81

研究ノート

Conditions of teacher training for elementary school teachers
regarding inclusive education and English lessons in Japan
with particular reference to support for pupils with dyslexia
ONEYAMA, Akane(Justy Co. Ltd)

1 Introduction
Recently, the diversity of society is regarded as one of the important factors, andJapanese education has also tried to establish diversity in the classrooms. The concept
of inclusive education was introduced into Japanese educational systems in 2007 to
make classrooms diverse by including pupils with learning difficulties into
mainstream classrooms. However, teachers do not have deep understandings towards
inclusive education and have anxiety. Hirosawa et al. (2008) pointed out the negative
attitudes of Japanese teachers towards the introduction of inclusive education andtheir workload. Teachers in Japanese elementary schools face tremendous anxiety,such as the level of English ability of teachers (Yoshida, 2017). It is difficult toestablish an inclusive environment in the mainstream classrooms without positive
attitudes and deep understandings towards its philosophy.
Under the trial for the inclusive education in Japan, there is another point to consider
for classroom teachers in elementary school. English education was also adapted inelementary schools officially in 2011 in order to give students deep understandings
towards multicultural society in today’s world, and it has also been decided that after
2020, reading and writing English will be taught in 5th and 6th grades. For English
lessons under the trial of inclusive education, teachers are demanded to give further
support for pupils with particular difficulties. For example, dyslexia, which is one of
the learning difficulties, is more likely to appear in reading or writing English thanusing Japanese. However, not so many teachers understand how to include pupils withdyslexia into mainstream classrooms, and they have anxiety about not only the
introduction of those new things but also their workload which is produced by the
support for each pupil. It is the time to review the condition of Japanese teachers andlook for the support system for teachers from the angle of inclusive education andEnglish lesson. Therefore, it seems that the decrease in that workload and anxiety ofteachers can lead to the establishment of inclusive education, and teacher training canplay a role to decrease their burden. This study explores the condition and the

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problems of teacher training regarding inclusive education and English education, andfinds the way to improve training systems, with the reference of the support for pupils
with dyslexia.

2 Literature Review
2.1 Inclusive education
The concept of inclusive education was born in England in 1970s, and its government
tried to include as many pupils as possible in the mainstream classrooms even if those
pupils had learning difficulties. Since then, the United Nations Educational, Scientificand Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and several countries have improved thisconcept differently. UNESCO defined inclusion as “a process that helps overcome
barriers limiting the presence, participation and achievement of learners”. By
referring to the term “equity”, it also explains that each learner is different
individually, which is not the problem but the opportunity for democratizing andenriching learning (UNESCO 2017). Regardless of gender, race or other difficulties
which prevent students from learning, UNESCO encourages every country to givelearning opportunities to all learners.
In Japan, the concept of inclusive education was introduced as one of the systems
which enable Japan to build cohesive society after Japan signed the Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). By equipping the universal design andproviding reasonable accommodation for pupils with special educational needs ordifficulty (SEND), the government started to make an effort to include pupils with
SEND into mainstream classrooms. In detail, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology (MEXT) set the “resource rooms” where pupils with SEND can
get adequate support for their learning (MEXT 2012), and has promoted thecollaboration work with specialists of each difficulty including school counsellors,social workers, and nurses outside schools (MEXT 2017). In order to include as many
pupils as possible in the mainstream classrooms effectively and produce theenvironment which allows “diversity” in classrooms, teamwork with other specialists
in each community is required.
2.2 Dyslexia
Dyslexia is one of the learning difficulties which need individual support for pupils to
be included in mainstream classrooms. According to International Dyslexia
Association (IDA), dyslexia is the learning disability which “is neurobiological in origin”
and causes difficulties in the recognition of words, poor spellings and reading

