JALT Event

We will have a short talk about Extensive Reading from Chris Fry on Sunday 25 August 19:00-20:00. The event will involve a short 20-30 minute casual talk from our PresentER, followed by around 20-30 minutes of questions and discussion. PresentERs takes place on the last Sunday of each month online on Zoom. It is free for anyone to attend.

Chris will talk about running class libraries with adult classes in Barcelona over a period of 40 years. He'll talk about choosing and obtaining books back then and how he would do it today, as well as how to sell Extensive Reading to students. Chris created catalogues of readers at each level organised by genres to help students find a book they would like and insisted that everyone start at a level where some would find it too easy, but that no one would find it too difficult. He set targets and provided feedback on the level and quantity of their reading during the course and obtained feedback about the books very term to be able to eliminate less popular titles from each connection. 

After the presentation, there will be plenty of opportunities to ask questions.  

On Saturday, July 27th, 6:00pm-7:30pm, our guest presenter Chiyuki Yanase will lead a workshop on how we as educators can take steps to look after the wellbeing of ourselves and our students. Given the stresses on everyone during and after COVID, this should be a very useful workshop!

In this workshop, Chiyuki will share and discuss mastery-goal-oriented activities suitable for learners of various ages, as well as sensory and mindful practices for teachers. The first part of the workshop will focus on learner wellbeing, with participants experiencing activities including mindful practices based on yoga for young learners and research-based mindful practices for secondary, as well as university students. The second part of the workshop will introduce emotion-focused coping strategies and activities designed to support teachers in enhancing their resilience to cope with potential drawbacks.

Chiyuki Yanase is a lecturer at several universities in Tokyo. She holds an MSc in TESOL from Aston University and has over 30 years of experience teaching English at various institutions. She has presented at numerous international conferences and published several articles on team-teaching, literacy development, and collaborative learning. Her current research interests focus on teacher and learner wellbeing, and she continues to explore the science of happiness.

Where
"Big Front" Building,
Hiroshima City Furishiki Center
5F, Meeting Room 2
5-1 Matsubarachō, Minami Ward, Hiroshima, 732-0822
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Ydo3e2zor3x2L3nZ8

How much?
Free for JALT members and students
500円 for non-members

Speaker: Luke Draper
Location: Kagawa University, Global Café
Date & time: July 14th 14:00-16:00

Abstract: Literature is often used in ESL classrooms not only as a rich resource for language, but also as a means of allowing students to explore the culture and sociohistory of the textual setting. However, “authentic” prose fiction is often avoided by language educators due to its perceived linguistic inaccessibility. This talk will begin by identifying motives for introducing prose fiction into English language education as well as strategies for selecting suitable texts. It will then narrow the focus to the benefits of Japanese Literature in Translation (JLIT) as effective teaching material that responds to the learners’ culture and activates schemata (Giovanelli & Mason, 2018) toward holistic learning experiences. It will argue that JLIT facilitates meaningful discourse and learner agency. Specific examples of translated prose fiction used in a university EAP program will be examined, as well as authentic and reliable assessment. The talk will then break off into a workshop where participants can analyse texts for potential classroom suitability in their teaching environments.

Bio: Luke Draper currently teaches EAP and literature-focused classes at Kwansei Gakuin University in Hyogo, Japan. He has an MA in Creative Writing from Chichester University, UK and is the Publicity Officer for the JALT Literature in Language Teaching (LiLT) SIG. His research interests also include writing workshops, pedagogical stylistics and he writes fiction.

<Presentation 1>
Challenges of Multilingual Families
Montserrat Sanz Yagüe
Kobe City University of Foreign Studies

Monolingual families are all alike; every multilingual family is multilingual in its own way”. Following this Anna Karenina principle, we will argue that raising multilingual children is a complex task that involves many factors, decisions, and adjustments to the environment. The result is that there are no two multilingual children alike and that families need to understand the general principles underlying bilingualism to make their own decisions at every stage. This talk combines an account of the personal experience of the speaker—a mother of three multilingual/multicultural children— with reflections on the general issues discussed in the literature on bilingualism. The different results achieved with the three children serve to illustrate the topics involved in raising multilingual families, including some language impairments in children with special needs.

