JALT2022 Plenary Speakers

Jim McKinley

University College London

Sponsored by JALT

Supporting the Teaching-research Nexus: From Practice to Research

Plenary Presentation

Saturday Nov 12, 9:45 AM – 10:45 AM

In the language teaching community, a growing divide has been noted between language teaching researchers and language teaching practitioners. A result of this division is that many teachers no longer engage with research on language teaching—resulting in a situation that hinders important reciprocal knowledge exchanges within our community and may lead to “irrelevant” research that is “out-of-touch with real-world teaching issues” (Sato and Loewen, 2022, p. 3). In this talk, I explore the concept of a teaching-research nexus, which addresses the important relationship between teaching and research. Based on this year’s conference theme of Learning from Students, Educating Teachers: Research and Practice, I outline the benefits of grassroots teaching-informed or teaching-led research as a way to disrupt unidirectional flows of knowledge within this nexus, which have historically been established from the perspective of research-informed teaching. I will also highlight some of my recent work, which has explored the teacher identities of more than 400 researchers of language teaching, to highlight that the teaching-research community may not be as divided as some people suggest. I will further focus on the impact of teaching on research, particularly concerning policy-driven teaching-focused higher education in Japan and what this means for language educators. Via notions of learning from students through teaching, we can encapsulate ways in which the learning experiences of students provide invaluable developmental opportunities for researcher-practitioners to engage in practice-based language teaching research that tackles real-world teaching issues.

Publishing Language Practitioner Research

Workshop

Sunday Nov 13, 2:50 PM – 3:50 PM

In this 60-minute workshop, I will guide participants through the process of getting language practitioner research published in international peer-reviewed journals such as System, where I have served as an Editor-in-Chief for the last three years. After an initial overview of language practitioner research as well as some details from the journals that publish it, participants will be given a sample publication to evaluate for its publishable aspects in relation to the journal’s aims and scope. These aspects are originality, significance, and rigour. Originality concerns how the paper makes both a significant and innovative contribution to knowledge and understanding in the field. Examples of such originality are: the production of new empirical findings or material; engagement with new and/or complex problems; development of innovative analytical techniques and research methods/methodologies; display of imaginative scope; introduction of new arguments, innovations, insights, interpretations; collection of and engagement with different types of data; advancement of theory; advancement of the analysis of policy and/or practice; and the introduction of new forms of expression. Significance concerns how much the work has the capability to influence knowledge, or the development and understanding of policy and/or practice. And rigour concerns how the work exhibits consistency and reliability, and makes use of clear and appropriate concepts, analyses, theories, and methodologies. We will apply these criteria to the sample paper for the purposes of highlighting key requirements for making language practitioner research publishable.

Jim McKinley is Associate Professor at University College London and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK). He has taught in higher education in the UK, Japan, Australia, and Uganda, and in US schools. He researches implications of globalization for L2 writing, language education, and higher education studies, particularly the teaching-research nexus. Jim is co-author and co-editor of several books on research methods in applied linguistics. He is an Editor-in-Chief of the journal System.

Ryoko Tsuneyoshi

Bunkyo Gakuin University

Sponsored by JALT

The Problematic Role of “English” in the Internationalization of Japanese Education

Plenary Presentation

Saturday Nov 12, 2:35 PM – 3:35 PM

In Japan, English occupies a special position as the major foreign language students learn in and out of school. Speaking English is often considered to be a core part of the much-discussed image of the “global talent” (gurobaru jinzai). It is clear from the discussions on “global” or “international” that they are strongly associated with “English” in the Japanese mind. At the same time, there has been discussions on the internal internationalization (uchinaru kokusaika) of Japanese society from around the 1980s, as newcomer foreigners have diversified the multicultural landscape of Japanese society. Though in Japan, English is often described as an “international” language seen as necessary to speak with “foreigners” and to acquire global qualities, the image of “foreigners” in this context is very much of those “foreigners” abroad, not the “foreigners” within. The native languages of the “foreigners” within are usually not English (they are Brazilian, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, etc.) In some ways, the image of English as an “international” language seems to add to the difficulty Japanese have in acquiring a truly global perspective which recognizes the diversity within. This presentation will address such issues and the implications they may have for English education in Japan.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Japanese Education Seen Globally

