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 The Exploratory Learning and Teaching Newsletter of Dokkyo University Summer 2006 | No. 7 |
Welcome
to our Sparkling Summer
Issue!
Please note that the full issue is now available online as a PDF file. Issues will no longer be available in html. Feel free to print the entire issue or refer to the Table of Contents below and print only the page numbers of the articles of interest. Let us know if you have any questions.
Please note that the full issue is now available online as a PDF file. Issues will no longer be available in html. Feel free to print the entire issue or refer to the Table of Contents below and print only the page numbers of the articles of interest. Let us know if you have any questions.
The editors of the Languaging! No. 7 say "Yorokonde!"
Jim Brogan
Christopher Carpenter
Paul Dore
Tim Murphey
Ye Olde Standard Disclaimer: The
opinions and views expressed in Languaging!
do not necessarily reflect those of the editors nor of Dokkyo University (and maybe
not even of the authors - after all people change their minds all the time!).
Nevertheless, we hope you enjoy!
For a printable Word Document version of Languaging! No. 7, click
do not necessarily reflect those of the editors nor of Dokkyo University (and maybe
not even of the authors - after all people change their minds all the time!).
Nevertheless, we hope you enjoy!
For a printable Word Document version of Languaging! No. 7, click
Be
the Change you wish to see in the World!
Ideal Universities
What is your dream school or dream university like? Describe it!
Wie sieht Ihre Traumschule oder Traumuniversität aus? Beschreiben Sie sie!
Markus Rude and Student Voices
Dokkyo University
I would like a university
where I had more freedom.
As a continuation of “Freies Schreiben in Sprachtests / free composition in language tests” (Languaging! No.6), this article is about what some students wrote on the question in the title. The test took place in December 2005, the students were of the class SOGO ドイツ語 I-1 (kisshu) and thus 1st year German Majors with a strong background in German language. The students were asked to describe their dream university. For other students it might be interesting to find out what their peers dream of. For teachers it might be worthwhile to read that sometimes little things can make a difference. All contributions are – though slightly corrected – original in their German version, and were then translated to English.
(Deutsch/English)
Anonym:
Meine Traumuniversität ist wie die Universität in
Deutschland, Europa. In der Uni lernt man selbst mit Hilfe des
Professors oder der Professorin. Man achtet nicht auf gute Kleidung,
sondern auf das Studium.
My dream university is like the university in Germany, Europe. At the university students learn by themselves, guided by the professor. Students don’t care about a good outfit, but about their studies.
Ayano: Für mich ist es schön, wenn ein Bus mich hin und zurück fährt. Weil ich jeden Tag in der vollen Bahn stundenlang stehen muss. Die Lehrer sollen auch lustigen oder interessanten Unterricht machen, damit wir nicht einschlafen.
For me it is nice, if a bus would bring me to and take me from school. Since I have to stand for hours in the full train every day. The teachers should make funny or interesting lessons, such that we don’t fall asleep.
Hiroe: Ich fände es gut, wenn die Lehrer im Unterricht viel Spaß machen würden. Ich wäre froh, wenn die Lehrer jedes Mal nicht so viel Hausaufgaben aufgeben würden. Ich fände es gut, wenn die Lehrer erklären würden ohne Kompromisse zu machen, wenn ich etwas nicht verstehen kann.
I would like the teachers to make a lot of fun in the lessons. I would be glad, if the teachers wouldn’t give that much homework every time. I would like the teachers to give explanations without compromises, if I don’t understand something.
Mari: Ich wünsche mir eine Traumuniversität, in der man freier sein kann. Zum Beispiel wäre es sehr nett von den Lehrern, wenn Studenten im Unterricht essen dürften, um sich besser konzentrieren zu können. Wenn Studenten während des Unterrichts sprechen wollten, sollten die Lehrer sie aus dem Zimmer schicken, sonst können die anderen nicht viel lernen.
I would like a university where I had more freedom. For example, it would be very nice of the teachers, if they would allow the students to eat during the lessons, for better concentration. If students would like to speak during the lessons, the teachers should make them leave the room, since otherwise the others cannot learn a lot.
Miki: Die Schule soll sehr klar sein. Weil die Schüler sich selbst eine Meinung bilden sollen. Die Lehrer müssen nett sein. Aber wenn die Schüler nicht fleißig sind, müssen sie sich über sie ärgern. Aber sie sollen nicht sehr streng sein. Das ist alles, was ich möchte.
The school should be very clear. Because the students should form their own opinion. The teachers have to be friendly. However, if the students are not eager, the teachers have to get angry with them. But they should not be very strict. That is all, what I want.
Mio: In meiner Traumuniversität müssten aller Lehrer sehr interessanten Unterricht machen. Alle Studenten sollten sehr aktiv sein. Und alle Studenten, die einen Austausch machen wollen, könnten einen Austausch machen. Das ist meine Traumuniversität!
In the university of my dreams, all teachers would give very interesting lessons. All students would be very active. And all students, who would like to do an exchange, could do an exchange. That’s the university of my dreams.
Shinpei: Ich denke, meine Traumschule hat alles. z. B. Computer, Fernseher usw. Und die Lehrer müssen ein bisschen streng sein. Sie sollen den Schülern viele Aufgaben geben. Aber sie müssen sich auch um die Schüler gut kümmern. Es wäre gut, wenn es nach dem Unterricht viel Programm gibt. Es findet etwas mit den Lehrern statt, z. B. zusammen essen, Sport treiben usw.
I think the university of my dreams has everything. For example computers, TV-sets and so on. And the teachers should be somewhat strict. They should give many exercises to the students. But they also have to take good care of the students. A variety of activities after the lessons would be great: activities together with the teachers, e. g. having meals together, doing sports, etc.
My dream university is like the university in Germany, Europe. At the university students learn by themselves, guided by the professor. Students don’t care about a good outfit, but about their studies.
Ayano: Für mich ist es schön, wenn ein Bus mich hin und zurück fährt. Weil ich jeden Tag in der vollen Bahn stundenlang stehen muss. Die Lehrer sollen auch lustigen oder interessanten Unterricht machen, damit wir nicht einschlafen.
For me it is nice, if a bus would bring me to and take me from school. Since I have to stand for hours in the full train every day. The teachers should make funny or interesting lessons, such that we don’t fall asleep.
Hiroe: Ich fände es gut, wenn die Lehrer im Unterricht viel Spaß machen würden. Ich wäre froh, wenn die Lehrer jedes Mal nicht so viel Hausaufgaben aufgeben würden. Ich fände es gut, wenn die Lehrer erklären würden ohne Kompromisse zu machen, wenn ich etwas nicht verstehen kann.
I would like the teachers to make a lot of fun in the lessons. I would be glad, if the teachers wouldn’t give that much homework every time. I would like the teachers to give explanations without compromises, if I don’t understand something.
Mari: Ich wünsche mir eine Traumuniversität, in der man freier sein kann. Zum Beispiel wäre es sehr nett von den Lehrern, wenn Studenten im Unterricht essen dürften, um sich besser konzentrieren zu können. Wenn Studenten während des Unterrichts sprechen wollten, sollten die Lehrer sie aus dem Zimmer schicken, sonst können die anderen nicht viel lernen.
I would like a university where I had more freedom. For example, it would be very nice of the teachers, if they would allow the students to eat during the lessons, for better concentration. If students would like to speak during the lessons, the teachers should make them leave the room, since otherwise the others cannot learn a lot.
Miki: Die Schule soll sehr klar sein. Weil die Schüler sich selbst eine Meinung bilden sollen. Die Lehrer müssen nett sein. Aber wenn die Schüler nicht fleißig sind, müssen sie sich über sie ärgern. Aber sie sollen nicht sehr streng sein. Das ist alles, was ich möchte.
The school should be very clear. Because the students should form their own opinion. The teachers have to be friendly. However, if the students are not eager, the teachers have to get angry with them. But they should not be very strict. That is all, what I want.
Mio: In meiner Traumuniversität müssten aller Lehrer sehr interessanten Unterricht machen. Alle Studenten sollten sehr aktiv sein. Und alle Studenten, die einen Austausch machen wollen, könnten einen Austausch machen. Das ist meine Traumuniversität!
In the university of my dreams, all teachers would give very interesting lessons. All students would be very active. And all students, who would like to do an exchange, could do an exchange. That’s the university of my dreams.
Shinpei: Ich denke, meine Traumschule hat alles. z. B. Computer, Fernseher usw. Und die Lehrer müssen ein bisschen streng sein. Sie sollen den Schülern viele Aufgaben geben. Aber sie müssen sich auch um die Schüler gut kümmern. Es wäre gut, wenn es nach dem Unterricht viel Programm gibt. Es findet etwas mit den Lehrern statt, z. B. zusammen essen, Sport treiben usw.
