This study discusses the reasons and methods for Japanese language teachers involved in Japanese language education for Japanese native speakers. Firstly, I summarize the reasons in three points: (1) As people who work with non-native speakers, we need to convey successful communication strategies to Japanese native speakers to use with non-native speakers. (2) As teachers of the dominant language in Japan, we need to protect the values of minority languages and the rights of their speakers, in other words, to commit to our part in establishing “linguistic equality” in society. (3) As teachers of communication, we need to stimulate dialogue to resolve divisions and conflicts caused by cultural differences in values or beliefs. For methodology, I outline the following four points: (1) an alternative framework for Japanese language teacher training programs, (2) the positioning of Japanese language education as general education for citizens, (3) outreach to responsible stakeholders, and (4) the involvement of Japanese language teachers in corporate training programs. As an example, I present a summary of one Japanese language education course for Japanese native speakers that is a part of the liberal arts curriculum in a university.

In this paper the author presents the policy changes that have accompanied the increase in the number of people coming to work in Japan from overseas during the past few years and discusses the resulting need for Japanese language education to facilitate a convivial society. An outline of the significance accorded to the concept of inclusion at policy level is given, followed by a description of the developments in Japanese language education designed to facilitate a convivial society. The author concludes that in order for Japanese language education to facilitate a convivial society in the future, it will be necessary both to clarify the institutional significance of the concept and to engage in interventional research.

This paper examines the potentialities and challenges of Japanese language education by considering issues from the perspective of “coexistence.” First, (1) a study is made of the reports produced by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) regarding the MEXT concept of “coexistence.” Next, (2) the positioning of Japanese language education in the government curriculum guidelines is reviewed, with a particular focus on “Japanese language aims” in the elementary school stage. On that basis, (3) suggestions are made regarding the direction of Japanese language classes in terms of inclusion and re-inclusion as a potentiality for Japanese language education as seen from the perspective of “coexistence.” Suggestions are also made regarding the direction of Japanese language classes in terms of “traditional language culture” under the heading of “matters relating to the linguistic culture of Japan.” Finally, (4) the need to incorporate the perspective of nurturing “the capacity to critically interpret society and culture” within the elementary school Japanese language curriculum is discussed.

Japanese language education for foreign residents in Japan is being promoted. However, in the overwhelming majority of elementary, middle, and high schools, the only foreign language offered is English. In this paper, we argue that coexistence in language education cannot be achieved by the promotion of Japanese language education and English-only foreign language education alone, but must be viewed as a task of language education as a whole, expanding the scope to include the teaching of mother-tongue languages and other foreign languages. We then present some viewpoints for the reform of the education of mother-tongue and heritage languages, as well as languages other than English, to promote peaceful coexistence in society.

In this paper we analyzed the action of “shaking-fingers” produced by deafblind people who use finger braille through a description of the basic characteristics of the action and observation of its use in conversation. Through a description of basic characteristics, we showed that the action of “shaking-fingers”: a) tends to occur together with a long vowel symbol, b) is accompanied by laughter, and c) is followed by a turn change. Based on this, we pointed out that this action expresses the affective attitude of showing that the speaker thinks something they said is funny. Regarding the use of “shaking-fingers”, we observed that there were two types: one that indicates the speaker’s understanding of the previous utterance, and another that indicates the speaker’s high interest in something. We analyzed examples of both types and found that the use of “shaking-fingers” is a practice that shows the speaker’s understanding independently of linguistic form and enables the deepening of conversation based on a shared interest in newly mentioned content.

The purpose of this study is to statistically investigate whether the linguistic tendency that appears as reaction words of the linguistic associative method is related to the cognitive style tendency in the E-S model. We also examine this in relationship to dialogue problems, including a case study of ASD individuals who are expected to have similar cognitive styles and linguistic tendencies. The results statistically suggest from the semantic aspect that cognitive style is associated with a specific linguistic tendency. In addition, the case study indicated that difficulties in dialogue caused by differences in linguistic tendency may cause ASD people to make a conscious effort to suppress and change their own linguistic tendencies. We suggest that from the perspective of symbiosis, the current state of society in which “defects” on the part of ASD may be unilaterally regarded as problems in dialogue situations, should be reconsidered. It is necessary to recognize that dialogue problems can occur due to differences in linguistic tendencies. The solution may be to let go of intuitive dialogue and to recognize that each linguistic tendency may also be related to a cognitive tendency that could be a strength.