Presentation

Sunday Nov 13, 1:05 PM – 2:05 PM

This presentation looks at the strengths and weaknesses of Japanese education in the global context, especially as it relates to the possibilities of using English to counter weaknesses. The strengths of Japanese school education include high achievement on international tests, a holistic framework which includes not just cognitive learning, but also noncognitive learning as well, and a system of teacher learning which crosses prefectural boundaries. The weaknesses include the lack of multicultural and intercultural communication experience and a lack of global qualities in both students and teachers as a result. Some of this may be due to the language barrier—in other words, the fact that most Japanese are not fluent in a language other than Japanese, however, that is not the only reason. There are mechanisms in society which makes it seem more homogeneous than it is. Such mechanisms will be discussed. Lastly, the possibilities of the use of English and online techniques to transcend national boundaries, to cultivate global qualities, and to advance international understanding education will be discussed, using concrete examples. The use of English in higher education and the challenges will also be discussed, introducing a concrete example of an English-only lecture.

Ryoko Tsuneyoshi is the vice president and specially appointed professor at Bunkyo Gakuin University, and formerly a Professor of Comparative Education at the University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Education (2000-2021). She is presently the executive board member of the Intercultural Education Society of Japan, the Japan Educational Research Association, and the Nihon Tokubetsukatsudo Gakkai. Ph.D. from Princeton University (sociology). Her books include: Tokkatsu: The Japanese Model of Holistic Education (edited with others, World Scientific, 2021), Minorities and Education in Multicultural Japan (coedited, Routledge, 2010), and The Japanese Model of Schooling: Comparisons with the United States (RoutledgeFalmer, 2001).

Kensaku Yoshida

Sophia University

Sponsored by The JALT Young Learners Special Interest Group (TYL SIG)

The New Course of Study—From the Point of View of the Needs of the Students

Plenary Presentation

Sunday Nov 13, 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM

The New Japanese Course of Study is based on very different principles from the previous courses of study. In this presentation, I will show how and where the differences are, not simply from theoretical perspectives, but also, and more importantly, from the point of view of the needs of the students. I will introduce data collected from approximately 1000 junior high school students as well as data from over 270 junior and senior high school teachers which show that the more integrated the skills used by the teachers in teaching English, and the more emphasis there is on content—rather than form of the language—the more the students are motivated to learn English. The results show that the new course of study is the result of not only the global theoretical trends seen in the world of SLA and TEFL, but also on the actual needs of the students.

Connecting the Fish Bowl to the Open Seas—Applying SLA and TEFL Principles in Teaching English in the Classroom

Presentation

Saturday Nov 12, 1:20 PM – 2:20 PM

Over 25 years ago I introduced the Fish Bowl Model and the Open Seas Model to visualize the state of English education in Japan. In this quarter century, although there are data to suggest that not much has changed, there are other data which show that changes have begun to appear in the way teachers teach. MEXT survey results show that the more student activities are conducted in class the higher the students’ English proficiency, the more the teachers use English to teach English, the higher the students’ English proficiency tends to be. In this presentation I will summarize some of the results seen in the most recent MEXT survey, and show how these results can be related to the guidelines shown in the New Course of Study. I will do this by referring to common concerns many teachers have in conducting their classes in the more communicative manner which the New Course of Study recommends.

Kensaku Yoshida is Professor Emeritus, Sophia University & Honorary President of the Eiken Foundation of Japan, and President of the Airline Pilots’ English Proficiency Assessment Committee (Ministry of Land and Transportation). At Sophia University he was the Director, Center for Language Education and Research, Dean, Faculty of Foreign Studies, & Director, Sophia Linguistics Institute for International Communication. He has worked on many government committees: the Planning Committee to Implement 4 Skills Tests (National Center for University Entrance Examinations), Liaison Committee to Promote 4 Skills Tests and Credentials for Admission and Selection Purposes (MEXT), Committee of Specialists on Revision of English Education (MEXT), Committee to Discuss Ways to Improve the Foreign Language Ability of the Japanese (MEXT), Foreign Language Sub-committee of the Central Education Council (MEXT). He was also Trustee of The International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) & member of the Asia TEFL Executive Committee.