I think the university of my dreams has everything. For example computers, TV-sets and so on. And the teachers should be somewhat strict. They should give many exercises to the students. But they also have to take good care of the students. A variety of activities after the lessons would be great: activities together with the teachers, e. g. having meals together, doing sports, etc.
About the teacher
Markus Rude now teaches full-time at Tsukuba University. His research interests include developing technological aids to enhance vocabulary acquition and the use of prosodic writing to teach stress and intonation.
Works cited in this article
Rude, M., and Webster, D.(2005). Free Composition on Language Tests. Languaging! The Exploratory Learning and Teaching Newsletter of Dokkyo University, 6, 8-9.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
| Upcoming Events at Dokkyo
University Languaging!
invites you to
A lecture by
Dr. David Block  Senior Lecturer at the University of London and author of The Social Turn In SLA Dr. Block will be giving a lecture open to the public on his latest research and publications on Monday, October 16, 17:00 at Dokkyo University, Blding 6, Room 101. About David Block Interests Globalisation and its consequences. Migration and the language practices of migrants. The interrelationship between language learning and identity. Research At present he is completing a book entitled Second Language Identities. The book starts with a detailed presentation of what has become the dominant model of identity in the social sciences (including applied linguistics) today, one that is inspired in poststructuralist thought and is associated with the work of authors such as Anthony Giddens, Zygmunt Bauman, Chris Weedon, Judith Butler, Stuart Hall and many others.  The Social Turn in Second Language
Acquisition
by David Block |
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Learner Voices in Practice
Dear Diary: You're Fun and Helpful
Naoki Sekimoto
Dokkyo University
It makes me addicted
to writing in English.
Diary Entry: May 15, 2006
Today, I would like to write about writing my diary every day in the morning on the train. There may be some people who are doing things like that. There are some good points about it for me, especially when writing in English.
The first thing I want to explain is about the rhythm on the train. Trains usually have really nice rhythms and they give me chances to think aggressively. I also sometimes write my diary while listening to music in English. It makes me addicted to writing in English.
Secondly writing in the morning is enjoyable. At night, and when it’s dark outside I tend to be negative and it is a little tough to think positively. While in the morning, I to think more positively and can write about good things like ‘I had a really good time there,’ or ‘I’m really happy with that,’ etc.
I recommend to students to write a few sentences at first when you start writing a diary in English. The most important thing is to continue writing everyday in the morning. The first week, you can write about when you get up in the morning and what you had in the morning for breakfast. The second week, you can add perhaps when you got out of your home and where you headed for. If you could continue doing that for about three months consecutively, you can write about three pages in the small notebook everyday.
Writing a diary is also really nice for keeping your health, especially for your mental health, as well. If you can do it, you can improve your life. That’s the reason why I recommend you to write a diary.
About the writer
Naoki Sekimoto is a junior in the Department of Language and Culture at Dokkyo University.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Learner Voices in Practice
Experiential Learning:
An Interview with Nakano Koin
Jim Brogan
Dokkyo University
In Kanto-ben, “I’ll think it over”
means “I’ll think it over.”
As language teachers and learners we should
always be looking outside
of the classroom for real examples of language problems, such as the
problem of how the same phrase can be interpreted in different ways.
People who come to work at Dokkyo from other walks of life can often be
good sources of such examples. Mr. Nakano Koin (中野 皓允) works part-time
in the print room at Dokkyo, having retired after over forty years in
business. In the early 60’s he went to New York on a research project
for a small company in the textile business whose specialized product
was only produced by nine companies in the world: two in America, three
in Germany, one in Taiwan, one in Israel, one in Iran and one in Japan,
Company X (we could tell you the name, but then we’d have to kill you).
To go abroad alone to do business, only having learned English by
listening to recordings, was quite a task for a Japanese person in the
1960’s, but within three months he had managed to make appointments
with about ninety people just by using the yellow pages. “One good thing about doing business with the West is that it is possible to ‘cold call’ companies and usually they will accept appointments for an interview. A Japanese company would probably not do the same thing without a recommendation” His years of doing business in English have given him an insight into some of the problems there are with different ways a Japanese businessman and a Western businessman have of interpreting the same phrase. For example: “I’ll ask the Tokyo office” would mean “Maybe I can accept your offer after confirmation” or “The deal is almost done” to the Japanese businessman, but the Western businessman would probably think they were at an early stage in the game. The American businessman would think this had the same meaning as “I need to discuss this further when I go back to Japan”. However if the Japanese businessman had said “I need to discuss this further when I go back to Japan” it would actually mean “I can’t continue this negotiation at the moment as there are major differences and a long way to go before we can come to an agreement.”
An American hearing the phrase: “Concerning this problem” may be a little worried by the word “problem,” which would imply a serious obstacle, but for the Japanese businessman the word is synonymous with “topic” or “issue.” Nakano san also pointed out that this difference in interpretation also exists within Japanese, between Kansai ben and Kanto ben. In Kanto ben, “I’ll think it over” means “I’ll think it over.” In Kansai ben, “I’ll think it over” often means “No”.
About the writer
Jim Brogan is a teacher at Dokkyo University and an editor of Languaging! He can be contacted at jimbrogan @ dokkyo .ac .jp (remove spaces).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
| Languaging!
Update A little newsletter makes ripples across The World Wide Web Christopher Carpenter Languaging! Webmaster In this, the 7th issue of Languaging!, our small, open-access newsletter enters it’s 4th year of publication at Dokkyo University, with new issues and archives available at our online web pages since the second issue. As the webmaster’s abilities are humble, so is the design of our online pages. But our website gives readers around the world the ability to respond and react to articles they find in our pages, and every new publication has elicited positive reactions, some of which have been subsequently published in the Reader's Forum. We also maintain an online page of links to other sites of interest to students and teachers of language and education. All of these features are easily accessed from the homepage (at http://www.oocities.org/languaging - see the menu on the left side of the hommmeeeeepage to quickly access the current issue, archives, links pages and more). Though our website gives us a global reach, this is a newsletter written and published by students and teachers, mostly from our local community of learning. Many of the contributors study or work at Dokkyo University, but we invite everyone to contribute and explore with us, and we often feature articles by writers from other institutions in Japan as well as abroad. Still, as a quick glance through this issue or the archives of the newsletter will demonstrate, this is a “homemade” publication of the voices and perspectives of “real” students and “real” teachers. The homemade impression is only reinforced by all of the typos and editing errors that, despite the best efforts of our earnest editing staff, have always marked these pages and given sport to folks sitting around in the teacher’s room at Dokkyo. But this is part of the reason why we love our little newsletter, and we hope that our prodigious lack of pretentiousness and the homeliness of our humble publication will attract new writers and encourage them to share their ideas with confidence. We are great proponents of making mistakes, especially if those mistakes lead to learning, and we hope that our readers will be inspired by an adventurous spirit of risk-taking and share their thoughts and ideas in these pages, too! Languaging! is a great opportunity for everyone who gets involved. It is a place where we can begin professional conversations about our field of language learning and education. It is also a chance to develop your ideas without all the pressures of more academic publications. It is a great springboard into academic writing for other publications. And with our website, we are establishing our voice among the wider audience of learners and teachers online, giving our contributors even more incentive, as citing Languaging! publications on their CVs demonstrates an active involvement in the profession and a commitment to continued professional development. We are proud that we have gained a reputation among our peers at other institutions as a model of how open-access publications can stimulate professionalism in a community, and that others are interested in adapting our approach to their own contexts. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery! We hope to see more open-access publications start up on campuses around Japan, and we hope you will consider contributing your ideas to the next issue of Languaging! The Webmaster thanks all
of our readers for
your continued interest and support. Languaging! Online www.oocities.org/languaging |
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Learner Voices in Practice
Human Activities:
Random Acts of Kindness
Tim Murphey
Dokkyo University
Wherever
there is a human being
there is an opportunity for kindness.
~Seneca
there is an opportunity for kindness.
~Seneca
We often think nice things about people and never tell them about it. But it just takes a bit of courage. It’s a small risk to tell your mother that you really like her food, and to take more time than usual to do it. Or telling your friend that “I like your hair” or I like your shirt.” Or I like your smile.” Or telling a person that you like the way they speak or their voice. These are things we often think and seldom say. They are easier said to good friends and family. Perhaps we can start there. Then when you get braver you can actually tell a waitress or bus driver, or a stranger in an elevator just before you get out. Leaving right after you give the compliment shows that you are not expecting anything in return and makes it safer.