In modern Japanese social culture, individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may be ostracised for being uncooperative because they cause problems in interpersonal communication. This paper explores both language use and non-verbal communication of individuals with ASD by employing conversation analysis and the concept of communication ideology. Transcripts from conversation, data relating to the sociocultural context of the participants in conversation and follow-up interviews with participants were analysed. The analysis suggests that: 1) asymmetrical exchanges arise as a consequence of the individual with ASD not orienting to what the interlocutor indexes by her communication behaviours and that this may be impacted by the past communicative experiences of the individual with ASD; 2) participants achieve mutual understanding by interpreting the meaning of the interactions in terms of a common communication ideology. This paper suggests that exploring participants’ background and other macro sociocultural contexts of the participants of an interaction is critical when analysing communication of sociocultural minorities, including individuals with ASD, as well as taking into account the structure of micro-social interaction practices of people with ASD.

Studies only focusing on a minority, separated from the majority, face the risk of dividing people. Taking such understanding into consideration, this paper describes how people can live together without division and polarization. Some issues relating to ‘plain Japanese’ and language rights that would enable coexistence, have been overlooked. In this paper, ‘plain Japanese’ and language rights are critically reconsidered and their relationship examined. Following this, I point out that disability-related language rights, which includes guaranteeing equal access to information and communication rights, can allow the majority to be involved in an inclusive society, in addition to accommodating diversity. Finally, I advocate that future sociolinguistics needs to provide a detailed description of bottom-up coexistence, rather than coexistence imposed from above, by examining the interaction processes of actual situations.

The purpose of this paper is to report on my 14-year experience in contributing to the transformation of the local community through pedagogically-arranged interactions between local residents and international students participating in study abroad exchange programs. The paper presents the results of two case studies. The first case study focused on local government workers who interacted with international students with the purpose of engaging the students in the organization of community events. The results observed from these interactions were the acquisition of communication skills, increased empathy, changes in attitude towards foreigners, and recognition of problems. The second case study focused on a local community volunteer group who continuously interacted with international students. The observed changes were a reduction of the attitude of indifference and the fear of the unknown, and a transition from disinterest to voluntary engagement. Both case studies provide an opportunity to reflect on the implementation of interactions that benefit international students and contribute to the first step of multiculturalization of the local community.

This paper describes the unique attempts to revitalize the Ainu language currently being carried out at the National Ainu Museum, newly opened in Shiraoi, Hokkaido. As one example of the detailed process of a language revitalization activity, this paper outlines how a young Ainu man and a researcher cooperated to solve many linguistic difficulties to create explanatory plates in Ainu for the Museum. Furthermore, it suggests that it is important for Ainu revitalization activities to pay more attention to other successful language-rights movements in Japan, in particular, Japanese Sign Language. We suggest that learning from such rich and successful experiences would surely be of much use to overcome anticipated difficulties and ensure more concretely the revitalization of Ainu.

In this paper, we analyze the data of two dialect surveys conducted in the Shonai district of Yamagata Prefecture and discuss changes in the role of transportation. The starting point is Hamaogi, a dialect glossary edited in 1767. The two dialect surveys, in 1950 and 2018, revealed generational differences over 140 years. The data consisted of 406 items collected from 370 individuals at 27 locations. The regional differences were represented by the walking distance from the central city. The seven generations were divided into three groups. The results indicated that for the first group in 1950, regional differences and the walking distances were significant. In the second group of older generations in 1980, differences in age and a rapid decline in dialect at railway station locations were observed. For the third group of the younger generations in 2018, a relationship with distance from the central city was observed. Walking distance may have become relevant again due to automobile traffic. The 406 words were also divided into four states similar to those used for the vitality of endangered languages. The order of critical, serious, unstable, and stable can be interpreted to reproduce the process of dialect decay. This study showed that changes in rail traffic environment were influential.

This study focuses on literacy education for adults in Bhutan. Bhutan introduced school education in 1961 and now 92.9% of school-aged children are enrolled in primary education (PPD MoE 2018). On the other hand, more than half (50.2%) of the adult population have no schooling experience, and many rural women lack not only literacy ability but also ability in the national language, Dzongkha. Using “linguistic socialization theory” as a theoretical framework, this study focuses on women who are receiving education as adults and investigates what it means for women, who have become mothers, to acquire national language and literacy skills, not only for themselves but also for their families and rural communities. The study included surveys of 28 students studying literacy education in rural areas in central Bhutan.Having been educated, these women play a role in connecting the two generations of the monolingual grandparents and the trilingual children who use ethnic languages, English and Dzongkha. They are becoming “mediators” that connect individual households. The survey revealed that narrating one’s self has the effect of promoting self-affirmation, suggesting the effectiveness of the narrative approach in adult literacy education.