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comprehension though there is no absolute definition of this difficulty as the feature ofdyslexia varies widely (IDA no date). Yet, most of them demand individualizedteaching and support; for example, it is necessary to take more time to read texts
fluently, memorize spellings and finish the examination. Dyslexic students may notneed substantially different teaching approaches from other students, but each of themneeds extra support (Bell and Mclean, 2016). To assist their learning, teaching phonics
and introducing a multisensory approach are also effective from the early stage of theirlearning (Wolff and Kutscher, 2014). It is true that those approaches are undoubtedly
useful for non-dyslexic students and can be one of the examples of “universal design”,
but can be extra support and job for teachers.
2.3 English Education in Japanese elementary school
English education was officially introduced into Japanese elementary school in 2011 as
the activity of foreign language”, and classroom teachers have made an effort to teachEnglish to their young learners. From 2020, this “activity” will be changed into an
official subject in 5th and 6th grades’ classes. The primary purpose of "the activity offoreign language” was to make pupils understand foreign cultures deeply throughexperiences and get the aptitude of communication in a foreign language. However,from 2020, communication through writing and reading will be added to the purpose ofEnglish education in elementary school, and teachers feel the lack of their English
ability as problems (Yoshida 2017). They have anxiety about English lessons.
It is also true that the content of lessons and their quality are influenced hugely byteachers and the environment around schools. In the new curriculum from 2020, teamteaching with both educators inside schools and specialists from their community
around school can play a role to implement the English lessons, which will make itpossible to draw pupil’s ability to the maximum. In the ideal lessons, classroom
teachers make lesson plans and lead the class with other staff (Matsuka 2017). In fact,some teachers can involve people in their community such as specialists from nearby
universities or foreign people as an assistant language teacher (ALT) whereas others
try to manage the lessons without help despite their lack of English ability. On theother hand, Naoyama (2015) claims that there are not many schools which can get the
support of the specialists of English education from nearby universities. For thoseschools, it is too challenging to teach the relationship between pronunciations andspellings in the classes, where only homeroom teacher carries the English classwithout help from ALT or specialist. These disparities among schools can cause a
difference in lesson quality and anxiety levels of teachers.

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When elementary school teachers need to teach how to write or read to pupils withdyslexia under the inclusive educational system, English lessons can be problematic.
The English language is more likely to cause dyslexia than Japanese due to thedifference of orthography (Doyle 2016). However, most English teachers in Japan do
not have sufficient knowledge about dyslexia and may be confused between dyslexia
and other learning difficulties such as ADHD or autism (Murakami 2007). It would be
impossible to pick up the difficulties of pupils with dyslexia in English lessons without
sufficient knowledge about dyslexia of teachers. In addition, support should be started
at the early developmental stage to establish the basic reading and writing ability(Ishii 2004). Careful attention must be paid to identify what extra support should beoffered, and teachers need to decide how to help pupils with dyslexia in mainstream
classrooms.

3 Discussion
3.1 Working condition of elementary school teachers - Busyness and anxiety
Looking at the working situation of teachers in Japan, the most prominent feature istheir busyness. Every time new things were introduced into the educational system,
teachers are anxious whether those new tasks become the burden for teachers.
Inclusive education is one example. Teachers in mainstream classrooms have negative
attitudes towards this new concept, and anxious about their workload and stress andhaving the necessary knowledge and skills” (Forlin et al., 2015). In addition to the
preparation for their teaching, school events, and other tasks, sometimes teachers do
not have the time for teacher training. Although training courses can help themdecrease their workload by providing knowledge or the opportunity to ask advice forother educators, their busyness deprives them of even its opportunity. As Forlin et al.
(2015) claim, MEXT should create in-service training systems for teachers who try to
implement the inclusive pedagogy so that they can surely attend the training. To get
rid of teachers’ busyness and anxiety and to establish new philosophy in the
educational system, the training system itself should be improved.
For English education in elementary schools, teachers’ anxiety is found, too. Due to thelack of specialized knowledge about English education for young learners, teachers
tend to feel that teaching of English lessons is difficult. There are some kinds ofanxieties, such as the one regarding their English ability and the lack of professional
skills to teach (Yonezaki et al. 2016). It might be possible to improve their language
ability through teacher training, but it is necessary to acquire specialized methods foryoung learners. Yonezaki et al. also explain that teachers feel the importance ofConditions of teacher training for elementary school teachers regarding inclusive education andEnglish lessons in Japan with particular reference to support for pupils with dyslexia

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specialized educators outside schools. As the team teaching with other educators has
been pointed out as one of the ideal methods to teach English at elementary school,international students or ALT in the community around their schools can be helpful forthem. As Machida town created the curriculum with Tamagawa University (Sato 2017),
classroom teachers should ask other people even outside the school for help. To get ridof their anxiety, communication and relationship between them should be improved.
What is needed for English education in elementary school in Japan is to provide
information about how to ask for help and support to remove the anxiety in training
courses.
If a teacher has to include pupils with dyslexia into the mainstream classroom, theindividual support for those pupils can be a burden for teachers. As it is better for
pupils with dyslexia to take examinations in a quieter environment, and they needadditional support such as the use of spellchecker, many teachers need to make asmuch effort as possible. To add to the anxious situation that teachers do not know
where to consult for English lessons (Yonezaki et al., 2016), they cannot afford to give
sufficient support for pupils with SEND in the English lessons. However, under theirbusyness, their too much effort can be the barrier to build the support system (Toyama
et al. 2017). For inclusive education, the more enthusiastically teachers try to give
support, the more complicated its establishment can be.
3.2 Insufficient training opportunity for teachers
To catch up with the new concept of education and curriculum and reflect theknowledge and skills in teaching, it is necessary to increase the opportunities forteacher training. However, in today’s Japanese educational systems, the number ofcourses is limited, and teachers do not access to the adequate knowledge and skills
when they demand it. Although initial 200-hour legal training is offered both insideand outside their schools during their first year, next legally mandatory training isoffered as long as 5 years later (MEXT 2012). It seems that there are neither
requirements for the number of hours nor the contents in this training for teacherswith 5-years of experience. There is another type of training to renew the teachingcertificate, but this happens only every 10 years. MEXT require them to take only
30-hour university courses during their regular holiday. Of course, there are
non-mandatory training which is carried out by committees inside each school, boardsof education, and government, but teachers often cannot attend these training courses
due to their busy schedules. Under the insufficient opportunities for teacher training,
it is doubtful that all teachers can catch up with frequently changing or newly
introduced concept of education curriculums.

