29.4800, Review: English; Applied Linguistics: Bradford, Brown (2017)

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Subject: 29.4800, Review: English; Applied Linguistics: Bradford, Brown (2017)

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Date: Mon, 03 Dec 2018 20:44:20
From: Caroline Hutchinson [carolineshutchinson at gmail.com]
Subject: English-Medium Instruction in Japanese Higher Education

 
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EDITOR: Annette  Bradford
EDITOR: Howard  Brown
TITLE: English-Medium Instruction in Japanese Higher Education
SUBTITLE: Policy, Challenges and Outcomes
SERIES TITLE: Multilingual Matters
PUBLISHER: Multilingual Matters
YEAR: 2017

REVIEWER: Caroline Hutchinson, Juntendo University, Japan

SUMMARY

English-Medium Instruction in Japanese Higher Education, edited by Annette
Bradford and Howard Brown, considers the policy context, curriculum and
classroom implementation, challenges and potential impacts of the current
government-sponsored drive to offer more English-taught programs in Japanese
higher education. According to the Japanese Ministry of Education, or MEXT,
over a third of Japanese universities now offer courses taught in English
(MEXT, 2015).  English-Medium Instruction programs are defined in this volume
as “courses and programs delivered through English with no consideration to
establishing language learning goals” (xviii), thus distinguishing the focus
from approaches that aim to incorporate content and language, foremost among
them CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and CBI (Content-based
Instruction). 
 
The introduction by Annette Bradford and Howard Brown sets out the current
context in the Japanese university sector. Worldwide, the increasing
competitiveness of the university sector, combined with the rise of English as
the international language of cooperation and competition, has contributed to
an enormous global growth in EMI, likened by Macaro to an “unstoppable train”
(2015:7). At the same time, Japan’s low birth rate has seen increased domestic
competition to fill university places, while government projects have created
incentives for universities to offer EMI courses.
 
The rest of the book features eighteen chapters divided into six sections.
Section 1 gives further social and policy context, while Section 2 considers
the planning and development of EMI courses. Section 3 addresses some of the
challenges to effective implementation, and Section 4 focuses on the
experiences of students and faculty engaged in EMI education in Japan. Section
5 comprises three analyses of specific EMI practices at universities in Japan.
Finally, Section 6 brings these strands together in considering future
directions for EMI in Japan.
 
Section 1: English-Medium Instruction in Context
 
In Chapter 1, the editors provide more detailed background about the growth of
EMI in Japan’s higher-education institutions. Arguing that this growth has
largely been uncoordinated, they apply the ROADMAPPING framework devised by
Dafouz and Smit (2016) to understand its development across six dimensions:
Roles of English (RO), Academic Disciplines (AD), (language) Management (M),
Agents (A), Practices and Processes (PP), and Internationalization and
Globalisation (ING).
 
The role of English in Japanese higher education continues to be primarily an
academic language between students and teachers, and a tool for
internationalization. The majority of international students in full degree
programs are required to study some courses in Japanese, and there may thus be
some resistance among students and teachers to teaching and learning in
English. Few explicit statements exist at government or institutional level
regarding the role of English, or proficiency requirements for entry,
graduation, or instructors (language management). Although EMI is seen as a
tool for boosting Japan in the world market while also attracting domestic
students looking for a more international education, in reality it has proved
difficult to address both aims comprehensively (internationalization and
globalization).
 
The key stakeholders, or agents, in the Japanese higher education context
include students, faculty, and administrators, but on the national level the
biggest driver of change is the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), which has established a number of
funding schemes to encourage EMI development. To a lesser extent, change has
also been driven by the business community calling for more globally minded
graduates, often known as “global jinzai”.
 
In the classroom, the adoption of EMI has created a challenge to the
traditional lecture-based approach to teaching (practices and processes), not
least because many faculty members lack confidence in lecturing in English and
thus prefer to incorporate more group-work into their classrooms. In terms of
academic disciplines, the authors highlight the danger that EMI classes as
they are currently organized may fail to develop academic literacies due to
poor coordination with language courses, other subjects, or to lecturers
teaching courses that fall outside their discipline.
 
