■研究論文「The Combined Use of CLIL and Anti-Racist Pedagogy inJapanese English Education」
ハドー アンドリュー
Andrew HADDOW
Abstract: The popularity of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in Japanese English
education has received a growing amount of attention over the past decade. Anti-racist pedagogy in
English education in Asia and Japan is also gaining traction. This research paper reviews literatureon these two topics, and documents the efforts of a teacher-as-researcher who has implemented antiracist pedagogy in a CLIL style course at a Japanese university. The methodology of the course is
explained, followed by a qualitative case study of student work and feedback collected from thecourse. Students showed positive results for both content and language-based goals, and expressed
positive course feedback. This research will be used to deepen the writer’s understanding of CLIL
and anti-racist pedagogy, and to improve future courses.
キーワード ：

CLIL，Anti-Racist Pedagogy，English Education,

1. Introduction to the present study
The purpose of this paper is to detail and explore the potentialof combining both Content and Language Integrated Learning(henceforth: CLIL) and anti-racist pedagogy in the context of

section consists of a case study, in which written classwork andcourse-feedback of several students (who provided informed
consent) was collected and analyzed for their fulfillment of thedual content and language-based goals of the course.
Qualitative in nature and focused in scope, it is the hope ofJapanese English education. Adopting an action-research

the author that through the researching and writing processes ofapproach (Burns, 1999), this paper also provides a record andthis paper, they may improve their teaching methodology andcase study of the invaluable efforts of students at a Japanesepedagogy, and that fellow researchers and teachers may feel

university enrolled in a course which uses CLIL and anti-racist

encouraged to explore the opportunities of English classrooms inpedagogy. Finally, the conducting of this research also serves asJapan to push for social good.

an exercise in self-reflexivity on the part of the author/teacher. In
the second section of this paper, an overview of the CLIL
approach to second (or additional) language education will
provide readers with an understanding of the basic tenets of themethodology, and the foothold that CLIL has attained thus far in
the Japanese context. The third section then introduces anti-racist
pedagogy, which resists narratives of color-blindness andmeritocracy in favor of forms of education which acknowledge
the lived experiences of racialized people. This pedagogy canprovide tools to students and pre-service teachers to recognize
racism at both individual and institutional levels through criticalthinking and self-reflexivity (Kishimoto, 2016, 2022, Kubota,
2019a). The author of this research paper is arguing for the
potential of the Japanese English university classroom as a site inwhich CLIL can be used to implement anti-racist pedagogy withthe dual goals of helping students reach their L2 goals and intheir development as critical-thinking, compassionate global
citizens. The fourth section of this paper will next introduce how
the author has begun to implement and experiment with thismethod in a university class for English major students. The fifth

2. Literature Review - CLIL
2.1 Overview and origins
CLIL is one of many approaches to the teaching of additional
languages, characterized by its blending of content instruction
and language instruction (Coyle, Hood, & Marsh, 2010). To
illustrate, this could take the form of so-called core subjects likemathematics or science being taught through a student’s target
language. According to its proponents, CLIL offers an efficient
way to simultaneously develop linguistic and additional scholarly
skills, and also stimulates higher and lower forms of cognition(Ikeda, 2022). Furthermore, effective CLIL instruction may
increase student motivation for the learning of both content andlanguage through the use of authentic language materials (Coyle,
Hood, & Marsh, 2010, Pinner, 2022). Though at first appearing
similar to other immersion-based instructional methods like
English Medium Instruction (EMI), CLIL is unique in its dual
prioritization of both the teaching of content and language(Chang, 2023). CLIL functions as an umbrella term that can be

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further subdivided into Soft and Hard CLIL, depending on thein which written passages were translated to and from Japaneseleaning towards either language focused soft-lessons or content

and then read aloud (Ikeda & Pinner, 2022). Transmission stylefocused hard-lessons (Ikeda & Pinner, 2022).

teacher-focused lessons and grammatical drills were also a

CLIL as a codified approach has its origin in the social andcommon feature of these English classes. In recent years,

linguistic realities of 1990s Europe, but Coyle, Hood and Marshhowever, likely in response to Japan’s low international ranking(2010) point out that learning in one’s second (or third, etc.)

in English communicative abilities, MEXT (2017a, 2017b,

language has taken place for thousands of years, as when Roman2017c, 2018) has pushed for several pedagogical changes. MEXT

families provided their children with Greek-language education

indicates that English lessons should be centered on topics andto broaden their prospects. This echoes the way in which English

content that students find inherently interesting, for example, andskill in the Japanese context is perceived as a socioeconomic

that the lessons themselves should be carried out in English.

edge for both individuals and for Japan collectively (Sakamoto,

Further, there should be opportunities for students to relate2022), and is synonymous with globalization andcontent in English classes to content learned in other coreinternationalization (Kubota, 2019b).

subjects. Though the MEXT documents do not mention CLIL

CLIL lessons are often built on the foundation of Coyle’s

explicitly, we can see an obvious space to implement CLIL style(2007) 4Cs Framework of content, communication, cognition,teaching.

