A Comparative Study of Library Instruction Teaching Materials in the Elementary School Japanese Language Textbooks

Abstract

　(1) The Japanese elementary school courses of study stipulate that several hours of class room guidance per school year should be set aside for library instruction. The purpose of this research is to examine the currently available editions of elementary school textbooks in the subject of the Japanese language whether these textbooks provide sufficient teaching materials for the above stated library instruction. Authors intend to discuss methodology of library instruction, classroom teaching plans, and effectiveness classroom library instruction utilizing the materials these Japanese language textbooks provide.
　(2) Authors have engaged in a series of research on library instruction since 1974. This paper includes the authors' discussion on: 1) library instruction; its methodology and current situation in Japanese elementary schools; 2) teaching plans; 3) comparative study of the 5 kinds of Japanese language textbooks (all the editions published before 1976 as well as editions revised after 1977 are included) ; 4) prospects of library instruction in Japanese elementary schools. The followings are the authors' suggestion: 1) library instruction should be made an integral part of the Japanese language instruction; 2) individual schools are recommended to develop their own library instruction curriculums for class room guidance use.