The Kyoto Chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching

TBLT in Japanese EFL Event – Sunday Jan. 12, 2020 1:00-5:00pm

Event Speaker: Rintaro Sato (Nara University of Education)
Natsuko Shintani (Kansai University)
Fee for JALT members: Free
Fee for non-JALT members: 1,000 yen

Thinking about the incompatibility of TBLT and reconsideration of PPP-based approach in the Japanese EFL environment

Rintaro Sato (Nara University of Education)

One of the most important objectives of English Education in Japan is to develop students’ communicative abilities. Thus, students have to be engaged in activities that will lead them to exchange their thoughts and feelings by actually using the English language. By “actually using English” (not learning to use English), students ideally learn English. Being compatible with this trend, the utilization of task-based language teaching (TBLT), which is a logical development of communicative language teaching (CLT), is attractive and gaining attention. However, as educators, we have to reflect on the effects of TBLT on Japanese EFL students’ English learning, considering that the goal of English education is to improve the four language skills. With that in mind, this presentation will report on the incompatibility of TBLT in the Japanese secondary context, where learners do not have natural exposure to English or a real need to regularly communicate in that language. I argue that a drastic revision of TBLT is definitely needed for its application in Japanese junior and senior high school, and then suggest more effective ways to teach English to our students. 　

日本の外国語学習環境におけるTBLTの不整合性とPPPの再考

佐藤 臨太郎 (奈良教育大学)

日本の英語教育の重要な目的の一つは英語でのコミュニケーション能力の育成にある。英語を用いての発信能力の育成が求められており、そのため、英語を「学んで使用する」のではなく、実際に「使用しながら学ぶ」ことがより重要視されるようになっている。この流れに伴って、コミュニカティブな言語指導の論理的な発展であるタスク中心の指導法が注目を浴びている。しかしながら、日常生活において英語との接触があまりなく、使用する必要もないという外国語として英語を学ぶ環境においてはこのアプローチの不整合性も考えなくてはいけない。発表においては、この問題について切れ込み、より日本での効果的な指導法を提案する。

Rintaro Sato is professor at Nara University of Education. He received a Master’s degree from Tsukuba University and earned his Ph.D. in Education at the Joint Graduate School in the Science of School Education, Hyogo University of Teacher Education. One of his research interests is in incorporating theories of second language acquisition into the Japanese EFL classroom. He can be con­tacted at sato.rintaro at nara-edu.ac.jp.

Implementing tasks in English classrooms in Japan

Natsuko Shintani (Kansai University)

In this talk, I will explore a number of issues and possibilities relating to the implementation of task-based language teaching (TBLT) in Japan. Drawing on second language acquisition theories, I will seek for answers to questions such as What are the benefits of using tasks in English classroom?; Is it possible to incorporate tasks into the existing syllabus?; How can we assess the outcome of the TBLT?; and What are the roles of teachers in TBLT? I will first examine the goal of TBLT by contrasting it with the goal of present-practice-produce (PPP) where grammar explanation is given followed by production practice activities. I will draw on research that has investigated the relationship between implicit/ explicit learning and implicit/ explicit knowledge to argue that it is better able to develop students’ communicative skills. I will conclude with some suggestions for implementing TBLT in the English classroom in Japan.

日本の英語教育におけるタスクの活用

新谷 奈津子 (関西大学)

この講演ではタスクを中心とした指導法(TBLT)を日本で導入するにあたっての課題について議論する。第二言語習得研究の知見にもとづき「英語の授業でタスクを用いることのメリットは何か」，「TBLTを現行のシラバスの中で導入することは可能か」，「TBLT型の授業においてどのように学習評価をすべきか」，「TBLTにおける教師の役割はなにか」などの疑問に答えることを目的とする。 まず、従来の文法説明の後に産出活動を行う提示-練習-産出(PPP)の指導法と比較しながらTBLTの目的について述べる。続いて、明示的・暗示的学習と明示的・暗示的知識の関係について調査した研究に触れ、どのようにTBLTが学習者のコミュニケーション能力を伸ばすのに効果的かを議論する。最後にTBLTを日本の英語教育に活かす方法について提案をして講演のまとめとしたい。

Natsuko Shintani is professor in the Faculty of Foreign Language Studies at Kansai University. She has taught English to young learners in her own private language school in Japan and applied linguistics courses at the postgraduate level at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Her research interests encompass the roles of interaction in second language acquisition, second language writing, and task-based language teaching. She has also co-authored a book entitled Task-based language teaching: Theory and practice, published by Cambridge University Press. She can be contacted at natsukoshintani at gmail.com.

Location: Campus Plaza Kyoto (5 minutes from JR Kyoto Station, behind Kyoto Central Post Office & across from Bic Camera), 6F Ritsumeikan Satellite Room

Venue Address: 下京区西洞院通塩小路下る京都市, Kyoto600-8216 Japan

Link to meeting location