In Chapter 2, Hiroko Hashimoto argues that the Japanese government’s promotion
of EMI has been primarily reactive, based on a sense of demographic crisis and
the decline of Japan’s ranking on global competitiveness indexes since the
1990s. Calls from business to educate culturally competent “global jinzai”
have also spurred the development of EMI in Japan. Despite this sense of
crisis, budget constraints have led to MEXT repeatedly supporting the EMI
programs of a limited number of universities, and holding them to strict
quantitative standards. The author argues that the pressure of these criteria
may lead to universities adopting easy fixes such as isolated EMI programs and
fixed-term foreign academics, rather than completely overhauling curricula or
training and employing tenured academics. She poses the question: shouldn’t
truly globally excellent universities be independent of such government
control?
 
In Chapter 3, Bern Mulvey presents increased MEXT control in a somewhat more
positive light, arguing that changes made between 2001-2014 allow the Japanese
government much greater control over funding, curriculum and hiring decisions.
This has enabled them to push much more forcibly for English as a medium of
learning rather as a target of line-by-line translation. He notes that foreign
advisors hired in the nineteenth century to teach their skills and technology
using English or German were replaced by Japanese teachers in a nationalistic
backlash, and that the same top institutions were responsible for most of the
resistance to government-led reforms in the 1980s. Perhaps, he suggests, the
undermined self-governance of such universities will give the government
greater opportunity to reform the higher education system in the future.
 
Section 2: The Implementation of English-Medium Instruction in Japan

In Chapter 4, Hiroyuki Takagi considers the role of EMI in internationalizing
curricula in Japan. He focuses on case studies of two universities, one
national and the other private, analysing them in terms of their approaches to
internationalization (competition-type or cooperation-type) and to curriculum
(product- or process-oriented). Broadly speaking, Takagi sees a shift in Japan
away from a competitive-product model towards a cooperative-process model that
takes greater account of complexity, multiple perspectives and
interpretations, rather than transmitting a fixed body of knowledge. He argues
that, while this may pose a challenge to existing ways of doing things in
Japan, fundamental curriculum reform is required to support new methods of
delivery, assessment, and learning support.
 
Chapter 5 discusses the 2009 Global 30 project, which aimed to increase the
number of international students in Japan to 300,000, and the extent to which
it has contributed to internationalization within Japan. Beverley Anne
Yamamoto and Yukiko Ishimura first consider the (often critical) literature on
the subject, which raises such concerns as whether students and instructors
are able to cope with academic study in L2, whether they have the cultural
competencies needed, and whether the few internationally-competent instructors
and students will have an impact on the majority. However, the authors find
much to be positive about in their case study of Osaka University, with
student numbers increasing both domestically and internationally, and largely
positive evaluations from students and MEXT. They conclude that support for
students and faculty, and responsiveness to student feedback, are essential
elements in creating a successful program.
 
Section 3: Challenges and Solutions for English-Medium Instruction in Japan
 
In Chapter 6 Gregory Poole considers ways in which practices in university
administration create institutional identities which stand at odds with the
aims of English-medium programs. Impediments include inflexible finance rules,
student recruitment methods that fail to supply appropriate students for
English-medium courses, and a staff recruitment philosophy that does not allow
staff to specialise in one department, and prefers Japanese-educated Japanese
nationals to those more likely to have transnational experience. Poole
concludes that Japanese bureaucratic practices actively impede innovation and
the development of effective EMI courses.
 
Chapter 7 explores the issue of admissions procedures in greater detail, with
particular focus on international students. Hiroshi Ota and Kiyomi Horiuchi
find that despite the increase in the number of English-medium programs,
international student enrollment is still limited by issues such as
availability of scholarships, accommodation, the need for a certain level of
Japanese proficiency, and the small numbers of places open to overseas
students. Nine factors making courses more accessible to international
students are examined, including admission based on document screening (not
requiring interview in person), possibility of fall entry (domestic programs
begin in spring), cost of application fees, and online application. Tellingly,
the authors find that the four most accessible institutions are private
universities that had established their programs before government projects
such as the Global 30.
 
In Chapter 8, Sarah Louisa Birchley analyses EMI through the lens of
marketing. While elite universities in Japan are likely to maintain their
position, and thus have less incentive to adapt to the needs of their
consumers, there is considerable competition among less prestigious
universities. Nonetheless, she finds that few universities have dedicated PR
offices, and that web-based  promotions aimed at international students tend
to take very similar approaches, making it difficult for students to
differentiate between programs and institutions.
 