Karen Hill Anton

Author, Columnist, Consultant

Sponsored by JALT

Crossing Cultures: A Personal Journey

Plenary Presentation

Sunday Nov 13, 5:15 PM – 6:15 PM

Setting out as a teenager to uncover the world beyond my New York City neighborhood, my cross-cultural journey began more than a half century ago. In the decades since, my worldwide travels have been as much a journey of self-discovery as geographical and cultural exploration. The process of learning from and embracing other cultures has been for me a transformation, one in which I have gained a wider view of the world, and my place in it. I think of this as the reward for living and learning cross-culturally. In this talk I will speak about what I have learned, what I have found of value in transcending the limits, and limiting labels of “identity”, nationality and ethnicity. By chance and by choice, and a sincere desire to cultivate connection, my journey has culminated in Japan. I accept that with my urban sensibilities and cosmopolitan outlook, in my rural community I will always stand out. Still, having lived with my family continuously in the countryside of Shizuoka prefecture since 1975, I will share what I’ve learned about fitting in. This talk will be illustrated with vintage photographs. My narration will include the insights and faux pas that highlight my experience of acculturation.

Writing Your Cross-Cultural Story

Workshop

Monday Nov 14, 11:05 AM – 12:05 PM

Everyone has a story. Those who have lived lives crossing cultures have some of the most fascinating stories. Many intrepid travelers are eager to put their myriad tales and adventures, life-changing encounters, small and giant cross-cultural steps, into words. And all writers of personal story (memoir) face this basic task: How to turn life experiences that are interesting to oneself (family and friends) into stories that are interesting to others. In this workshop we will look at factors to consider to write your story.

We will address these questions:

• Where do you begin? Must you begin at the beginning? If not, where does your story begin?
• What is your theme? Do you think of your life as having a theme? What do you want to tell others?
• What will you include? (You cannot include everything!) How do you choose?
• What do you think are the most important factors to tell your story?

Starting with “The Blank Page of Legend” attendees will engage in a few writing exercises to spur them to tell (write!) their story. Note: Please bring pen and paper.

Karen Hill Anton wrote the popular columns “Crossing Cultures” for The Japan Times and “Another Look” for Chunichi Shimbun for fifteen years. Lecturing widely on her experience raising four bilingual-bicultural children, she’s served on the Internationalization in Education and Society Advisory Councils of Prime Ministers Obuchi and Hashimoto. Originally from New York City, she’s made her home in rural Shizuoka since 1975. Karen’s the author of the award-winning memoir The View From Breast Pocket Mountain.

Yilin Sun

Seattle Colleges

Sponsored by Soka University and Fukuoka JALT Chapter

Integrating Culturally Responsive Teaching to Achieve Equity and Success in ELT

Plenary Presentation

Monday Nov 14, 9:15 AM – 10:15 AM

Our life and work as educators have changed significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As we cope with the many pandemic disruptions and fight against Coronavirus fatigue, educators must build confidence, skills, and strategies to face new challenges and continue our actions and innovations to be successful in the new realities that define our professional and social lives. The speaker, who has a strong research background and extensive teaching and teacher education experience in ESL and EFL settings, will discuss approaches and issues in integrating Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) to achieve equity and success for English language learners. She will also share success stories and poetic modes of expressions from immigrants, refugees, and students of color. Applicable strategies and practices to help ELT educators broaden their professional horizons and deepen their understanding of the critical principles and strategies of CRT will also be addressed.

Counter-Storytelling: A Critical Asset-based Pedagogical Framework

Workshop

Sunday Nov 13, 11:20 AM – 12:20 PM

The speaker invites everyone to participate in hands-on activities on ways to integrate asset-based Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) pedagogical framework in teaching and learning. The workshop will re-examine educational theories and practice with a critique of majoritarian narratives that have reinforced a deficit thinking of our learners. The facilitator will use counter-storytelling as a theoretical underpinning and share “asset-based” CRT activities that she and her colleagues have designed to examine the social context of our students’ personal and educational stories as well as our own. Powerful stories, arts, and poetic modes of expressions from immigrants, refugees, and students of color will be shared. It will be an experiential and intersectional space in exploring the interculturality and multimodality of designing curricula and lessons that center the lifeways, histories, languages, and literacies of students from systematically underserved and under-represented backgrounds.