Montserrat Sanz Yagüe (Spain, 1966), graduated with a degree on English Philology from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She has a Master in Linguistics and a PhD in Linguistics and Brain and Cognitive Sciences from the University of Rochester (NY). In 1996 she became a professor at Kobe City University of Foreign Studies, where she teaches Spanish and performs research on theoretical linguistics and L2 acquisition processes.

<Presentation 2>
Various Paths to Bilingualism Whilst Living in Japan
Frances Shiobara
Kobe Shoin Women's University

Bringing up multilingual children raises numerous challenges from home language, schooling, literacy, study abroad to finally higher education choices. This presentation will incorporate research in second language acquisition against the backdrop of my personal experiences raising three bilingual children in Japan. Firstly, I will cover a variety of examples of ways you can provide plentiful and rich language input for your children whilst living in Japan. Secondly, I will outline some of the choices in schooling you can take from pre-school through high school along with ways to enhance literacy to improve test scores. Finally, I will cover different paths that can be taken for higher education and how to get there.

My three children have all taken different paths to university education incorporating Japanese public school, Japanese private school, international school, Japanese university, foreign university, and study abroad. The aim of this presentation is to provide parents and educators with information on a wide range of choices that can be made when raising children rather than a one size fits all approach. In addition to raising three bilingual children, I am also director of The Foreign Language Education Center at Kobe Shoin Women’s University and have supervised numerous students taking part in study abroad programs at university as well as helping to set up St. Michael’s International Saturday School program for elementary school students in Sannomiya. There will be plenty of time for questions and answers and I welcome any input from the audience.

Frances Shiobara has been living and teaching in Japan since 1989, and she has been teaching in higher education for over 30 years. She is currently Director of the Foreign Language Education Center at Kobe Shoin Women’s University, Japan. She was previously Chair of the Department of English. She also set up and teaches in an International School English program for elementary school students. She has a Master of Education in Applied Linguistics from Temple University, Japan and a Doctor of Education from The University of Liverpool, UK. Her main areas of interest are teaching English to young learners, gender equality in higher education and attitudes to technology in education.

AKITA JALT MEETING FOR JULY 20TH: STRATEGIC INTERACTIONS IN THE LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

Presented by Martin Sedaghat

Role-play activities are commonly used in communicative EFL/ESL classrooms to practice speaking skills in a variety of situations. However, most role-plays are heavily scripted and do not give students a chance to use language in creative and authentic ways. This presentation will introduce the concept of strategic interactions (SIs), which are role-plays created with built-in conflicts based around scenarios. The stages of planning, preparation, performance, and reflection on SIs will be described, along with both the successes and challenges observed by the presenter in using these activities with 1st year students at a private medical university. Participants will also have a chance to try SIs for themselves.

Bio:

 Martin Sedaghat is a teacher at Niigata University of Health and Welfare, as well as the integrated campus preschool.  He has been living in Niigata City since 2003, and has worked as an ALT for elementary and junior high schools, and as a homeroom teacher for a private high school.  He completed an MA in TESOL in 2023, with a dissertation focused on games in the language classroom.  His research interests include SLA for young learners, the use of picture books in the classroom, and game design for L2 learning.  He is currently a co-editor for JALT’s The Language Teacher journal, and an officer in the TYL SIG and ART SIG.

The presentation will take place on July 20th through zoom from 2pm until around 3pm.

Akita JALT Members will be emailed the zoom info.

All others interested in participating please email akita@jalt.org for zoom info.

JALT Tochigi has the honor of hosting Diane Hawley Nagatomo for a presentation titled, “From EFL Materials to Academic Books and Papers to Novels: The Art of Balancing Different Writing Genres.”  Diane will be speaking at the Utsunomiya University EPUU Auditorium in Tochigi Prefecture.  This hybrid event is free and open to all!

In Diane’s own words:  For many of us teaching in Japan, writing is an essential part of our job. Not only can it further our careers, but it can also bring great personal satisfaction. In this presentation, I will first describe the three areas that I have been writing in over the past thirty years:  EFL materials, academic books and papers, and fiction. Through trial and error over the years, I’ve learned that each of these genres require different techniques and approaches. After a brief introduction of the differences in audience, content, writing style, and marketing, I would like to open the floor to questions and comments from the participants. In this way, I hope we can have a lively discussion and give direction to people who wish to expand their own writing possibilities.

