Event Report, Ibaraki Chapter September 2015

IBARAKI: September — This month, Ibaraki Chapter provided an opportunity for two local speakers to introduce their presentations for the JALT National Conference in November. Ibaraki JALT attendees also welcomed a guest speaker, Andy Boon, Toyo Gakuen University. Image schema-based instructions on English Grammar by Mayu Shintani. Shintani proposed a grammar teaching method adopting the image-schema theory. She claimed that it is more visible to learners and clearer to understand grammar than ordinary character-based methods. She also gave the experimental data showing the effectiveness of the method. Study on politeness in Japanese learners’ context by Ryoko Ohata. Ohata stated that the expression of politeness is one of the most challenging aspects for learners, and she especially stressed the importance of non-verbal factors of politeness. Based on previous studies on non-verbal behavior as a dimension of politeness, she proposed non-verbal behaviors and domains of situational interaction. Inspire or perspire? Getting students speaking by Andy Boon (supported by the Cengage Publishing Company). Boon introduced us to a number of strategies that can help break the silence in the Japanese classroom and get students engaging in meaningful communication.
We enjoyed trying out several tried and tested speaking activities and sharing our ideas for getting students talking to one another in English.
Reported by Yuko Koike