Practice and Research in Japanese Language Teaching in Japan

Transformation and Prospects

Abstract

　This paper discusses educational practice in Japanese Language Teaching for students and adults in Japan, as well as research in this field. It begins by clarifying the scope of the discussion, and in the second section goes on to examine an example of an elementary Japanese class in order to explore the present state and issues of the field. Next, broadening the scope to cover professionalism of teachers, organizations and institutions, it identifies four issues that must be addressed: 1） data-driven self-evaluation and practical research by instructors; 2） third-party classroom evaluations; 3） establishing instructorsʼ professionalism; and 4） establishing self-evaluation organizations and institutions. The third section examines how practice and practical research has been transformed from the 1960ʼs until 2020 in response to societal changes, and on this basis the fourth section considers future prospects for this field. Likely future developments in the field include evaluation systems in educational practice, integration of ICT into educational practice, and the utilization of ICT in educational research.