To register for either an in-person seat** or to participate live via Zoom, please use the following link:

https://list-waseda-jp.zoom.us/survey/B-53Rb4uaGYDhMImY3uR3FatOPe6MiM7Ygdd-fo9UJTS_QeAMt0.rDNJQwLk-5MpnWZp/view?id=IvG_BmEQRPWV_wyZeLj1wg#/sharePreview

For any other questions or for more information, please contact tochigi@jalt.org.

**NOTE FOR IN-PERSON ATTENDEES: The event will be held on the second floor of Building 4. To get to the building, use this link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/XrJ2PnALo1h4v6TT9

All meaning is multimodal and so our students must be multiliterate, but how do multimodality and multiliteracies fit in our teaching? Join the discussion for necessary background and examinations of contemporary teaching from around East Asia at this free online event. 

• Date: Sunday, September 8th, 13:00~16:00
• Format: Webinar (Google Meet - See Google support for system requirements)
• Tuition: Free (donations gladly accepted)
• Language: English

Schedule

13:00
 
Opening

 
Thomas Amundrud
Multimodality in Language Teaching and Research: A Brief Overview

14:00
Fei Victor Lim
Multiliteracies in the Language Classroom: A Perspective from Singapore

15:00
Sy-Ying Lee
Is Multimodal Meaning-Making That New? Building a Literacy Journey from Storytelling to Digital Storytelling for Language Acquirers

Abstracts

Thomas Amundrud
Nara University of Education
JALT Kyoto Chapter President

Teaching and learning are inherently multimodal activities, comprising – but not limited to - gesture, gaze, image, and space within in-person classrooms alone; online teaching restrains or eliminates some of these modes, while making other modes – image, especially – more salient. What it means to be “multimodal” in our scope and thinking as language teachers and researchers of language teaching will be the focus of this talk. I will first define what we mean by “multimodality,” and then look at how different researchers in language teaching have used it to examine teaching and learning. I will also raise some questions that I believe remain open, with the hope that attendees and viewers will ponder how to approach them in their own research. Lastly, with an eye towards our two main speakers, I will close with an opening to what a multimodal lens can mean for the learning we facilitate through our teaching.

Thomas Amundrud is Associate Professor of English Education at Nara University of Education. His work, which mainly uses the lens of Systemic Functional Multimodal Discourse Analysis (SFMDA), involves the examination and exploration of how teachers mean in the classroom texts they create, as well as how teachers scaffold student meaning through multiple modes. He is currently interested in extending these insights further in the Japanese EFL context at all levels. In so doing, he is committed to expanding justice in language education and beyond.

Fei Victor Lim
National Institute of Education
Nanyang Technological University

The manifesto for multiliteracies (New London Group, 1996) has led to the broadening of our understanding of literacy beyond language learning to multiliteracies (Cope & Kalantzis, 2015). In response to the clarion call, the literacy curricula around the world have been expanded to include multimodal meaning making, beyond the familiar focus on language learning (e.g., Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2021; Finnish National Board of Education, 2016; Ministry of Education, Singapore, 2020). Singapore has been amongst the forward-looking systems to include multimodal meaning-meaning with language learning in the current 2020 English Language syllabus. While the curriculum has evolved to include the viewing and representing of multimodal texts, the move from literacy to multiliteracies has not been easy. Studies have reported on teachers’ uncertainty about how to design for students’ learning with multimodal texts (Chan, Chia & Choo, 2017; Lim, Towndrow & Tan, 2021; Lim, Chia & Nguyen, 2022). I argue that even as curriculum reforms are necessary, they are, in themselves, insufficient to bring about tangible changes in the classrooms, unless teachers are equipped with ways to design for meaningful learning experiences for multiliteracies (Lim & Tan Chia, 2023). In this talk, I draw on my experience and findings from a multi-phased design-based research project on integrating multiliteracies in the English classrooms in Singapore (Lim, et al. 2022) to explore how teachers and students can engage with multimodal meaning-making in the language classroom. I discuss the challenges expressed by the teachers and students and reflect on the opportunities for growth and the advancing of multiliteracies learning in Singapore. I conclude by discussing the recommendations stemming from the project and highlighting the implications on the pedagogy and the assessment of multiliteracies.

