Exploratory estimation and practical verification of academic competencies required for international students’ lecture comprehension

Abstract

This study aims to provide practical suggestions on how Japanese language courses can support international students' comprehension of specialized lectures conducted in Japanese. First, the paper defines academic competency (AC) as “the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary to complete courses and earn credits at university, as well as the ability to utilize these while adjusting them according to context and requirements.” It then considers the competency to comprehend lectures as one of the ACs. Since previous research could not identify the ACs required for comprehend lectures, focus group interviews were conducted with former international undergraduate students and faculty members teaching specialized courses to estimate 12 ACs (Study 1). These 12 ACs were incorporated into a “Lecture Comprehension” class conducted over 15 sessions. A follow-up survey on the usefulness of each AC in actual specialized lectures showed that all 12 estimated ACs were perceived as highly useful (Study 2).