Section 4: The Student and Faculty Experience

In Chapter 9, Christopher G. Haswell considers the perceptions of EMI students
in Japan regarding non-native Englishes, in particular the dialects of other
Asian countries. Students from these countries make up over 90% of overseas
students in Japan, and it is likely that students who use English in their
future jobs will also interact with a substantial number of Asian speakers of
English. Nevertheless, the author’s research discovered significant negative
perceptions of Asian varieties of English among the student body. Haswell
suggests addressing these perceptions more proactively, and encouraging
acceptance of various forms of English.

Chapter 10 looks at the international students within English-taught programs
who lack familiarity with the Japanese language. Juanita Heigham highlights
ways in which these students feel their academic and non-academic needs are
not being met. She argues multilingual support staff can be a huge benefit to
such students when they arrive in Japan needing accommodation, cell phones and
bank accounts. International students also experience significant difficulties
socialising with Japanese students, and interacting with administration. Her
research participants also raised questions regarding the quality of academic
instruction when instructors lack English proficiency.

In Chapter 11, Sae Shimauchi considers the gender imbalance in English-taught
courses in Japan. Although more males enroll in four-year undergraduate
programs and postgraduate study, women are overrepresented in English courses
and other international activities such as study abroad programs. Interviews
with male and female students revealed similar practical goals regarding
English proficiency, but different understandings of how international
awareness developed. While male students seemed more protective of Japanese
identity, and tended to put their identity in a counter-position to
‘international’ others, female students emphasised adjustment and becoming
‘international’. The author concludes that this may relate to male students’
expectations that they will become stakeholders in Japanese society, while
women may feel excluded from or wish to be free of dominant social
expectations.

Chapter 12 provides an insight into the kind of changes in mindset that
instructors may experience as a result of teaching EMI courses. Bernard Susser
describes how he stopped thinking of himself as a language teacher whose focus
was helping students to move towards native speaker norms, and began to see
learners as users of the language, whose main concern was effective
communication of meaning. 

In Chapter 13 Miki Horie explores some of the issues faced by Japanese faculty
members who are asked to teach their specialist areas in English, to a diverse
student body that may include students who are more linguistically confident
than they are. A significant structural issue is the workload that these
courses entail, and universities should be prepared to support faculty in
course and material development. In terms of psychological barriers,
interviews conducted by the author suggested that English is primarily a
problem when it comes to classroom management. The research group thus
developed a handbook with tips such as accepting the idea that perfect English
is not the goal, and that effective course design can compensate for an
instructor’s lack of fluency. They advise instructors to be aware of the
linguistic and cultural diversity of EMI classrooms, to see the value of
student participation and the need for multiple channels to convey meaning.

Section 5:Curriculum Contexts

Chapter 14 considers the factors behind creating a successful EMI program.
Bethany Mueller Iyobe and Jia Li describe a three-stage curriculum that moves
from EAP programs, through a bridge stage taught by pairs of language and
content teachers, to EMI content courses offered to third and fourth year
students. They consider collaboration between teachers to be essential in
offering specialist subjects with appropriate language scaffolding, and argue
that it also acts as a needs analysis for language teachers designing the
initial EAP courses. Students performed better overall the more EMI classes
they took, but many students felt the workload of EMI classes to be too high.
Potential solutions to this would include making EMI classes compulsory,
greater collaboration between instructors and more effective content
integration across the curriculum.

In Chapter 15, Jim McKinley considers the approaches of three professors
towards EMI classes. In the English Studies department, assignments were
chosen carefully and students were given many opportunities to work in groups.
In the Liberal Arts classroom, lessons were more lecture-driven, and language
support given only outside the classroom. The professor of Green Science, a
non-native speaker, utilized a ‘sink-or-swim’ approach. In all cases, a shift
towards a global English and away from a native speaker norm was observed. The
multicultural interactions observed in the Faculty of Liberal Arts could be
one way to encourage greater integration of international and domestic
students, providing adequate language support is available.

Chapter 16 discusses the experience of setting up English Taught Programs in
the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Waseda University. Nilson Kunioshi
and Harushige Nakakoji describe the International Program in Science and
Engineering, which runs parallel to the regular program, but with a September
start date to match the academic calendar in other countries. As the number of
participants have grown there has been growing pressure on facilities, in
particular laboratories. There have also been language-related issues, which
the university has aimed to improve by developing an online corpus database of
academic lectures called OnCAL. 

