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Chapter 7 Designing a Reading Program
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145 Chapter 7 Designing a Reading Program Hiroshi Nara This chapter shifts focus to programmatic and practical concerns. The assumptions and expectations about a reading program of those directly involved in Japanese programs are examined to sort out pedagogically sound curricular decisions from those that are more problematic. Of particular interest here is the issue of sequencing the introduction of four skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. I will also discuss how a reading program should be managed and maintained.1 Goals and Assumptions Different types of professionals who are directly involved in Japanese reading programshave differingexpectations. The sources oftheseexpectations andthecurricular decisions that are made on the basis of them, too, are varied. They may stem from ignorance about language pedagogy or the special needs of learners of Japanese , or they may be in¶uenced by languages the teachers and educators themselves studied or by the way they studied these languages. Recent Developments in Japan Lured by the strength of the yen, many people from Asian countries go to Japan to study and work. Many of these workers lack usable language skills. This market has prompted a profusion of language schools to cater to the needs of foreigners in Japan ; there are hundreds of Japanese language training programs. The purpose of 146 Implementation these programs is similar to that of programs in the United States to the extent that both are intended to train students to become functional in the Japanese language, but there are a few fundamental differences. One such difference is that students in the United States are overwhelmingly in educational institutions; very few study Japanese with the intention of using it in the workplace in this country. Second, obviously, Japanese is not spoken outside of Japanese classrooms as the primary language in the United States; once students step out of class, there are few opportunities and little need to use Japanese. In Japan, clearly, such is not the case. These qualitative differences have an implication for the foundation of Japanese teaching in this country and in¶uence such issues as the selection of teaching approaches, teaching materials and content, and evaluation methods. On this side of the ocean, in keeping with the rise of Japan’s status in the world, interest in Japan and the number of students enrolled in Japanese programs will probably remain at more or less current levels, although any prediction of this sort should be taken with a grain of salt. The recent high levels of enrollment re¶ect a broadening interest in Japan and, at the same time, have brought about a change in the arena of Japanese teaching. Most notably, students now come to the Japanese class with different expectations from earlier generations of students about what they might accomplish in such a class. Teachers, too, come with expectations about which teaching style to adopt and how to manage classes. Administrators’ expectations are equally varied. These gaps in expectations are widely acknowledged as a source of concern. When discussing these matters, a study sponsored by the National Foreign Language Center and summarized by Jorden and Lambert (1991) is most useful. Though the Japan Foundation Language Center has conducted annual surveys seeking similar information, the summary by Jorden and Lambert (1991) remains the most comprehensive.2 Although by now a bit dated, this summary still offers the best overall view of the recent state of Japanese language instruction in this country and affords insights into the thinking of the new generation of learners of Japanese. Students’ Expectations The statistics reported by Jorden and Lambert (1991) reveal that high school students surveyed recognize Japanese skills as an important tool in obtaining employment . The largest proportion of the high school students surveyed (34.5 percent) planned to major in an applied or a professional ¤eld, and within that group, 63.8 percent planned to work in a business or technology-related career (ibid.:63–64). A similar observation was made at the college level: Close to a third of the students in the survey identi¤ed business as a focus of interest, and, with regard to their expectations of employment, 84.1 percent of those surveyed responded that they planned to gain employment in business, government, or science/technology [54.166.96.191] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 15:10 GMT) Nara / Designing a Reading Program 147 (Jorden and Lambert 1991:123). These statistics re¶ect a pro¤le of students of Japanese that has changed substantially from the 1970s—they are interested in...