Short Research Papers

Weaving Critical Thinking Skills into aJapanese University EAP Course

Sean H. Toland
Nanzan University
Fern Sakamoto
Nagoya University of Foreign Studies
Tony Cripps
Nanzan University
This paper examines how critical thinking (CT) skills were integrated into a Japanese
university English for academic purposes (EAP) course. At the end of the course, students(N = 88) completed a questionnaire and provided written feedback related to the usefulnessof the collaborative projects and in-house textbooks at developing CT skills. The results
indicated that most of the participants generally held positive views about the courseand felt that their CT abilities improved. However, the students also identified several
significant obstacles such as busy schedules, procrastination, ‘social loafing’, ‘free riding’,
intragroup conflicts, and information and communication technologies (ICT) concernsthat can hinder a learner’s progress in an EAP course.

English language learners (ELLs) must frequently process online stimuli (e.g.,
Instagram photos, fake news stories) thanks to the ubiquitous and pervasivenature of mobile devices (Kukulska-Hulme & Viberg, 2018). Thus, it is essentialthat ELLs can scrutinize digital content with a discerning eye. Critical thinking
is considered to be a core twenty-first century skill alongside communication,
collaboration, creativity and digital literacy (van Laar et al., 2017). This paper will
highlight how these skills were integrated into an English for Academic Purposes74

Critical Thinking Skills in Japanese University EAP, OCJSI 2, pages 74-83(EAP) first-year course at a private Japanese university. The researchers developed
an in-house textbook series that was based on a flipped and project-based learning
foundation. During the final week of the course, 88 students completed a paperbased questionnaire and provided written feedback. This data, in conjunction
with the researchers’ classroom observations and critical reflections, was used toenhance the course during the second stage of the action research cycle.
Background: The AEA Course
In 2017, the researchers designed and implemented an Academic English A(AEA) program that operated on the ‘quarter system’ in the Department ofBritish and American studies at a private university in central Japan. The goals of
the AEA program are to develop students’ critical thinking (CT), autonomous
learning, communicative and intercultural competencies, and digital literacy(DL) skills. Each AEA textbook focused on two academic areas (e.g.,presentations and report writing), with a variety of student-centered activities
and practical exercises that were designed to foster learners’ research, writing, andpublic speaking skills. QR codes were included in the textbooks to provide easy
access to supplementary online materials (e.g., TED Talks). The AEA students
also completed two collaborative assignments each quarter that exposed them todifferent presentation styles (e.g., PechaKucha) and writing genres (e.g., research
reports). They were also required to use ICTs throughout the year, most notably
on two different digital storytelling (DST) projects.
Flipped Learning and Project-based Learning
Flipped learning (FL) is a pedagogical approach that requires students tocomplete work at home and practice the skills they learned in class. This strategy
can transform a classroom into “a dynamic, interactive learning environment”
where the teacher guides learners as they utilize ideas and “engage creatively inthe subject matter” (Flipped Learning Network, 2014, para. 4). FL can enhance
students’ digital competencies (Kostaris et al., 2017), learner autonomy (Han,2015), creativity (Al-Zahrani, 2015), and critical thinking (Kong, 2014).
Project-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered, teacher-facilitatedpedagogical initiative that incorporates important twenty-first century skills into75

Toland, Sakamoto, & Crippsa classroom (Bell, 2010). Hedge (1993) claimed that a project is “an extended
task which usually integrates language skills work through a number of activities”(p.276). PBL can foster ELLs’ CT capacities (Greenier, 2018), digital and media
literacies (Ribeiro, 2016), academic skills (Poonpon, 2011), and interpersonalabilities (Kettanun, 2015). At the other end of the learning continuum, PBL
can also generate a certain amount of frustration if the workload is unevenly
divided (Gibbes & Carson, 2014). Ferrari and Pychyl (2012) argued that “social
loafing”—the reduced effort in collective environments where individual effort
is not distinguishable — and procrastination are ingrained elements in academic
life that can adversely impact group work projects (p.13). Concerns about thepeer assessment process and free riding, which Forehand and his colleagues(2016) defined as the expectation that everyone will receive the same grade
regardless of the workload distribution, are also noteworthy obstacles.
Critical Thinking
The researchers adopted Brookfield’s (2012) definition of CT which describes
it as a reflective and recursive process that integrates the following elements:(1) identifying assumptions; (2) checking the validity of these assumptions; (3)examining ideas from different perspectives; and (4) taking informed action.
Critics have argued that the focus on high-stakes testing and teacher-centeredlearning environments in the Japanese school system have had a negative influenceon students’ CT abilities and creativity (Park, 2013). This deeply entrenchedstereotype overlooks the fact that many Japanese students enjoy CT tasks and canbenefit when criticality is incorporated into their classes. For example, Kusumoto(2018) claimed that the first-year Japanese ELLs in her study improved their
CT skills and dispositions through a content-based, active learning initiative.
A CT-based curriculum can foster ELLs’ motivation (DeWaelsche, 2015),
communication skills (Lin, 2018), cultural proficiency, and academic abilities(Snider, 2017).