Section 6: Future Directions for English-Medium Instruction

In Chapter 17, Akira Kuwamura sums up the challenges and possibilities in the
future for EMI in Japan. Questions have been raised as to whether students can
learn content satisfactorily in English, and whether students and faculty are
ready to undertake such courses of study. Students may lose confidence in
their abilities, it is argued, while faculty may lose authority when unable to
communicate effectively in their L2. However, the writer argues that many of
these challenges are also possibilities. EMI provides a natural opportunity
for discussion and negotiation of meaning that L1 classes may tend to lack,
and allow students to engage with research directly rather than in
translation. Communication with students from diverse backgrounds may also
better prepare students for international careers. To achieve these benefits,
however, it will be essential to provide support and training programs for
faculty and students, and to create a sustainable environment in which
tenured, full-time faculty from Japan and overseas can collaborate
effectively.

In the final chapter, the volume editors turn to the example of the
implementation of IT in Japanese higher education in the 1990s, arguing that
there are a number of instructive parallels between this change and the
current implementation of EMI. The first parallel is that change in both
instances was provoked by a sense of crisis and declining Japanese
competitiveness, with EMI being seen as a way to both attract more
international students and internationalise domestic students. In both cases,
government funding to support the transition has fallen mostly to elite
universities, leaving smaller institutions to adopt later and on a smaller,
less coordinated scale. Another parallel is that support structures are
frequently inadequate, and existing university support structures may not see
the value of EMI for the institution. In both cases, numerical targets have
tended to emphasize implementation rather than planning, coordination and
training. 

A final, critically important parallel is the sense that in both cases, forces
for change appeared to be swimming against the tide. The idea of an
internationally-minded young generation runs counter to a belief in national
identity, and changes to classroom or institutional practice may meet
opposition from entrenched bureaucratic interests, or educational tradition.
Coming back to the example of IT, there are many who question whether it was
ever truly integrated into institutions, or just layered on to existing
structures. Faced with numerous challenges, universities chose the easier path
of short-term planning and reactive problem solving. EMI may fall into these
same traps, although there is still time for change.

EVALUATION

English-Medium Instruction in Japanese Higher Education offers a range of
viewpoints on EMI in Japan, both optimistic and pessimistic, but succeeds in
bringing these together in the final chapters to give a clear picture of the
challenges and possibilities in EMI’s future. As a teacher in Japanese higher
education who has designed and taught several EMI courses, some information
was familiar to me, but the research presented here helped to clarify or
challenge many of my assumptions. In particular, understanding Japanese
government programs enabled me to better understand the kinds of numerical
targets introduced by many universities, even where their relevance to
students and classrooms is not clearly articulated. 

The book’s most obvious limitation is in its title: this is a book about
content instruction delivered in English, in the particular national context
of contemporary Japan. As such, it is likely to be of the greatest interest to
stakeholders in Japanese higher education, but it also offers insights for
those seeking to implement EMI programs in other similar contexts - those
where English is not a lingua franca - outside Japan. It also offers an
excellent example of how to identify and conduct research on the perceptions
of key stakeholders.
 
REFERENCES

Dafouz, E. and Smit, U. (2016) Towards a dynamic conceptual framework for
English-medium education in multilingual university settings. Applied
Linguistics 37 (3), 397-415. DOI: 10.1093/applin/amu034

Macaro, E. (2015) English Medium Instruction: Time to start asking some
difficult questions. Modern English Teacher 24 (2), 4-7.

MEXT (2015). Heisei 25 nendo no daigaku ni okeru kyouiku naiyoutou no kaikaku
joukyou ni tsuite [About the state of affairs regarding university reforms to
education in 2013]. Retrieved from
http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/koutou/daigaku/04052801/__icsFiles/afieldfile/201
6/05/12/1361916_1.pdf


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Caroline Hutchinson is a lecturer in International Liberal Arts at Juntendo
University, Japan, and has worked in Japanese higher education since 2012. She
has also taught in Vietnam, Hungary and the UK, where she is originally from.
She has designed and taught several English-Medium courses relating to
Japanese Studies. Other research interests include autonomy, motivation, and
the psychology of language learning.





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