Dr. Fei Victor Lim is Associate Professor at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He researches and teaches on multiliteracies, multimodal discourse analyses, and digital learning. He is an editor of Multimodality and Society and an associate editor of Computers and Composition. He is also author of the book, Designing Learning with Embodied Teaching: Perspectives from Multimodality, lead author of the book, Designing Learning for Multimodal Literacy: Teaching Viewing and Representing, published in the Routledge Studies in Multimodality in 2021 and 2023 as well as lead editor of the collection, Designing Learning with Digital Technologies: Perspectives from Multimodality in Education, published in the  Routledge Research in Digital Education and Educational Technology in 2024

Sy-Ying Lee
National Taiwan University of Science and Technology

Literacy around the globe is rapidly transitioning from paper-based reading and writing to multiliteracies that encompass digital reading, viewing, and creating multimodal texts for various purposes. This shift in human literacies necessitates a more suitable pedagogy to equip language learners with the ability to navigate multiliteracies, which are rich in the interplay of text, image, and sound, facilitated by technological advancements (Unsworth, 2001). However, is multimodal meaning-making truly novel for all language learners, including EFL and L2 learners? In this presentation, I argue that individuals who grew up in families with robust home literacy activities and resources have always had access to multimodal multiliteracies and have experienced less frustration with school instruction. Research indicates that children from homes rich in literacy activities, particularly those involving parents' reading behavior, parents' read-aloud to children, and children's own pleasure reading, perform better in vocabulary, spelling, and math (Sullivan & Brown, 2013; Trelease & Giogis, 2019). Picture books, the earliest form of multimodal reading abounding with artistic design, social semiotics, and literary features (Serafini & Reid, 2022), play a crucial role in literacy development at home and school. With this understanding, I advocate for the inclusion of picture story reading as an essential component in primary education. This inclusion facilitates a smooth transition from home literacy to school literacy and supports children from homes lacking in such input. Then I will present course modules designed for Taiwanese students at various educational levels: (1) story listening and digital storytelling composition with high school students as an approach to self-exploration; (2) extensive reading and reflective blogging to foster personalized interests and learning for university students; and (3) digital storytelling as a transformative action towards social responsibility. 

Sy-Ying Lee is Professor at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST), where she also heads the Center of General Education. Her research interests include second language acquisition, extensive reading, storytelling in EFL teaching, reader-text interaction through blogging, and multimodal multiliteracies. She has published in national and international scholarly journals and is currently serving on the editorial boards for Computers and Composition, Taiwan Journal of TESOL, and English Teaching and Learning. She has received the Outstanding Achievement Award for Special Contributions in Research from the Taiwan Ministry of Science & Technology and the Teaching Excellence Award from National Taipei University three times. Additionally, she is a two-time winner of the PBL Teaching Award at NTUST.

Instead of a bonenkai, we're doing a New Year's Party!

ABSTRACT: Setting out as a teenager to uncover the world beyond her New York City neighborhood, our speaker began her cross-cultural journey more than half a century ago. She will share with us how in the decades since her worldwide travels have been not only geographical explorations but a journey of self-discovery. Learning as we embrace other cultures we may transcend limiting labels, gain a wider view of the world, and our place in it.

BIO: Karen Hill Anton wrote the popular columns “Crossing Cultures” for the Japan Times, and “Another Look” for Chunichi Shimbun. She lectures internationally on her experience of cultural adaptation and raising four bilingual, bicultural children. She’s the author of the multiple award-winning memoir, The View From Breast Pocket Mountain, and the novel, A Thousand Graces. Karen has made her home in rural Shizuoka prefecture with her husband, William Anton, since 1975.    KarenHillAnton.com

Bio: Martin Sedaghat is a preschool teacher and university lecturer at Niigata University of Health and Welfare. He has been teaching in Japan since 2003 and received his MA in TESOL in 2023. He has a background in illustration and his professional interests include picturebooks, game design for young learners, and second language acquisition for children.

Abstract: This workshop will cover a variety of aspects of creating, remixing, and playing non-digital games with young learners. We will start off by discussing the definitions and benefits of games with a focus on children and early developmental skills. Next, I will share some of the principles of good game design, along with suggestions on how to adapt and remix games to suit the young learner context. Finally, the audience will be invited to work in groups and use some simple materials to design their own games. My hope is that you will leave with a new perspective on classroom games and some ideas on how to use them.