A small crowd gathered on November 17th at the university of the Ryukyus to see three presentations. First, Dr. Adam Lebowitz, intrigued us with his interesting study on analytical approaches to disaster research. Next, Barry Keith shared the pros and cons of a newly released set of graded readers before discussing what he does…

The 2nd 21st Century Language Learning conference on the 21st of September 2018 was a well organised mini conference. The event featured a mixture of research based presentations as well as teachers sharing techniques they used in their classes. The masterfully presented bilingual keynote by Pr. Makiko Tanaka from Kanda University of International Studies…

Things got off to a rough start on Friday the 20th of July as Typhoon number 10 approached Okinawa. All but two presenters were able to reach OIST seaside house on Friday night. Those that did make it sat in the lobby as the weather took a turn for the worse with wind and…

Speaker: Simon Humphries (Kansai University, Osaka) Factors influencing Japanese high school English students’ attitudes to speaking Knowing factors which influence Japanese high school students’ attitudes to speak would certainly help all teachers in this context. However, as Simon explained, getting access to high schools students’ opinions can be extremely difficult. Through his unique quantitative…

Local members gathered at OIST for a kick off event for the year. After a brief introduction to JALT by George MacLean and Justin Foster-Sutherland, Nadine Richard outlined the activities for the day. Attendees had a chance to introduce themselves. A very large variety of people attended. Teachers from international schools, JSL teachers, University…

The 21st Century Language Teaching Conference at AMICUS International School was a resounding success. The event featured a mix of workshops, research presentations, best practice presentations, a panel discussion and a masterful keynote presentation, “Implementation of New Course of Study and Bilingual Education” by Professor and Deputy Director, Center for Language Education and Research, Sophia…