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Focusing on the aspect of inclusive education, insufficient training prevents teachers
from getting support for implementing inclusive pedagogy. The definition of inclusive
education in Japan is ambiguous (Arimatsu 2013), and understandings of each teacher
towards this concept vary among them. When pupils with SEND are in mainstream
classes, teachers do not have official guidelines to follow in order to include them.
Although MEXT encourages schools to establish “reasonable accommodation” for eachpupil with SEND, it is not easy to provide a system which fits every difficulty of them.
Therefore, teachers try to consider the support for each difficulty, and this situationneeds more careful attention for each case. Without constant training, which gives
support for teachers for all the cases, they are facing trouble to establish an inclusive
environment in their classrooms.
Lack of opportunities for teacher training also confuses teachers who teach English to
pupils, as the primary purpose of English education in elementary schools remains
ambiguous. Although most schools teach English as a foreign language, its lessons aim
to build the aptitude of communication and to understand the diversity of culture
through foreign language (Sato 2017). As English lessons in elementary schools are
relatively new, and another change of curriculum will happen in 2020, teachers aredemanded to be more familiar with both the aim of English lessons and its pedagogy
immediately. Without any instruction about how to teach English for “cultural
understanding”, teachers can be confused.
Even though they cannot afford to catch up with inclusive philosophy and thepedagogy of English education, teachers surely have to include pupils with dyslexia
into the English lessons in elementary schools and give sufficient support under the
inclusive philosophy. Especially, dyslexic pupils can improve their reading and writing
with sufficient support from the early stage of learning (Murakami 2012), whereas
there is possibility that teachers are not equipped with the sufficient knowledge about
dyslexia when they are needed, and fail to identify their difficulty and give adequate
support for pupils. Lack of frequent opportunity to access the information about thedifficulty and the pedagogy of English lessons for young learners can prevent pupils
from learning effectively in mainstream classrooms and hinder the establishment of
inclusive education.
3.3 Contents of teacher training
Both inclusive education and English lessons in elementary schools have been
discussed. It is a chance for teachers to acquire specialized knowledge about those newmatters. However, the amount is not sufficient. For example, teachers are not always

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required to take the classes for inclusive education or English education in the training
courses for the teacher certification renewal, which are offered by universities. Thosecourses are electives (MEXT, before 2009). It can be expected that many teachers do
not go through the certificate renewal without getting knowledge or understandings
about inclusive education or English lessons in elementary school. Of course, someuniversities and governmental institutions such as “National Institute for School
teachers and Staff Development” (NITS) try to make teachers familiar with thespecialised knowledge through training courses, and teachers can also apply for thosecourses individually. However, they do not have time for their training outside theschools, it is difficult for teachers to reach those courses without constraint in the busy
life at schools.
On the other hand, in-school training is sometimes held with the style of workshops inorder to solve each problem which teachers face in their daily teaching. This in-school
training among fellow teachers can be useful to establish the support systems for bothteachers and pupils. In fact, Sawada emphasizes the importance to share theinformation through training or workshops at school and collaborate with educationaland medical specialists inside and outside the schools to establish the support systemfor pupils (Sawada 2014). For English lessons in elementary school, teachers also needtraining which can be accessed easily. As many teachers are anxious about the
introduction of English lessons in elementary schools, the “network” should be built
both within the school and in the community through in-school training where advice
is available from specialists (Yonezaki et al. 2016). Compared to courses fromuniversities or governmental institutions, in-school training and workshops are easily
reached and beneficial to establish the network for asking for help from teachers.
From the aspect of inclusive education, it can be said that training courses for teachers
should be the place to know where and for whom to ask for advice. Under the principle
which MEXT shows for the implementation of inclusive practice, “reasonableaccommodation” which is the support or extra help for each pupil with SEND by theentire school, must be prepared to include all pupils into a mainstream classroom.
However, most teachers have few ideas about the support method or pedagogy toinclude pupil with SEND. As the importance of reasonable accommodation by thewhole school is pointed out (Fujimoto 2014), each teacher should be ready to provide
reasonable accommodation. Hence, all teachers have to establish the relationships
with other educators and specialists within the school or community to ask for support,
and in-school training or workshops with other educators can be useful to meet thedemand of those teachers for the establishment of inclusive education.

