The Impact of Foreign Asian Students in Japanese University EFL Classrooms
The Impact of Foreign Asian Students in Japanese University EFL Classrooms
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Kaoru Mita, Mika Shirao, Steven Martin, Yuko Hatagaki, Gary Dendo
Bio Data
Kaoru Mita, Associate Professor, has a Master’s Degree in English Education from Tsukuba University, Japan, and is currently ABD (all but dissertation) for her Doctoral degree in Linguistics at Dokkyo University Japan. She has invited foreign students to university EFL classes and researched its effects on Japanese students for two years.
Mika Shirao, Ph.D., graduated from Tokyo Medical and Dental University and has been a full-time faculty member at Jissen Women’s Junior College for four years.
Steven F. Martin is a doctoral candidate in TESOL from Temple University Japan and has been a full-time faculty member at Jissen Women’s Junior College for four years.
Yuko Hatagaki, Master’s Degree in Literature, specializing in Comparative Literature, from Tokyo University, has been a full-time faculty member of Jissen Women’s Junior College for 23 years. She has recently served as Dean of the Junior College and Chairman of the English Communication Department.
Gary Dendo is a full-time faculty member of the English and American Literature Department of Rissho University in Tokyo.
This study examines the effects and implications of inviting foreign Asian students to Japanese university EFL classes. Foreign students invited to EFL classes are defined here as a possible source of a “real audience” which is characterized by having a real information gap. The participants in this study consisted of 68 students registered in required English classes at a Japanese university and 10 Asian students from China, Vietnam, and South Korea. The Japanese students made presentations in front of the foreign guests using presentation software, and dealt with subsequent comments, questions, and discussion in English. A qualitative analysis of post-activity questionnaires revealed that the program had a positive effect on motivation and performance. Results provide key implications toward developing a Communicative Language Teaching curriculum that addresses the needs of Japanese EFL students.
Category: Main Editions, Volume 8 Issue 1