We also think about doing nice things for people, but sometimes hesitate for fear they may not accept it. As Mother Theresa says in her famous poem, “Do it anyway!” Offer your seat to someone in the train—even if they do say “no thanks” you will have offered! Hold the door open for some people longer than you need to. Offer to give directions to someone who looks lost.
Every culture has acceptable, “rational” and “sensible” norms for compliments, politeness, and behavior. When you can go a bit beyond what is normal you really show appreciation and you show personal involvement. Being brave in helping others and giving compliments is a sign of an advanced civilization.
Your assignment
Do each of these below, at least one a day. Keep a list. At the end write a short reflection and submit it in the next class.
- Give at least one person a day a note in English in which you tell them sincerely something you like that they did or do regularly. E.g. “Yumi, thanks for explaining the homework to me yesterday. I really appreciate it. You are so helpful.”
- Compliment and run: Just before you leave someone, say “By the way, I really like your …(hair, shirt, shoes, whatever..)” You can do this in Japanese, too. Make it a habit. It’s fun!
- Do a Random Act of Kindness, go beyond what you normally do, surprise yourself.
Student Comments from action logs on Acts of Kindness
- I found a boy who seemed to feel bad. I gave him my seat (in the train). Then his parents bowed so many times saying, “Thank you very much” of course in Japanese. When I got off, they bowed to me and showed me a great deal of their gratitude. I became very very happy.”
- I was surprised to hear my partners’ stories. They are giving more kindness even to someone they don’t know than I expected. I became happy only by listening to them, however small the kindness is. I’ve found that I can get a kind of confidence toward myself by carrying it out, and that there are lots of ways which I can become happy….Until today’s class, when I gave someone my seat in the train, I had a little hesitation, because I minded others eyes. But, now I can do that without any hesitation, because I’ve found that everyone actually wants to do that but he or she just doesn’t have enough courage to do that.
- When I was in high school, I went to school by bus. I made it a rule to say “thank you” to the bus drivers before I got off the bus. Some of the drivers said to me “you are welcome” to the bus drivers before I got off the bus. Some f the drivers said to me, “you are welcome” or smiled to me. I felt really good, and I think they must have felt good too.
- A foreign man lives next to me. But we seldom meet with each other. So of course have seldom talked together. But recently I meet him in the elevator. When I got off, I said to him, “Have a nice day.” He looked so surprised to hear me speaking English and saying such a thing. But after a second, he smiled to me and went off. I had butterflies in my stomach at that time. But thanks to his smile and my bravery, I became so happy.
- When I was photocopying a lot, a girl came and waited for her turn, so I offered to do her copy. She was pleased and thanked me.
- I was so excited yesterday that I called my mother and told her about this homework. She also said it was interesting. I love “random kindness.” If we all do this we can make somebody feel happy—even if a little bit. The accumulation of the small happiness will lead to big happiness. What a wonderful thing it is!!
Note to teachers
When I give this assignment to students I pass our pieces of candy or mikans if they are in season, one to each student. Then I tell them, “These are not for you! These are for your first Random Act of Kindness” Give it to someone you do not know well, and tell them, “Have a nice day.”
For many more ideas go to the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation at:
http://www.actsofkindness.org
About the writer
When Tim Murphey isn't ski-juggling, he can be found trying to get a perfect picture of the sunset behind Mt. Fuji from the roof top of the Central Building at Dokkyo University.
Cited in this article
Random Acts of Kindness Foundation at: http://www.actsofkindness.org/ (accessed April 19, 2006).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Voices in the Classroom
The Talk & Move Exercise
Maria Gabriela Schmidt
Tsukuba University
Students,
who have previously not participated
actively in lessons, start to communicate
after the second or third move.
actively in lessons, start to communicate
after the second or third move.
How do we get students to talk? Especially those who are shy and do not dare talk? Try this TALK & MOVE Exercise!
During a semester – especially at the beginning - I let the students do this exercise about two or three times, for repetition, for practice, or just for doing something different when they get tired. You can use this exercise at every level. I have used it now for more than four years and it has had a really good impact on all students. Students, who have previously not participated actively in lessons, start to communicate after the second or third move. Whether a student has a talkative or silent partner does not really matter, as partners change every 3 or 4 minutes. This kind of exercise does not need any preparation and can be used spontaneously. In the following, teachers can find some aspects to be considered:
A group of seven 3rd year
German Majors do a Talk&Move
German Majors do a Talk&Move
Classroom
preparationIt might be good to have a classroom with movable tables, so that the students are sitting face to face. One seat at the end of the table is for a break. The table between the partners guarantees a certain distance and serves as a “protective shield”. But you can try it without a table, too.
Groups
You need at least 3 to 5 students, however, there is no upper limit. Divide the students in groups of odd numbers (e. g. 5 or 7 students). If you end up with one even-numbered group, join in! The students will like it! An odd number guarantees to get a different partner with each MOVE and therefore to talk to every student in this group. The students’ favorite table is the break table, because they become „the teacher“. When they return to their first place, they have been talking to everybody. A group with 3 students is a little too small and with 9 students it takes too long.
How to do it?
TALK: You just need to define a theme and the duration of the talking time: One conversation should last only for 3 to 4 minutes. You should stop the time with a watch!!! This timeframe is really important. Two minutes are too short; 5 minutes might be too long. Concerning the theme: You can choose the starting question or you can let the students choose it. But the starting question should be the same for every TALK, that means for the duration of the whole exercise.
MOVE: After the time is up you shout, “MOVE,“ (I shout “Hikkoshi”) and everybody moves one seat to the left. The next time the MOVE will be in the same direction. The students never move back.
TALK&MOVE: In total, the exercise lasts about 15-20 minutes with a group of 5 students, about 25-30 minutes with 7 students. It should not be longer than 30 minutes. Since the students talk almost all the time, they might get tired. The timeframe for moving is really important. The quick change has an important refreshing effect: new questions - new partners - new start.
Except for students on the real beginner level, you can try this exercise with every level, even with teachers. The theme can be anything, just depending on the level they are able to talk:
Where
do you live?
What do you like to eat?
What have you be doing yesterday?
What are you planning to do in your vacation?
Where do you buy your clothes?
What is your favorite music?
... and so on. This can be adapted to the teaching units. After
the starting question the conversation will develop depending on the
partners. What do you like to eat?
What have you be doing yesterday?
What are you planning to do in your vacation?
Where do you buy your clothes?
What is your favorite music?
Important note: It is important, that the students pack all there things away before starting with the exercise. The tables should be empty. When you talk in real life, you have no dictionary in your hand. If they do not know anything about the theme, they should ask their peers, or ask the teacher.
Because every student is talking almost all the time during this exercise and they are interacting and starting real conversations with each other, I can really recommend this exercise!
I wish you and your students a really fun and successful talking unit with the TALK&MOVE Exercise.
About the writer
Maria Gabriela Schmidt is a linguist from Stuttgart, Germany. Before coming to Dokkyo in September 1999, she taught German in South Korea and Okinawa. She now teaches at Tsukuba University. She can be contacted at magasch @ tsukuba .ac .jp (remove spaces).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Voices in the Classroom
And now ...
Try a Walk & Talk!
Mitsu Kitayama
Dokkyo University
Kinesthetic
learners have a learning style
in which they learn more easily
when they can move.
in which they learn more easily
when they can move.
For kinesthetic learners especially, walking and talking seems easier than simply sitting in a chair and trying to talk. For some reason, moving their bodies moves their brain and they find it easier to talk in a foreign language. Kinesthetic learners have a learning style in which they learn more easily when they can move.
Students
Walk & Talk: Look at those
gestures!
Many student-comments
confirm
this: “Walking Talk was fun. I spoke more. Let’s do it again.”
Where can you do it?
A classroom with enough space, in an open hall (see above), or outside in a green area. You can have them walk in a circle to easily change partners or do a Wild Walk – see below!
What formations?
For easy control and the changing of partners, I like a Circle Walk Talk in which pairs walk in big circle around the teacher and you and listen in, or join in for a while. Then, to change partners, a) clap your hands to ask them to stop walking, b) ask the inside partner to move one forward, and c) ask them to start out by telling their new partner what their previous partner said. So if the topic was what they did during the weekend, they need to tell first about their previous partner’s weekend and then their own. You can have them change partners many times this way very easily.
The unstoppable inertia of a Walk & Talk.
Then there is the Wild Walk Talk in which you let them go
anywhere they
like walking and talking in the target language about a specific topic.
You could also give them small recording Walkmans to record their
conversations and for homework ask them to transcribe them.Try it! We guarantee that none of your students will sleep through this activity.
About the writer
Mitsu Kitayama is a mysterious teacher and guru sometimes spotted meditating in the quad on Murphey's Rock .