Schiffrin (1978) described discourse markers as contextual coordinates involving participants and textual content. Based on Schiffrin’s (1978) definition, this paper quantitatively analyzes the function of “e,” “eeto,” “demo,” and “nanka” in the beginning of a topic. The results of the analysis showed a clear difference in the subject of the topic for “e,” “demo,” and “nanka.” In addition, the topic development type was found to be either related to the preceding context or not related, influencing the form of the discourse marker. As a characteristic of topic initiation, “e” was found to prompt the attention of the collocutor and function as a sign used to encourage the other person’s narrative in order to develop a new topic by asking a subsequent question. “Demo” was found to function as a sign used to develop a topic by shedding light on a different aspect of the other person’s narrative in the preceding context. “Nanka” was found to function as a sign used to advance the speaker’s own narrative by relating to the discourse structure itself. This study revealed a new aspect of the function of discourse markers by focusing on topic initiation and by comparing and analyzing multiple discourse markers within the same framework.

This study sought to identify the characteristics of international medical students’ communication in medical interviews with patients. The identified characteristics were then compared with those of medical students who were native Japanese speakers. The two sets of students were asked to conduct medical interviews with simulated patients. The Roter Interaction Analysis System (RIAS) was employed to analyze the data obtained from the interviews. The analysis revealed that, in comparison to Japanese medical students, the international students asked fewer open-ended questions and verified the information provided by patients less frequently. It is possible that international students ask fewer open-ended questions because of communication barriers: open-ended questions require more complex linguistic expressions than close-ended questions. International students may verify information provided by patients less frequently because they prioritize asking questions over listening to and endeavoring to understand their patients. This study suggests that perhaps it is inadequate to provide international medical students with only question patterns for medical interviews. For effective communication with patients, it may be necessary to provide them with examples of specific, commonly used linguistic expressions and examples of usage.

This paper analyzes the multimodal behavior of learners in e-learning situations. In the two surveys, three multimodal actions were analyzed: nodding, gazing, and note-taking. Nodding was seen (1) while interpreting content, and (2) when interpretation was difficult. Thus, nodding was found to appear according to the progress of interpretation, without assuming others. In regard to gazing, participants were found to (1) pay more attention to the media used, and (2) pay more attention to the screen when new or unexpected information appeared. For (1), when participants paid attention to the media used, they often looked at the handouts and actively took notes. While for (2), when new information appeared, the participants looked at the information source not in their own domain, and when unexpected information appeared, being surprised or more alert, they visually followed the information regardless of the mode. In the case of note-taking, (1) leaving the video to play without pausing, (2) pausing the video and note-taking, and (3) rewinding the video after note-taking, were observed. In all cases, the complex process of multiple multimodal actions being performed simultaneously was observed.

This paper analyzes the process of acquiring the final Japanese particle ne by different levels of Korean learners of Japanese through the theory of territory of information framework. The analysis used topic-controlled interview-style free conversations of native Japanese speakers and Korean learners of Japanese from a public corpus. First, utterances were compared between the interviewer and interviewee, and it was found that the interviewer used the obligatory ne while the interviewee used the optional ne more often. Next, we analyzed the frequency of ne with respect to the amount of utterances, targeting both native speakers and learners as interviewees. It was shown that upper advanced learners used ne less frequently than the native speakers, but more frequently when considering utterance volume. Finally, in analyzing the correct usage rate calculated from the number of usages that were correct, misused, or missing, the use of optional ne by the upper-advanced and the use of obligatory ne by the lower-advanced were both lower than the upper groups. The reason for this may be that the upper and lower advanced learners have a vague and unstable perception of the obligatory and optional elements of ne. The details of this phenomenon will need to be examined.

Japanese speakers often use utterances ending with the conjunctive particle kedo in daily conversation, which are usually called “kedo clauses.” In this paper, we investigated discourse functions of “kedo clauses” in storytelling by using the Corpus of Everyday Japanese Conversation, a large-scale corpus of everyday conversations in Japanese. It was observed that tellers often use “kedo clauses” to initiate or expand a telling or to maintain the subject of a telling.Each function was associated with the projection of an action space to produce turn sequences required for the unfolding of the telling. The conjunctive particle kedo has the property of making it predictable that “something that contrasts with the preceding part follows immediately,” so at any occasion of an unfolding storytelling, “kedo clauses” are repeatedly used as a resource that projects a next position within the ongoing action space.