Participants and Data Collection

The sample for this study was drawn from four AEA classes that were taught by
two of the researchers. During the final week of the course, 88 students completed76

Critical Thinking Skills in Japanese University EAP, OCJSI 2, pages 74-83

a 19-question survey during class time (response rate 96.7%). The questionnaire
was divided into the following three sections: (1) demographics, (2) multiple
choice questions, and (3) open-ended questions. The questionnaire was paperbased, anonymous, written in Japanese, and developed from the researchers’classroom observations, teaching experiences, and critical reflections during
the action research cycle (Burns, 2010). The researchers who taught the AEA
course recorded their classroom observations in a notebook. The research teamalso had monthly meetings and numerous informal conversations to gauge theeffectiveness of the AEA materials and troubleshoot any problematic classroom
issues they were experiencing.
The participants were between 18 to 23 years old (M=18.98). First-year
undergraduate students comprised 97.8% (n=86) of the sample. Eighty-six(97.8%) of the participants identified as Japanese in nationality; Korean andChinese were the remainder (2.2%). Most of the participants’ questionnaire
responses were written in Japanese. A native-speaker of Japanese who is fluent inEnglish translated their answers into English.

Results

It is beyond the scope of this paper to provide an extensive analysis of the datathat emerged from this study. Instead, the researchers will briefly highlight two
key areas below:
AEA Course: Critical Thinking
Sixty-one participants (69.3%) agreed, or strongly agreed, that the AEA program
improved their understanding of the course topics (e.g., Sociology) and CT
abilities. Twenty-three (26.1%) somewhat agreed, whereas four students (4.5%)
disagreed that the AEA course had a positive impact on their CT skills (Figure
1).
Several participants appeared to genuinely enjoy discussing complex topics
with their classmates. One student noted: “It was wonderful that I could study
history, politics, and social issues in English. I could deepen my understanding
talking with classmates.” There were also a small number of participants who
voiced their displeasure over the course content. One participant stated: “It77

Toland, Sakamoto, & Cripps

Figure 1. Effectiveness of AEA course at enhancing critical thinking.

would have been better to have more familiar topics for first-graders.”
One notable classroom observation relates to the metamorphosis of thesmall group discussions from quarter one to quarter four. At the beginning of theyear, the discussions were often stilted, and learners were hesitant to voice theiropinions. By the end of the fourth quarter, most students appeared to be quite
comfortable verbalizing their critical thoughts. While the students’ familiarity
with one another played a role in their willingness to communicate, it does not
fully account for the criticality that emerged from the small group discussions.
The researchers’ holistic observations as experienced frontline educators echoed
the participants’ feedback.
Project-based Learning: Benefits and Challenges
The researchers hold that a PBL approach is the ideal way to integrate key twentyfirst century skills into an EAP course. Several participants highlighted theimportance of peer assistance. One student wrote: “I learned from others' ideas.
We divided up the tasks and pooled our resources so we could create a higher quality
presentation.” Table 1 provides a summary of the PBL benefits that were identified
by the participants. The items in the tables below are ranked in order of frequency,with number one being the most frequently mentioned benefit/drawback.
The participants also highlighted significant drawbacks of the PBL approach78

Critical Thinking Skills in Japanese University EAP, OCJSI 2, pages 74-83(Table 2). The adverse impact of busy schedules and procrastination can befound in these comments: “It was hard to meet up and a pain to use LINE tokeep exchanging opinions” and “it sucks if a last-minute person is in your group.”
Several critical comments were also directed at the social loafers, free riders, andTable 1
Summary of Project-Based Learning Benefits
Item
1. Enhanced motivation
2. Improved academic skills
3. Strong bonds developed
4. Divided workload
5. Fostered learner autonomy
6. Sense of accomplishment
7. Improved communication skills
8. Technological assistance
Table 2
Summary of Project-Based Learning Challenges
Item
1. Busy & conflicting schedules
2. Procrastination
3. ‘Social loafing’ & ‘free riding’
4. Discomfort with collaborative writing
5. Technological issues (e.g., different devices)
6. Concerns about the collective evaluation process
7. Intragroup conflicts

79

Toland, Sakamoto, & Cripps“difficult partners” in the AEA course.

Conclusion

The findings from this study indicate that most of the participants generally held
positive views about the AEA course and felt that it helped them to develop
their critical thinking skills. The combined FL and PBL pedagogical approaches
were an effective way to foster Japanese ELLs’ twenty-first century skills. At
the other end of the learning spectrum, the participants identified a number ofthorny issues such as busy schedules, procrastination, social loafing, free riding,intragroup conflicts, and ICT concerns that can hinder a learner’s progress in a
PBL-based course. We hope that this small-scale action research project will help
educators and curriculum developers consider the challenges and rewards thatcan exist in technologically-enhanced PBL environments.

Acknowledgment

This work was generously supported by a research grant from Nanzan University’s
Pache Research Subsidy I-A-2 for the 2019-2020 academic year.

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Author bios

Sean H. Toland is currently an assistant professor at Nanzan University in Japan.
His research interests include technology-enhanced learning, materials development,
and critical theory. He is a PhD candidate at Lancaster University in the UK,
studying e-research and technology-enhanced learning. <seanhtoland@gmail.com>
Fern Sakamoto is a lecturer at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies in Japan,
where she teaches EAP and intercultural competence courses. Her research interests
include EFL material design and intercultural communicative competence. She
is currently working on a PhD investigating global communicative competence inforeign language education in Japan. <fern@nufs.ac.jp>
82Critical Thinking Skills in Japanese University EAP, OCJSI 2, pages 74-83

Dr. Tony Cripps is a professor of English at Nanzan University, Japan. His researchinterests include CBT, ESP, material design, MOOCs, pedagogical innovation,and teacher training. He is currently working on a major research project funded by
MEXT which aims to provide pedagogical support for Japanese teachers of English.
<cripps@nanzan-u.ac.jp>
Received: October 20, 2019
Accepted: September 9, 202083