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Voices in the Classroom
Pyramid Number Magic
for Learning and Reviewing BIG Numbers
Duncan Baker
Dokkyo University
... at this point
your genius/magician
status is confirmed.
status is confirmed.
Level: False Beginner - Upper Intermediate
Time:20 minutes
Preparation Time: 0
Owing to difference in counting systems, numbers - especially larger numbers - are consistently a source of difficulty for Japanese learners of English. The following activity is effective in both teaching and reviewing numbers since it systematically reveals the particular logic inherent to the counting system in English.
Stage 1: Number Pyramid Procedure
Begin by asking a student to choose any number between one and nine. Write this number up high and central on the board as this is the apex of what will become a nine-tier pyramid of numbers. Let’s say this student chooses the number seven:
7
Ask a second student to choose another number, this time between zero and nine. Write it up like this:
7
7 3
7 3
Elicit “seventy-three” from the student who chose the number three, then chorus as a class in order to establish the pattern of student participation. Ask another student for a third number and write up the third-tier down of the number pyramid:
7
7 3
7 3 8
7 3
7 3 8
Elicit “seven hundred thirty-eight.” (Keep it simple: why burden students with unnecessary pronunciation hurdles like the shortened “and” after “hundred”?) Again, chorus. It is a good visual guide for students to write up “h” after what in our example is the seven in order to indicate hundreds. Like this:
7
7 3
7h 3 8
7 3
7h 3 8
When it comes to thousands and millions, standard commas should suffice:
7
7 3
7h 3 8
7, 3h 8 2
7 3
7h 3 8
7, 3h 8 2
Continue to ask different students for a number, elicit the new larger number chorusing it collectively and individually until you reach nine digits that make the base of a pyramid which on the board should look something like this:
7
7 3
7h 3 8
7, 3h 8 2
7 3, 8h 2 9
7h 3 8, 2h 9 5
7, 3h 8 2, 9h 5 1
7 3, 8h 2 9, 5h 1 4
7h 3 8, 2h 9 5, 1h 4 0
7 3
7h 3 8
7, 3h 8 2
7 3, 8h 2 9
7h 3 8, 2h 9 5
7, 3h 8 2, 9h 5 1
7 3, 8h 2 9, 5h 1 4
7h 3 8, 2h 9 5, 1h 4 0
Once you have elicited and chorused “seven hundred thirty-eight million, two hundred ninety-five thousand, one hundred forty,” get the students to construct their own number pyramids on paper in pairs with the instruction: “Choose a number, both of you write the number(s), say the number. Stop at nine digits.” Monitor, asking pairs of students who finish quickly to say their final nine-digit number. When all students have finished, confirm by writing on the board 123,456,789 and eliciting this number.
Thus far we have a good activity for presenting step-by-step, the logic of the counting system in English. Let me state right here that this is not of my own devising and is only slightly modified from the form in which it was introduced to me by an experienced colleague from my time teaching in Portugal. However, although what follows is again not my original idea, I would like to take credit for being the first to add the twist that transforms a merely good activity into something a little bit special.
Stage 2: Magic Number Procedure
Wipe the board clean. Write up this number: 12,345,679
Elicit and tell the class that this is a magic number. Ask a student to choose his or her “lucky number” between one and nine. Let us say this student chooses six. Tell students to take out their mobile phones or electronic dictionaries and find their machines’ calculator function. Ask them to multiply the magic number by fifty-four: 12,345,679 x 54 = ? Those students whose machines don’t return “Error” messages usually gasp in astonishment at this point since the answer is 666,666,666. Chorus it. This time fast.
Ask another student for another lucky number. It’s eight. Make a big show of mental exertion so your students are fooled into thinking you are some kind of mathematical genius then ask them to multiply the magic number by seventy-two: 12,345,679 x 72 = ? Yes - the answer is 888,888,888 and at this point your genius/magician status is confirmed. Except, that is, with the few smart-alecs you get in every class.
What this does mean, though, is that your job teaching numbers is done. You’re no genius but, hey, you’re no fool either. Let the clever-dicks explain the trick to their peers. It is nice to finish this activity off with 12,345,679 x 9 = ? and have the class answer without the aid of calculators, however. Last of all, get students to take out their money and count how much yen they have on them.
About the writer
Duncan Baker is a mathematical genius and master magician posing as an English teacher at Dokkyo Universtiy. He can be contacted at dkbaker @ adachi .ne .jp (remove spaces).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Voices in the Classroom
Teleconferencing English Lessons
Sounds great but whaddaya do?
Ken Kobayashi
Gifu Women’s University
My image of
teleconferencing was a more free
and spontaneous conversational exchange.
and spontaneous conversational exchange.
Two years ago I was asked to help teach a teleconferencing lesson in a University/High School collaborated lesson. Not knowing much about teleconferencing I was nervous but at the same time excited about being involved with new Information Communication Technology (ICT). Many may be familiar with webcams but teleconferencing in general is far smoother and more similar to live TV broadcasting because it uses high speed bands. I was told that the High School students had an English presentation and that they wanted a Native English speaking teacher to listen and give them feedback. Since our University was equipped with a teleconferencing setup all I needed to do was to turn everything on and access a particular internet protocol at the given time.
After listening to a number of student presentations and taking notes of what points were good and where they needed to improve, I instantly felt that this technology was not being used as effectively as it could have been. My image of teleconferencing was a more free and spontaneous conversational exchange. This was not. It was almost like watching TV and then reviewing it. I suppose that technically it was exactly what it was, and what was expected, but there was a sense of non-interaction. It was as though the technology had acted as an information or communication filter and not an enhancer.
A filter in the sense that, no matter how well planned and prepared a lesson is, as teachers in a regular classroom, we rely on a lot of non-verbal feedback from students to determine whether to proceed with the lesson plan or not. All the senses, feelings that I had gained over the years and had taken for granted were almost disabled. I felt helpless because I could not perform an interactive lesson. This lead me to believe that teleconferencing was not as effective as research suggested. However at the same time, I knew that I was not the first ever to do teleconferencing so I started to do a little research (net-surfing) on the subject.
The general consensus among people who utilize teleconferencing for distance education is that the good outweighs the bad. The ever progressing evolution of ICT seems to be the reasoning behind these optimistic views. This, coupled with the growing educational needs of “busy people” such as business people, homemakers and others involved in life long education, seem to suggest that the future development of ICT is secure. Many educational institutions profess to have online courses and to have managed to produce effective methodologies specific to teleconferencing teaching. They suggest that different approaches are needed for different types of teleconferencing teaching: one to many or one to one. The medium demands its own approach distinct from typical classroom pedagogy in order to meet educational goals (White 1999).
The utilization of teleconferencing in language education presents many attractive possibilities. The first and foremost is the ability to see and speak to students in a vitual classroom, which could be highly attractive to Japanese students talking to peers in different cultures. However there are limitations to the technology. If these “cons” are addressed and the “pros” can be properly utilized, I believe that teleconferencing language lessons will be able to reach its full potential.
About the writer
Ken Kobayashi teaches English at Gifu Women’s University.
Works cited in this article
White, K. and White, K. (1999) The Online Teaching Guide, A Handbook of Attitudes, Strategies, and Techniques for the Virtual Classroom, Allyn & Bacon accessed at http://www.distancelearningnet.com/reports
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Reader's Forum
What a Wonderful Newsletter!
From Alice Svendson
As the '06 spring semester wanes and teachers' fatigue waxes, your little magazine continues to impress and energize in a quiet way! In fact, the last issue, which is in hard copy, has been one of the brightest spots of my semester! I've read and incorporated ideas from several of the articles in No. 7, and have had such an easy time using the activities, with good results, that I just wanted to thank you and say how much I appreciated the time and trouble you took to share those ideas with other teachers.
In particular, Tim Murphey's article, "Random Acts of Kindness Activity" led me to check out the foundation's website and from there I read several "kindness stories" which I then used as jigsaw reading and sharing activities, in conversation classes. As a follow-up,the students wrote their own true "kindness stories." Tim has caused quite a few ripples of kind thoughts and gestures around Tokyo, due to that great article, and Maria Gabriela Schmidt, who wrote "The Talk and Move Exercise" helped to get my students talking more in class. I have adopted her simple procedure to warm-up topics like 'what did you do on the weekend?', and discussion questions, as well as to students' sharing of their kindness stories. It has provided a well-structured way for lower level students to get that needed practice by repeating, and it's a nice alternative to the tiresome group arrangement. And last but not least, Duncan Baker's "Pyramid Number Magic" had my students (and me) cheering over the fact that they could finally read large numbers confidently.
I haven't begun to exhaust the latest issue of Languaging! I will continue to read and incorporate more of its wonderful ideas. Thanks again, this time from my students!
