of satisfaction, listening comprehension, teachers speech rate, and students written comments. Finally, several pedagogical implications are presented based on the findings. It is hoped that this paper will be of use for both researchers and practitioners to critically evaluate the current English teaching programs at high school in Japan and to change them to a more Englishes-conscious classroom.
From 2002 to 2004, a public high school in Japan provided Home Economics lessons for freshmen using non-native varieties of English for instruction. Offering a content course using non-native varieties of English was a significant step in the Japanese education scene since the need for students to be familiar with non-native varieties of English is essential, given the fact that non-native speakers outnumber native speakers of English in the world. This study focused on questionnaire data gathered from the high school freshmen over three years and analyzed the data in terms of satisfaction, listening comprehension, teachers speech rate, and students written comments. Finally, several pedagogical implications are presented based on the findings. It is hoped that this paper will be of use for both researchers and practitioners to critically evaluate the current English teaching programs at high school in Japan and to change them to a more Englishes-conscious classroom.
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See pages 7-18
[/private]Category: Main Editions, Volume 9 Issue 1
