The use of dual-language authentic material in storytelling for English language learning is well understood. Though some studies have focused on the use of bilingual children’s books as authentic material, less is known about the effects of student-produced dual-language authentic material on early English language development. In this presentation, the presenter aims to explore how junior high school students make use of these materials in their language development.

The presenters will share the results of a mixed-methods study investigating the effects of different types of writing practice on developing complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) in the writing of Japanese university students. Three groups who received regular practice in either sentence-combining, translation, or fluency writing were compared on measures of CAF across one semester. The findings from the study will be discussed in terms of pedagogical implications for writing instructors.

Multimodal remediation-based compositions (MRCs) are multimodal compositions where students convert a composition from one mode to another. This study examines EFL students’ perceptions of MRCs. How does doing MRCs impact student perceptions of L2 writing? How do student perceptions differ between text-based compositions (TC) and multimodal compositions (MC)? Findings show that doing MRCs did not change student perceptions of L2 writing. However, students did have distinct perceptions distinguishing TCs from MCs.

Low-level students often struggle to speak up within orally interactive classwork due to problems with confidence, anxiety, and task difficulty. Participants will be introduced to a powerful three-stage scaffolding model for tasks which helps students improve fluency over time by better preparing, checking, and reviewing planned speech. Recent data on the influence of the model on engagement and performance will be shared and guidance given on applying the model to any language learning context.

This presentation reports individual differences in L2 English proficiency gains after one year in an intensive English program at a small private university in Japan, using test scores, a survey, and interviews. For the current study, cluster analysis was used to identify subgroups from a large cohort based on their test preparation and experience. Cluster analysis, a multivariate exploratory procedure, revealed five subgroups, organised by their proficiency gains or losses, and test familiarity and preparation.

Paul Ricoeur’s “self” expands its self- and world-understanding by 1) encountering the outside or the other, 2) reflecting upon this encounter, and 3) mediating and processing it through the self’s existing identity: spiraling forward. This presentation employs said framework to engender students’ output that reflects their expanded worldview vis-à-vis their lived reality (e.g., hobbies, diet). This three-step process equips them ultimately to reflect upon the insights gained as a result of their encounters.

Students make greater efforts within language learning tasks if they fully understand where their performance is, where it should go, and how to get it there. The presenter will introduce how to raise student motivation and achievement within common English communication tasks with SMART checklists. Participants will see how they can create more confidence and focused classroom environments by applying simple checklists of skills, measures, actions, reasons and time to their own contexts.

This panel will overview the evolution of integrating independent learning into a Japanese university’s English program. As language classes moved online in 2020, our research team identified the need to provide students with accessible and practical language learning strategies (LLS) to supplement their personalized self-study. Thus, an online LLS database was developed. Student and teacher feedback will be discussed, revealing insights into how an LLS database can be used to support students’ autonomous learning.

This presentation outlines research into student experiences of remote learning. The initial goal was to learn more about students’ online learning experiences and devise informed interventions. The presentation outlines a three-step information gathering process: exit cards, a qualitative survey of reflections, and a Google Forms survey to quantify experiences across the department. These provide insight into factors that influenced students’ satisfaction with remote-learning and illustrate the benefits of engaging students in the process of analysis.

This study examines two groups of Japanese university students who participated in a five-month and ten-month study program overseas during the COVID-19 pandemic. Both groups were required to take the TOEIC exam pre-departure and post-arrival, and quantitative analyses were used to measure any improvements at both the individual and group level. Research methods were also utilized to determine the effects of the pandemic on the overall study abroad experience.

This presentation will discuss the development and use of a short, web-based lexical discrimination, phonological and orthographic skill, and vocabulary test to help a university English department assign students into levels and identify students with potential reading weaknesses. Practical and theoretical issues will be discussed, and the correlation of various parts of the test to the TOEFL ITP test and student course performance will be reported.

This presentation is an update on a project to align existing English communication courses with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The presenters detail the project’s progress as it moves to a practical implementation stage. In this stage, students are interviewed, while can-do statements are modified and employed in the classroom as well as introduced in the self-access center. The voices of students and teachers are included throughout.

This presentation will describe a longitudinal study examining the performance of a Japanese university English as a roreign language (EFL) program over a 20-year period. Time-series analyses were conducted using TOEFL ITP results for 20 student cohorts to investigate emerging English proficiency trends. The results indicated that specific institutional events, as well as larger population trends impacting Japanese universities, led to gradual shifts in program student demographics, which contributed to changes in proficiency patterns.

This paper aims to examine the feasibility of the collective evaluating method for the learning outcome of English learners in intercultural virtual exchange. As intercultural exchange with multiple partner institutions requires a common ground for quality assurance of learning outcomes, we developed a common framework of reference for the learning outcomes on “language skills” interconnected with other required skills. This paper will share the application of the framework to the activities in international learning.

This paper will demonstrate how and what to teach in addition to grading students’ interactional proficiency in speaking examinations. Some teaching activities and their grading criteria, which do not focus on form but focus on interactional fluency, will be shown. Following that, the importance that learners should be given certain learning tips and be explicitly trained to manipulate the interactional strategies will be broadly discussed.

This presentation details an analysis of student speaking before and after a period of study abroad in an English-speaking country. Videos of students engaging in spontaneous conversation with classmates were recorded and transcribed. The analysis of Pre- and Post- study abroad data shows changes in both quantitative and qualitative terms. The aim of the presentation is to highlight the development of interactional skills that may be invisible on standardized written tests.

This presentation will report on an approach to raising the pragmatics awareness of lower-level learners in an English program at a university in Japan, with a focus on building receptive pragmatics ability through reading. The presentation will explain the process of conducting informed analyses of texts in reading textbooks, and developing and collecting students’ responses to classroom activities and assessments designed to build L2 pragmatics ability and sensitivity to intercultural pragmatics.

The present study arose during hybrid lessons at a Japanese university that used both synchronous online and face-to-face modes. The presenter will point out different conversation styles, the use of turn taking, and use of gestures online in Zoom breakout rooms compared to face-to-face conversation. The findings highlight elements of conversation in the face-to-face mode that seem to be missing or lacking in the online mode.

In this presentation, I rethink the notion of language learning. Based on my larger multifaceted research project, I focus on the phenomenon that individuals in Japan are often involved in English in a more divergent way than what language learning means in the conventional sense. To further explore this trend, I propose the idea of engagements, which will contribute to providing more comprehensive understandings of English in Japan than what is available in the literature.

In this study, interactional features revealed by conversation analysis (CA) were presented back to an L2 learner of Japanese as a resource to foster language learning. By analyzing talk-in-interaction between the learner and two first language interlocutors and by cross-referencing data via retrospective interviews, learning opportunities were achieved regarding turn-taking, repair, and the occasional disjoining of content flow during talk. I present findings with bilingual transcription excerpts and discuss adapting these ideas for classroom settings.

An overview and demonstration of a MOOC for intercultural education. The Global Englishes (GEs)-oriented MOOC refers to Baker’s (2011) intercultural awareness (ICA) to conceptualise the intercultural skills for learning. Integrating GEs and ICA links important emerging research with practical learning opportunities. These opportunities may support student intercultural learning and are potentially useful in a context of reduced student mobility. The 10-unit MOOC, shown in the presentation, is freely downloadable for use elsewhere.