Alice Svendson
| Readers! Languaging! wants your feedback! Please send us your comments, reactions and reflections, however brief, positive or critical. One way is to use the form in the Languaging! Reader's Forum. Alternatively, you can send your comments by email to languaging@yahoo.com. In the subject line, write “Reader’s Forum.” Please tell us which article you are commenting on. |
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Learning Learning
The Power of You and Your Peers
Networks and Near Peer Role Modeling
Tim Murphey & Jim Brogan
Dokkyo University
The educational researcher Douglas B. Reeves (2006) states that:
Most
leader initiatives assume that, as rational beings, people will listen
to the evidence, learn the new procedures, and follow directions.
Leaders find it maddening when, even after they present the evidence
and clearly teach new procedures, staff members don’t implement the
changes …[But] behavior does not stem from a rational consideration of
evidence, but from an emotional attachment to a trusted colleague. Most
workers do not feel this kind of attachment to higher-ups.
(p. 33)
Reeves contends that “Most change initiatives fail not because of a feckless principal or inadequate training, but because they are built on an inaccurate model of how organizations function and on faulty assumptions about human behavior” (p.32-33).
Reeves explains:
Employee
disengagement seems to be more an inherent characteristic of
organizations than a reflection of poor leadership. Gallup found that
the majority of employees take their cues from a trusted colleague
rather than from the boss, the employee manual, or a silver tongued
trainer (Rath & Clifton, 2004). In other words even the best
leaders cannot transform islands of excellence into systemic change by
relying on better bosses, clearer employee manuals, or more eloquent
trainers. The delusions of strategic plans and management charts
notwithstanding, organizations function not as hierarchies, but as
networks. (p. 34)
His major finding is worth repeating: “The majority of employees take their cues from a trusted colleague rather than from a boss, the employee manual, or a silver-tongued trainer.” (p. 34) He compares the traditional way of change initiatives are thought to operate to the children’s game of telephone, or Chinese whispers, in which a message is passes along a line. By the time it gets a few steps down the line there are massive changes and by the time it goes a good way from the source, the original heart and soul of the message may have been totally lost. Something new has evolved. If this is applied to one colleague passing training along to another, the message can be an improved form of the original, having been road tested and the key points being preserved. On the other hand the message could also have been totally lost. The point is that perhaps it is not the leader’s message that necessarily needs communicating in the first place, but that colleagues’ messages may carry more street-worth and usability in the network.
These trusted colleagues are what Murphey has called, in research with students, “near peer role models” (NPRMs, Murphey 1996, 1998, 2003). The point is that we may be able to help changes happen more efficiently if we can help students and staff build good and effective networks to facilitate their communication and collaboration. We need to look more carefully at not only student-centered teaching and staff-centered management, but student and staff distributed communications networks and how we, and others, can learn from these networks. Perhaps the traditional “employee of the month” was a small attempt at this. However, that assumes that the whole network will follow one good model which takes us back to the hierarchal mode. What we need is many employees of the month to offer many role models (trusted colleagues) and varieties of ways of doing a good job. Info-commercials, for example, usually provide a variety of models (variety of colors, genders, jobs, etc.) hoping that most people watching will identify with one of them and buy the products. Having many students or staff comment on issues openly to others would seem one way to tap into having the rest of a group buy-in to a process. It can also, at times, teach the teacher or administrator what really is important. This is student and staff created management that goes further than simply centering—it gives them more control of the process, it gives the agency.
About the writers
When they aren't being role-model teachers at Dokkyo University, Jim and Tim can be found role-modeling for other near peers on the sunny ski slopes of Japan.
Works cited in this article
Murphey, T. (l996a). Near Peer Role Models. Teachers Talking To Teachers. JALT Teacher Education SIG News Letter 4 (3) 21-22.
Murphey, T. (1998). Motivating with near peer role models. In Brad Visgatis (editor) On JALT ’97: Trends and Transitions. Tokyo: JALT.pp.205-209.
Murphey, T. (2003). Near Peer Role Modeling (NFLRC Video #14). Honolulu: University of Hawai’i, available at http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/publication_home.cfm
Reeves, D. (2006). Of hubs, bridges and networks. Educational Leadership 63 (8) 32-37 ASCD.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Learning Learning
Learning Ecologies of Linguistic Contagion
Tim Murphey
Dokkyo University
From Wikipedia April 14, 2006:
The
word "ecology" is often used in common parlance as a synonym for the
natural environment or environmentalism. Ecology, or ecological
science, is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of
living organisms and how their properties are affected by interactions
between the organisms and their environment.
Thus a learning ecology describes an environment in which learners interact optimally and naturally with their environment and others in order to learn efficiently things that are important to know in their particular environments.
I borrowed the word contagion, which we regularly use as the adjective “contagious” from Emotional Contagion, by Hatfield et al. (1994) in which they show how emotions are “caught” by others and how certain people’s emotions are extremely contagious.
Human behavior in general might be sometimes compared to flocks of birds or schools of fish who seem to follow unknown leaders and imitate behaviors for unknown reasons, cultural and/or otherwise. However, hopefully being of a higher cognitive capacity, most humans can develop the ability to see these patterns and develop the agency to choose to follow the ones that we wish to. The emotions are certainly a subset of these communicable behaviors as Hatfield et al. (1994) have so eloquently documented.
I would also propose that language use is another overlapping and pervasive subset of contagious human behavior—overlapping because language use involves and expresses emotions at the same time. Far from being rare, we see linguistic contagion happening early on in nearly every child’s L1 environment with caretakers who adjust and scaffold dynamically to a child’s increasing competence by flooding their environment with appropriate communications. Later, however, and especially in L2 institutionalized learning, the opposite tends to occur. We rarely see intensive interaction that occupies minds in a target language among a group of learners in schools for any sustained length of time. Instead, we see a transmission model of pedagogy in which it is assumed that explanations about the language will transfer to language use.
Learning ecologies of linguistic contagion describe rich learning environments in which rapidly spreading activation occurs neurologically within individuals, as well as socially within groups, due to highly contagious and pervasive communications, involving persons locally in using the language constructively. “Hothousing” language development and learning is what ecologies of linguistic contagion are about. Hawkins (2005) suggests “the need for a shift in the teacher’s role: from designing lessons to designing ecologies” (p. 79). Van Lier (2004) similarly holds that “The ecological approach to education asserts that ultimately the quality and the lasting success of education are primarily dependent on the quality of the activities and the interactional opportunities available to learners in the educational environment.” Such ecologies would be rich in “learning opportunities” (Allwright, 2005) and “affordances” (van Lier, 2004) that facilitate language learning. Immersion education would seem to have been somewhat successful in this regard, but not always.
The main question for L2 educators is how to create learning ecologies of linguistic contagion. That is, how can we create environments in which students interact so intensively that they carry on the interactions beyond the classroom, with others and in their minds, and “hothouse” their learning in such a way that they can better identify themselves as active L2 users with rapidly growing competencies?
I recognize that this happens to small groups of my students and individuals as they report in their learning logs, for example, having not been able to stop the English running through their heads at the end of classes, or going to lunch with classmates and continuing to speak English. However, I want to know how to help students co-create these ecologies more easily and frequently so that more of them can enjoy the naturalness of learning a language through frequent and pervasive use (Tomasello, 2003). This exponential increase in use also facilitates better learning and thinking (Swain, 2003). We need to explore multiple ways to create ecologies of linguistic contagion.
About the writer
When Tim Murphey isn't ski-juggling, he can be found trying to get a perfect picture of the sunset behind Mt. Fuji from the roof top of the Central Building at Dokkyo University.
Works cited in this article
Allwright, D. (2005). From teaching points to learning opportunities and beyond. TESOL Quarterly 39 (1) 9-31.
Hatfield, E., Cacioppo, J.T., and Rapson, R.L.. (1994). Emotional Contagion, New York: Cambridge University Press.
Hawkins, M. (2005). Becoming a student: Identity work and academic literacies in early schooling. TESOL Quarterly 39 (1) 59-82.
Swain, M. (2003). The output hypothesis: Theory and research. In Eli Hinkel (Ed.), Handbook on Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Tomasello Michael (2003). Constructing a language: A usage-based theory of language acquisition. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press.