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At the same time, specialized knowledge, which is not available in in-school training, issometimes needed such as the information about each learning difficulty. Specialized
courses from universities or some agencies, such as “National Institute for School
Teachers and Staff Development” (NITS), can help teachers acquire their knowledge.
However, there is a limit as to how much information can be covered about thedifficulties. Even with the same difficulty, the condition of pupils is different in eachcase. Some dyslexic students need longer exam time than other students. All of themrequire individual support, but there are gaps among not only individuals but also
environmental conditions around them. As the ideal way or specific method of teaching
can differ among pupils and schools, specialised training courses cannot provide
teachers with all the knowledge which fits for all cases. Rather than being familiar
with all the difficulties perfectly, knowing the place to go or people to ask for advice ismore practical for teachers in mainstream classrooms in order to implement theinclusive practice. Teachers need to “learn to make referrals to other agencies” (Belland McLean 2016).
For classroom teachers in elementary school, practical in-school training also should be
the chance to build a relationship in the community. As English lessons wereintroduced in 2011 as “an activity of foreign language”, specific lesson plans have notbeen only developed since its introduction. The content of the official textbook is poor,and many teaching plans are published. It seems that they face the problem about
what to do in the English lessons and which plan to choose. Of course, initial training
or other courses which MEXT offers can be useful, but at the same time, it is alsoessential to adjust the lesson plans to each school by having training time with all theteachers and establish excellent communication with specialists from board ofeducation or universities in their community (Azuma 2017). Especially, classroom
teachers are expected to play roles as “commander” in each school and work with othereducators in the community, such as ALT or international students living in the samecommunity (Matsuka 2017). The classroom teacher may have to make lesson plans as
a “commander”, but they do not always have to be familiar with specialized
information about English education. Again, in-school training and workshops shouldbe the opportunity to establish communication to ask for advice.
Of course, there is specialized knowledge or skills which can be taught in some training
courses to include pupils with SEND into English lessons in the mainstream
classrooms. Phonics can be useful, and the multisensory method for teaching English
is effective, which make lessons more supportive not only for dyslexic pupils but also
for other students. There may be difference of learning environment among schools,

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but teachers can adopt such methods called “universal design for learning” by getting
knowledge from training courses and should construct the system where they can ask
for advice and support in the neighbourhood community in order not to hinder the
implementation of inclusive education.

4 Conclusion
Teachers in Japanese elementary schools are generally busy. The introduction of newteaching methods or philosophy such as inclusive education and English lessons foryoung learners under this busyness produces anxiety and increases the burden forteachers, which can influence the learning of pupils. It is true that teacher training canbe useful to get rid of their workload and anxiety. Some courses such as the ones fromuniversities or governmental institution provide specific information, and others which
focus on practical teaching methods or individual case of each teacher are held inside
the schools. However, its system does not always function well now for teachers.
Teachers’ busyness often prevents them from taking time for the training courses andthey are insufficient. Therefore, in order that all teachers can attend them and catch
up with the new information, in-service training courses should be adopted more
frequently. It is time to reform the system and make it more effective for teachers.
The system of training also needs to be improved to offer the opportunity to ask foradvice or support for specialists in their community. Being sufficiently ready to solve
all the problems at school with the knowledge or skills from training courses isessential for teachers, but it is impossible to get all the knowledge or skills whichteachers demand from the limited amount of training courses. Notably, under the
inclusive education, teachers themselves are not needed to be specialists of eachlearning difficulty. They should be familiar with the opportunity to ask support fromothers to include pupils with difficulties in mainstream classrooms. For the English
education at elementary school, also teachers should know how to manage the teamteaching with other educators, such as ALT and specialists of language education,rather than knowing how to teach English by themselves. Information about where to
go and whom to ask for support is more effective than possessing specialized
knowledge. The teacher must be the professional of classroom management by using
the support from other educators through training.
In this article, the necessity of improvement for the training systems regarding
inclusive education is explained from the angle of English education in elementary
schools and the support for pupils with dyslexia. However, little research can be seen

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about the influence under the introduction of English education in Japaneseelementary school in 2020, where reading and writing would be taught. In order that
pupils with dyslexia can learn English effectively in mainstream classrooms, further
research and development is necessary. At the same time, continuous improvement oftraining systems is required for other difficulties and other subjects in mainstream
classrooms in order to get rid of the workload and anxiety of teachers and to establish
inclusive classroom environment. Gradual improvement and continuous effort ofteachers through training can be expected.

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