Yilin Sun is a tenured professor (Emeritus Professor) who directed faculty development programs at the Seattle Colleges in Seattle, WA, U.S.A for the past three years before her retirement. She has served the field of TESOL for over 35 years as a classroom teacher, program leader, teacher educator, and researcher with many higher education institutions in China, Macau, Canada, and the USA. Dr. Sun is a former president of the TESOL International Association (2014-2015) and the founding president of Macau Association for Applied Linguistics (MAAL). In 2021, The English Language Specialist Program of U.S. Department of State recognized Dr. Sun as one of thirty specialists who have made a lasting impact on the TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) field since 1991. Dr. Sun is also serving as Chief Editor of the series Foreign Language Teacher Education and Development: Selected Works of Renowned TESOL Experts published by Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press. Over the years, Dr Sun has given numerous keynote/plenary and featured presentations at international professional conferences. She has authored and coauthored books, book chapters, and journal articles. Her research interests include curriculum development, program assessment and evaluation, L2 reading, vocabulary learning, critical thinking, classroom-based action research, teacher education, ESP/EAP, Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT), and NNEST/bilingual/multilingual English speaking teachers in the ELT field.

John Creswell

University of Michigan

Sponsored by JALT

An Introduction to the Logic of Mixed Methods Research

Plenary Presentation

Monday Nov 14, 12:55 PM – 1:55 PM

Few mixed methods research studies have been published in language learning and teaching. To encourage this methodology among English language teachers and researchers, I will introduce a simple logic model of interconnected steps in this research approach. The model starts with a mixed methods problem, and continues with the collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, the combination or integration of the two databases, the framing of integration within a specific type of mixed methods design, analysis of integration within a table of data, and finally, the interpretation or metainferences drawn from the quantitative and qualitative data combination. Through this process, participants learn the language of mixed methods research, are introduced to state-of-the-art thinking and see the practical value of using this methodology. I will end with a proposed mixed methods study in Japanese language learning based on my own experiences illustrating the steps in the logic model.

Steps in Conducting a Mixed Method Study

Workshop

Saturday Nov 12, 4:25 PM – 5:25 PM

In this workshop I will take participants through the major decision points in planning a mixed methods research study. I will be including major recent developments in the field of mixed methods research. It begins by deciding to conduct a mixed methods project. Next formulate a general question to be answered and consider collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. Separate the two forms of data. Consider how to connect or combine the two sources of data. Look into the mixed methods literature and see what mixed methods designs are available to combine the databases. Draw a diagram of procedures. Next conduct the study using good ethical procedures. After obtaining the data, put the results of the two databases into a table. This constitutes mixed methods data analysis. From this table, compare the two databases and draw conclusions of insight obtained what you learned from analyzing only the quantitative results and the qualitative findings. Write the study following the procedures in the mixed methods design.

John W. Creswell is a Professor of Family Medicine and Senior Research Scientist of the Michigan Mixed Methods Program. He has authored numerous articles and 28 books on mixed methods research, qualitative research, and research design. While at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, he held the Clifton Endowed Professor Chair, served as Director of the Mixed Methods Research Office, founded SAGE’s Journal of Mixed Methods Research, and was an Adjunct Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Michigan and a consultant to the Veterans Administration Health Services Research Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He was a Senior Fulbright Scholar to South Africa in 2008 and to Thailand in 2012. In 2011, he co-led a National Institute of Health working group on the “best practices of mixed methods research in the health sciences,” served as a Visiting Professor at Harvard’s School of Public Health, and received an honorary doctorate from the University of Pretoria, South Africa. In 2014, he was the founding President of the Mixed Methods International Research Association. In 2015, he joined the staff of Family Medicine at the University of Michigan to Co-Direct the Michigan Mixed Methods Program. In 2017, he co-authored the American Psychological Association “standards” on qualitative and mixed methods research. In 2018 his book on Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design won the Textbook and Academic Author’s 2018 McGuffey Longevity Award. During the pandemic he has been giving keynote presentations online to many countries, and in October, 2021, he provided three webinars on mixed methods from his office in Osaka, Japan. Updates on his work can be found on his website: https://johnwcreswell.com.