Van Lier, L. (2004). The semiotics and ecology of language learning: A sociocultural perspective. Paper presented at the UC Language Consortium Conference on Theoretical and Pedagogical Perspectives, March 26-28.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
In Focus
The Lecture Workshop Program
at Dokkyo University
The semester marked the inauguration of a new series of content-based courses at being offered at Dokkyo University. Below is an excert from the introduction to these courses for the students who are participating.
|
Welcome
to the
LectureWorkshops
at Dokkyo University 2006! The Workshop Program is a new innovation in the English Department at Dokkyo University. The purpose of the Workshop is to use English to study different topics of interest. Before you take full lectures in English, we will give you mini-lectures in short 6-week courses, each taught by different teachers. We will also give you many activities that will help you learn quickly. You will be assessed on how much you do, try to improve, and learn from the content. We expect you to try to USE English as much as possible in and out of class. Teachers will be using mostly English. Mistakes are OK. We believe that through using English with your classmates while studying interesting topics, you can improve your English and your life! … |
The Purpose of these Courses
These Content Based Instruction courses are meant to get students talking and learning a lot through using English to learn various interesting content (Murphey, 1997). Merrill Swain more recently has coined the term “Languaging” to mean the use of language to talk about language and to negotiate meaning. From a deeper theoretical perspective these courses are supported by Socio Cultural Theory (SCT) and sociological research into student identities and investment in practice (motivation).
Basically it is ‘access to practice’, not only instruction, that is critical for the advancement of learning. Here ‘practice’ means ‘actual use in meaningful interaction’. Elaine Day exemplifies this very well in her work. The crux of Day’s (2003) thesis lies in her embracing and illustrating Lave and Wenger’s view (1991) that “Learners must be favorably situated, legitimate peripheral participants in ongoing practice in order for learning identities to be engaged and to develop into full participation. Thus, it is access to practice, rather than to instruction, as a resource for learning that is critical in their theory” (p. 15).
Below see a list of teachers and the content they teach, and two teachers reflections on their experiences in the new program:
- List of Lecture Workshop Teachers
- Jerry Waldman's "The Lecture Workshops: An Insider's View"
- Chitose Asaoka's "Asian Englishes: A content-based Lecture Workshop"
Works cited
Day, Elaine M. (2002). Identity and the young English language learner. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Lave, J. & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Murphey, T. (1997). A CBI Curriculum Innovation: Nanzan’s Revolving Six-Week Workshops. The Language Teacher 21(6) 25-29, June.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
In Focus: The Lecture Workshop Program at Dokkyo University
Dokkyo's Lecture Workshop Teachers
Who are they, and what and when do they teach?
Dokkyo University 2006
Asian Englishes  Chitose Asaoka Tuesdays, 3rd Period |
Asian Englishes Emi Uchida Mondays, 2nd and 3rd Period |
Alternative Learning Forms (ALF)
Manami Suzuki Tuesdays, 2nd and 3rd Period |
Alternative Learning Forms (ALF)
 Tim Murphey Mondays, 2nd and 3rd Period |
| American History through Music  Jerry Waldman Mondays, 2nd Period |
Introduction to Africa  Lyn Naoumi Tuesdays, 2nd and 3rd Period |
International Relations  Paul Horness Mondays, 3rd Period |
Public Speaking Patrick McEvilly Tuesdays, 2nd Period |
Public Speaking Neal Jost Tuesdays, 3rd Period |
Introduction to Gender Studies Naoko Ueno Tuesdays, 2nd Period |
Introduction to Gender Studies Aki Katayama Mondays, 2nd and 3rd Period |
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
In Focus: The Lecture Workshop Program at Dokkyo University
The Lecture Workshops: An Insider’s View
Jerry Waldman
Dokkyo University
The purpose of the
workshops was
to provide variety and stimulation
in a student-centered atmosphere,
which it has.
to provide variety and stimulation
in a student-centered atmosphere,
which it has.
Way back when Tim Murphy proposed the content-based courses last spring, 2005, I was hooked when he said teachers could teach whatever they wanted. A year later, and much preparation and research behind me, I am still hooked. Now that we are almost finished with the first session of the workshops, I thought I would share some of the experiences connected to these mini courses. Hopefully, this will allay some of the fears teachers have about the workshops and encourage others to participate as the program expands.
First of all, here’s a brief description of how the program runs, from my perspective. All incoming freshmen in the English Department are taking the Lecture Workshop courses this year. They are divided into classes of about twenty-five, and each class takes two mini courses (six weeks each) per semester, for a total of four per year. So, each teacher will run their course four times in the year.
Along with courses on Gender Studies, Asian English, Africa, Alternative Learning Forms and Public Speaking, some students can also study Recent American History Reflected Through Music, which is my course. I’d like to explain how my course is run, the problems I’ve encountered and the response of my students, so far.
Initially teachers were asked to keep their lectures to only about 5 to 10 minutes each, several times in a class, thus giving students a lot of time to interact. I thought this would be a problem and would constitute a great deal of preparation. I was relieved to discover this was not such a big problem, for two reasons: one, the subject matter was very interesting, so the prep time turned out to be fun, and two, the students spend most of the class time talking about the topic. So, I only have to prepare one other activity, usually a song related to that period.
During the six weeks the students are divided into groups of four in my class. They remain in the same groups for the duration. Each week they choose an area to research from a given list - either an event, song, person or topic. The following week they report their findings in about a 200-word report, to their designated groups. The assignments for each week follow in chronological order roughly from the Great Depression to the Iraq wars.
A question I had was how to grade students in only six weeks. To facilitate the grading, Tim recommended a self-evaluation that would involve the students in the grading process. Also, I have their weekly projects to grade them on, plus their attendance and participation.
Another problem I had in the beginning was getting the classes on a Yahoo Group where they would post comments, check files and links that the teacher would put on the site. Tim was also helpful and supportive with this. Not being computer literate I feared this the most but soon realized how easy it was to manage the Yahoo Group. I soon found that this was an easy way to make a web site, something I don’t think I would have ever tried otherwise.
So far, student reaction has been positive. One reason is that songs, personalities and events in American history, are all new to them. They find the subjects engaging and the projects informative. At the end of the class the students fill out an in-class action log, in which they write a short summary of things they learned in the class, how much English they spoke, things they found difficult, and any comments they have regarding the class. It provides me with immediate feedback from the students. It takes them five minutes in class to write, and it takes me about twenty minutes to read through them each week. They are quite an eye-opener to read, and give me good feedback, especially on what difficulties they are having either with the research or communicating their findings within their groups. From their remarks, it seems mainly that their lack of vocabulary makes speaking difficult and they need more speaking practice.
The high point of each class for the students and I are when they are talking to each other about their weekly projects within their groups. The purpose of the workshops was to provide variety and stimulation in a student-centered atmosphere, which it has. In a six-week course the students don’t have time to get bored with the subject but they get enough information on it to whet their appetites and to go further on their own.
About the teacher
Jerry Waldman is a wild-man-rock-n-roller who keeps 'em hootin' in his Lecture Workshop classes at Dokkyo University. He can be contacted at chester @ inter .net (remove spaces).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
In Focus: The Lecture Workshop Program at Dokkyo University
Asian Englishes
A Content-based Lecture Workshop Course
Chitose Asaoka
Dokkyo University
In this class I
found there are many kinds of English in many
country. It impressed me that English is an international language
and ‘English’ is a countable noun. ‘Englishes’ are used by people
around the world!
~ Haruka's comment in her self evaluation
country. It impressed me that English is an international language
and ‘English’ is a countable noun. ‘Englishes’ are used by people
around the world!
~ Haruka's comment in her self evaluation
The “Asian Englishes” course is a part of a series of Lecture Workshop courses newly implemented for first-year students in the English Department in 2006. The Purpose of teaching this theme is mainly to raise consciousness of a variety of Englishes, to build students’ confidence in their own non-native English as well as to develop their four language skills in English.
This workshop has included a wide range of topics regarding world Englishes with a strong focus on Hawaii, Singapore, India, Korea and China. Since this was the first workshop I selected these topics myself. As a typical class routine, I usually began with a short introductory lecture on the topic for the day while students took notes. After students shared their notes, they engaged in various activities such as discussion and group work. I have also used short sections from a variety of videos including Monsoon Wedding and Crazy English. In the sixth and final class, students gave a poster presentation in pairs reporting on what they found about their own English, Japanglish.
When I first began the Asian Englishes workshop, I was not so sure what kind of reactions students would have about the topics since Japanese high school students are likely to be more familiar with English spoken by native speakers. However, many wrote in their action logs and self-evaluation reports that they enjoyed the topics and wanted to learn more about them. The following comment convinced me that these kind of content-based courses are worth doing!
The most valuable
thing I learned in the class is this; Don’t [be]
afraid of speaking English. It sometimes sounds funny to others,
but they real spoke [really speak] English without hesitancy. I found
enthusiasm to communicate is more important than accent
or grammar (though I know the importance of it).
~ Izumi’s comment in her self evaluation
afraid of speaking English. It sometimes sounds funny to others,
but they real spoke [really speak] English without hesitancy. I found
enthusiasm to communicate is more important than accent
or grammar (though I know the importance of it).
~ Izumi’s comment in her self evaluation
About the teacher
Chitose Asaoka is a full-time lecturer of English at Dokkyo University. She can be contacted at casaoka @ dokkyo .ac .jp (remove spaces).
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
| Upcoming Events at Dokkyo
University Dokkyo
University and Thomson
present
a Symposium on Professional & Organizational Development: Dynamic Teacher Communities Monday November 6th, 2006
Plenary Speakersfrom 1:00 to 8:00 in Building 6 on the Dokkyo University campus. Dr. Bonny Norton University of British Columbia, Canada Dr. Donald Freeman School for International Training, USA Along with these exciting plenary speakers, a wide selection of presenters from across Japan and abroad will be presenting on how Dynamic Teacher Communities can collaborate and enhance professional development. Dynamic teacher communities (DTCs) are groups of teachers who work together for continual positive change in their teaching and system-wide organizing of learning for students, teachers, and staff. DTCs seek to make their institutions into “learning schools” (Senge, et. al 2000) and see themselves as belonging to the “learning profession” (Darling Hammond & Sykes, 1999). As a “community of practice” their main concern is furthering the learning of all parties and crossing borders into the wider community. Such teachers belong to “imagined communities” (Norton, 2001) and share a vision of “socialization into professional discourse” (Freeman, 1992). Main Questions Driving the Symposium and our Research
Open invitation to Dokkyo Teachers All departments at Dokkyo are invited to participate and to present “poster presentations” on how they are searching for and implementing ways to improve professional collaboration and success. How are you and your colleagues involved in staff development and collaboration across borders? Please send us a 100 word abstract by June 30 in any language.Let us know! The Organizing Committee
 Chitose Asaoka, Tim Murphey, Keiko Okada, and Yuka Iijima For further information contact: casaoka @ dokkyo .ac .jp; mits @ dokkyo .ac .jp; okada2003 @ dokkyo .ac .jp; yiijima @ dokkyo .ac .jp (remove spaces) Supported in part by a
Dokkyo International Joint Research Grant and  |
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Book Review
Classroom Spaces That Work
Naoki Yamaura
Dokkyo University
Reviewed
in this article
Clayton, M. & Forton, M. (2001). Classroom Spaces that Work, Greenfield, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children.
Clayton, M. & Forton, M. (2001). Classroom Spaces that Work, Greenfield, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children.
A couple of months ago, I was studying for the graduate school entrance exam. Almost everyday, I went to a city library to study. I preferred studying at the library even though I have a pretty nice, brand new desk and a comfortable chair in my own room. I didn’t like studying in my own room because my room was pretty messy, and there were always the TV and comic books to interrupt my concentration. At the library, on the other hand, I could concentrate on studying for a long time.
The environment is one of the most important factors contributing to how effective students can learn. Classroom Spaces That Work, (2001) by Clayton and Forton, illustrates how teachers can create classroom environments more suitable for students to learn in. The book has many pictures that help teachers grasp a clear vision of classroom environments. While the target readers of this book are primary school teachers, I believe that even university teachers could improve instruction when they pay more attention to the information and suggestion in this book.
The book contains an introduction, seven chapters, and five appendixes. At the end of each chapter, there are questions and answers relating to the contents of the each chapter to help readers connect the ideas to real life.
The authors first introduce an approach to teaching known as “the responsive classroom” developed by practicing teachers. This approach consists of “highly practical strategies for integrating social and academic learning throughout the school day” (p.1). The following is seven beliefs about teaching and learning underlie the approach.
The responsive Classroom Beliefs (p.1)
- The social curriculum is as important as the academic curriculum
- How children learn is as important as what children learn
- The greatest cognitive growth occurs through social interaction
- there is a set of social skills that children need in order to be successful academically and socially
- Knowing the children we teach is as important as knowing the content we teach
- Knowing the families of the children we teach is as important as knowing the children
- Teachers and administrators must model the social and academic skills which they wish to teach their students
In Chapter Two, the authors argue for the importance of a classroom environment in which children can understand instruction and trust the teacher. They emphasize that such classrooms are well organized and predictable. For example, the authors believe that limiting the amount of furniture and materials in classrooms is necessary to keep them clean and keep students safe. Also, a good arrangement of the furniture enables teachers to see the entire classroom and every student easily.
Deciding where and how you let children sit in class is also one of the keys to what they learn access to. In Chapter Three, the authors discuss the necessity of keeping the whole-group meeting space organized. For example, the authors point out benefits to having students sit in a circle for any kind of direct instruction. This seating arrangement creates an environment in which students can feel that they belong and have meaningful connections to others and also feel comfortable enough to take risks. I think it is also true for university students. Students are more likely to be willing to speak up and share their thoughts and opinions with each other when they sit in a circle.
In Chapter Four, the discussion moves on to the goals of setting up a classroom to give students active learning opportunities. The arrangement of the furniture can facilitate a wide range of instructional approaches. The authors argue that many teachers tend to provide a classroom with a wide assortment of furniture and materials, that makes the room feel crowded. They suggest that teachers set up workspaces and furniture that allow more than one use within a school day fulfilling the curriculum and the needs of the students.
It is also always nice to show the students their own work and their results. When I took ceramic class in the U.S., after I made several pieces of work, I was able to display them in my room to reconfirm how I was doing. In Chapter Five, the authors point out that one of the most powerful tools for teaching is classroom displays, which celebrate students’ efforts and have a connection to the daily life of the classroom. Not only do these students notice their academic abilities, but classroom displays also have a major impact on group dynamics, allowing them to se their shared goals and purposes. At the end of this chapter, the authors suggest teachers create displays that even invite interaction among students. One of the examples is simply to place a question board or box near the display, so that children can write questions or comments they may have about the display. Using displays in this way increases opportunities for students to interact with each other and get excited about the topics they study.
In Chapter Six, the authors consider the impact on classroom ambience of such things as color, temperature, and music. Remember I preferred studying at the library because my room was messy. But also, when my neighbors are at home, they sometimes make noise that disturbs my study. I also do not have an air conditioner or heater. It was so cold studying in my room that I had to often stop studying and warm myself under a kotatsu I tended to turn on the TV for a break. Soon a few minutes break becomes a few hours break. The authors suggest providing as much sunlight as possible, paying a special attention to the temperature, and letting students eat or drink throughout the day to keep energy and attention levels high. Also, music can enhance students’ intellectual development and prepare them for learning.
In Chapter Seven, the authors again point out the possible health problems and solutions that the classroom environments may have on students. They argue that it is important to keep the classroom environment as clean as possible. This chapter is important for primary school teachers especially in lower grades because children can get sick easily. When I was visiting the 2nd grade class at the bilingual elementary school in the U.S., the teacher paid special attention to the students’ health conditions. She often made students wash their hands with soap after the kids had activities, or every time before when they had a snack time. Also, I was quite surprised when the kids were told to clean the classroom before they went home. Involving students in cleaning the classroom is a very effective way to keep classrooms clean and also build community.
After reading this book, I learned a lot about the important role the classroom environment could have on students’ learning. I believe it is necessary for all teachers to provide environments where students can feel comfortable to study, safe to do activities, and encouraged to learn. Now maybe I can even use this information to rearrange my own messy room in the future!
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
Book Reviews
SHADOWING EXERCISE BOOK REVIEWS
SHADOWING EXERCISE BOOK REVIEWS
Naoki Sekimoto, Mayumi Enomoto, and Haruna Takahashi
Dokkyo University
Reviewed in this article
The three books below are by a colleague that I have known for over 10 years, Ken Tamai, author and researcher at Kobe City University of Foreign Studies. I gave the books to three students to test out on their own and review. Tomai-sensei first reported on shadowing for his School for International Training MA final thesis in 1992 and has never stopped. ~Tim Murphey
The three books below are by a colleague that I have known for over 10 years, Ken Tamai, author and researcher at Kobe City University of Foreign Studies. I gave the books to three students to test out on their own and review. Tomai-sensei first reported on shadowing for his School for International Training MA final thesis in 1992 and has never stopped. ~Tim Murphey
Introduction to Decisive English Shadowing (by Ken Tamai)
決定版 英語シャドー イング 入門編（玉井健 編著）
Reviewed by Naoki Sekimoto
Number of chapters: 3 stages with 14 units in total
Length: 176 pages (CD length: 71 mins 18 sec)
How it can be used?
We can learn several ways of shadowing by listening to several lectures in schools, stories about Native English speakers’ life styles, or some famous quotes in history. It is basically the introduction of how we can learn or increase out listening ability.
What advantages does it have?
I think this book is good for learners taking the TOEFL test. I could learn several attitudes towards learning. In addition, I could learn about several lifestyles of schools in the United States. Also, I could review the speeches made by Abraham Lincoln and J. F. Kennedy. I think those are really nice material for us to improve our memorizing ability.
What did you not like very much?
The native speaker Ian and Midori often stop talking at grammatically incorrect places. And the author put slashes at each point they stopped. I don’t think it’s good for freshmen and beginners of learning English.
My recommendations:
At first, I did not want to learn with this book, because the voice of the author was soft, and the native English students speak incorrectly, which didn’t let me believe in this textbook. In addition, the fact that I could not see the speakers’ face when shadowing didn’t let me know how each speaker expresses their feeling with their faces, body postures or their gestures as well as their eye contact. So, I recommend this author to make a DVD for shadowing as soon as possible. It will be a really nice tool for us to study shadowing.
Decisive English Shadowing: Complete Version
決定 版 英語シャドーイング
Reviewed by Mayumi Enomoto
Number of chapters: 4
Length: 243 pages (CD length: 73 mins 14 sec)
How it can be used?
We can use this book to improve our listening, speaking and reading skills. We listen to a CD which is included with the book and try to speak out as correctly as we can. It is effective to improve these three abilities.
What advantages does it have?
- We can learn both intellectual aspects and practical aspects of shadowing.
- In the intellectual part, we can learn how humans acquire the ability to speak not only English but also other languages and why shadowing is good for English learners.
- In the practical part, we can practice shadowing from plain English, so we’ll gradually get used to shadow conversations and lectures in English.
I like this book very much, but I noticed one thing. For me and for students who major in English, it is interesting to read an intellectual part of shadowing and it’s worth learning to explore our studies. However, other people, like high school students or office workers may think that these explanations are little bit complicated and boring. The author, Mr. Tamai, wrote in this book that if you’d like to practice without explanations, you can start from the practical part of this book. But, if they skip over the intellectual part, I think they can’t learn effectively. So I think, in the beginning of practical part, there needs to be an easy explanation about the theory of shadowing. Thus, they can learn about shadowing and improve their English skill more and more.
My recommendations:
For me, the content of this book and ways of practicing shadowing are both interesting. In the CD, I could listen to practice shadowing done by university students and graduate students. Usually when I get this kind of book, I can’t learn how to practice the books from actual examples. The only way to know is to read explanations. This book is more kind to readers than other books because it shows them some near peer role models (Japanese students actually doing it). I enjoyed reading the book because there are many things I wanted to know. Especially, the way to practice shadowing in a train was really interesting for me. I wanted to practice shadowing both at school and at home, but some people stare at me when I move my mouth in trains. Hakase’s column answered my question exactly, so I started using this way in the train soon after I read the book. I think shadowing has huge power and many possibilities to support students who want to improve their English skills. I hope they read this book and apply the way to practice shadowing into their self-regulated English studies.
Shadowing: Movie Star Version 2
シャ ドーイング 映画スター編2
Reviewed by Haruna Takahashi
Number of chapters: 6 chapters
Length: 137 pages (CD length: 1 hr 58 mins)
How it can be used?
We can increase our vocabulary by reading the scripts and can learn the pronunciation at the same time. And by shadowing, we’ll learn the rhythms and accents of English, which is quite different from that of Japanese.
What advantages does it have?
We can improve our listening, speaking, and reading skill of English at the same time with this book. The book consists of interviews with movie stars and directors, so the topics are familiar to most of us. Therefore it’s good learning material for beginners. In addition, this book has normal/slow and announcer versions, so the people who have learned the basics of English are also able to improve their English skills, i.e. we can choose the levels that fit us.
What you did not like very much?
Some times the voices of the questioners were not clear and I couldn’t catch the questions. Sometimes I could hardly understand what the speakers (the movie stars and directors) wanted to say without the scripts. So I would be glad if they had dubbed (re-recorded) the unclear questions.
My recommendations:
This was the first time for me to try shadowing with a book or CD, so I really enjoyed doing it. And this book contains a lot of interviews with famous movie stars and directors, so I could do shadowing again and again without getting bored. In addition, this book also contains VOA (Voice of America) news and the backgrounds of speakers or movies presented. It helped me very much to understand what they were talking about, or what kind of English they were speaking, their way of speaking, accents, etc.
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
The Back Page
Being a Serving Subversive!
The second most viewed page of a magazine or newsletter is of course the back cover. Advertisers pay a fortune for them. Alas ... advertisers? ... our humble rag? So we have decided to open it up to people who wish to sound off about something and stir things up a bit. YOU!
So if you want to get a message across (non-commercial), THIS IS THE PLACE! If any readers would like to use it, it is officially open to you. (If there is more than one entry we will try to have more back pages! ha ha!).
The Petition Process Works!
Languaging #7 starts off with Rude’s “Ideal Universities.” Two years ago, I held an end-of-the-term make-up class for all five of my classes together in an auditorium during the make-up period and had them all perform for each other. My eight advanced speech class members all gave short speeches about how they would like to see Dokkyo University improve (à la Markus’s Ideal University). We asked the audience to evaluate the persuasive power of their speeches by signing petition forms if they agreed with the students’ proposals. The proposals were: 1) Dokkyo Student Services Offices should be open at lunch time since that is the main time when students are free and on campus. 2) Dokkyo should have a special office for student volunteer work and give credit to students for such work. 3) We should have an official Friendly Smile week. 4) We should learn more about Asian Englishes since the people that we are most likely to interact with in English later are other Asians. 5) We should have an office to facilitate international internships. 7) We should have access to other courses at other universities for credit. 8) Earlier and later opening of the library would be good.
I was surprised at how many students quickly signed the petitions. We photocopied them and sent them to our Dean and President. Within a few days I got letters from both of them saying they appreciated the student feedback and would look into the requests. And they did! Two years later Kyomouka is open at lunch-time and we are teaching an Asian Englishes course for 1st year students in the English Department. Changes happen!
Dear Staff, Students, & Teachers, if you want to change something, try writing it up in a petition and asking for signatures and giving it to the president. If you need a model, email me (mits @dokkyo.ac.jp). John Dewey said (somewhere) that democracy should not be taught, it should be lived ...
... and as they say,
聞くのは一時の恥 じ、聞かないのは一生の恥じ
[Kiku no wa ittoki no haji, kikanai no wa isshou no haji.]
Asking is a moment’s embarrassment; not asking is a lifelong regret.
And you never know what will happen next. So why not ask for your Ideal University today?
~Mits 5/24/06
| Languaging!
No. 7 |
Dokkyo
University |
CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS!
Share your learning and teaching explorations!
Languaging! is a semesterly newsletter. Our goal is to encourage students and teachers to explore their learning and teaching more reflectively by writing about it and sharing their ideas in our community of learners (we are all learners, after all). We want to encourage people to learn and teach (and write) together. We believe learning and innovation happen most frequently (and most productively) when people are doing it together. We want to encourage others to innovate, to take risks, to collaborate and to write about it!
We consider teaching a form of perpetual learning. This is an “exploratory” newsletter, and we want to hear from people who are exploring, trying new things, and seeing how they work. Learning and teaching involve a lot of exploration, and we hope to encourage this as much as possible. Furthermore, when we take risks, we often make mistakes. That’s part of learning, too. Feel free to write about the mistakes you’ve made and the lessons you’ve learnt so we can all learn from them.
Languaging! is a place to experiment, not just write about experiments. Think about your favorite ways of teaching and learning – fun ways to learn that could help others. Think about the data you might collect: keeping a journal, recording your changing feelings and ideas, having friends observe your classes, visiting friends classes, quizzing yourself, recording yourself, getting feedback from students on your classes, your materials, or the whole education system! If you read a good book, write about it. If you have a good idea, write about it. If you have a good conversation, write about it!
Writing style: First person narratives are fine! Student writing is great! You should write a few drafts and give it to some friends for comments. Revise it a few times, and then send it by “file attached email” to the editors (by May 15th for the next issue). Editors may ask for some adjustments or give suggestions for fine-tuning before publishing.
Length: We hope you will contribute short pieces for consideration. Teachers and students are busy people (or at least they look busy!), and they are more likely to read short pieces than long ones (4 pages or 2000 words maximum, although we also like paragraphs, comments, short anecdotes, etc.)
Format: Please send your contributions as simple Word or Text files (.doc or .txt). Word files should use normal margin parameters and a common font (New Times Roman, Arial, etc.) in 12 pt. pica, single-spaced. Use only simple highlighting devices (bold, italic, and underlining). You may include tables and illustrations embedded in your document, but illustrations should also be sent as separate jpeg files.
Get your ideas out in Languaging! Ask your students to submit their ideas, too!
Send submissions for Languaging! No. 8 by October 30th
to the editors at languaging @yahoo.com
Languaging!