and culture. Content and communication constitute the subject

Regarding CLIL in Japan, Izumi (2022) explains that thematerial and language-based instruction mentioned earlier, but

flexible nature of being able to shift focus between content andaccording to this framework, effective CLIL education occurs

language based on the needs of the students makes it awhen students can democratically construct knowledge throughparticularly attractive method for use in the context of Japanese

thinking and interaction (cognition), and which situates the

English education. The author continues to describe that althoughlanguage learning within the context of culture and intercultural

the English textbooks approved by MEXT contain topical themes

experience and understanding. Through CLIL, students of a newsuch as inter-cultural understanding, environmental issues, andlanguage can have intercultural experiences that may not havesocial problems, the actual methodology of the lessons remains

been possible in their primary language (Coyle, Hood, & Marsh,quite traditional and grammar focused. The teacher, then, must2010). A potential difficulty is that the onus falls on the teacher towork to foreground the content in a CLIL lesson and ensure thatcreate materials, lesson plans and activities that effectively meet

the topics can be properly understood and engaged with. The

the needs of their students, although many ready-made CLIL

growing interest in CLIL in Japan is apparent, as Ikeda andtextbooks are becoming available (Pinner, 2022). Having

Pinner (2022) explain how university coursebooks, academic

established the origins and basics of the CLIL method, this paper

papers, and kakenhi projects (grants-in-aid for scientific research)

will now turn to the proliferation of the method in the context ofrelated to CLIL have been on the rise since the first books inJapanese English education.

Japanese on the methodology were published in 2011. Pinner(2022) warns, however, that many of the textbooks may simply

2.2 CLIL in Japanadvertise themselves as CLIL for marketing purposes, and urges

As opposed to European countries where Hard CLIL is moreteachers either to select their materials carefully, create their own,

common, Soft CLIL has become more widely adopted in Japan,

or even have students select and create their own materials. CLIL

where English levels are comparatively lower (Ikeda & Pinner,

may also provide benefits to student motivation, and may help2022). To briefly contextualize, English education has been

Japanese students and teachers tackle many of the challenges that

present in some form at Japanese schools since the late 19th

Japan has faced with English education. Rather than just being

century (Ikeda & Pinner, 2022). In the post-war period, English

another subject to study to score well on a test, CLIL can provide

education in Japanese junior high schools progressed from ameaningful and authentic reasons for studying the language, as

foreign language elective to a required subject (Kubota, 2019b).

the language skills are not stored for use at a later date, but

Most recently, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture,

instead are used immediately in the classroom (Izumi and Pinner,

Sports and Science (henceforth MEXT) has refreshed the2022).

curriculum making English a core subject with regular

Returning to the framework of the 4Cs, scholars such as

assessment for elementary fifth and sixth-year students (MEXT,

Sakamoto (2022) suggest a fifth C of criticality to avoid several

2017b), and introduced non-assessed English activities for third

pitfalls. Namely, as language can be thought of as a carrier for

and fourth graders (MEXT, 2017a). Previously, the most common

ideology, the language classroom should thus be considered astyle of English education was the grammar translation method,political space. The author argues that without criticality, students

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of English in Japan may be framed as ideologically wrong orrace, culture, and English language teaching. Additionally, thebackward against Western values. Sakamoto continues thatrise of anti-Asian racism during the COVID-19 pandemic instudents should be encouraged to think critically aboutcountries like the USA and Canada, the violent killings of people

contrasting values and culture to form their own conclusions. In

like Tamir Rice and George Floyd and the subsequent Black

additional to issues of cultural hegemony, Sakamoto also notes a

Lives Matter (henceforth: BLM) demonstrations have alsolack of critical discourse surrounding CLIL and English

propelled discussions of racism to the global stage, including

education vis-à-vis neoliberal ideology. The author also points

Asia.

out that seemingly universal terms can be conceptualized

As the populations of countries like Korea and Japan are

differently between languages and cultures, and their use should

generally thought of as homogenous, one may not immediately

not be taken for granted. In relation to the present study, thesee the connection to discourses of race and racism. Kubota

cultural and linguistic conceptualizations of 人種 (jinshu, race)(2023) argues, however, that English language teaching is

between English and Japanese could prove an interesting point ofintertwined with various racial and cultural ideologies that must

future study but is outside the scope of this paper.

be addressed. Namely is the concern of what the author terms
raciolinguistic essentialism. This can be seen across Asia as so-

3. Anti-racist pedagogy
3.1 Overview
Turning next to anti-racist pedagogy, although some of theliterature reviewed for this study focused on the United States ofAmerica (Kishimoto 2016, 2022, Orelus, 2020), this form ofsocial justice focused education can be utilized in conjunction
with English education. To begin broadly, anti-racist pedagogy
seeks to move beyond discourses of simply embracing diversity,
which Kishimoto (2016) explains can depoliticize or overlook
issues of race and racism. Informed by Critical Race Theory(CRT), anti-racist pedagogy identifies race as a social construct,and encourages students to think critically about how racism is
not only to be understood as the acts of prejudiced individuals,
but as a force that is embedded in social institutions and culture.
This form of pedagogy requires teachers to be self-reflexive andcritical of their own power and privilege, and of how theiridentities may impact the balance of power between themselves
and their students. Likewise, anti-racist pedagogy should
encourage students to ponder their own social and racial
identities vis-à-vis their own communities and societies(Kishimoto, 2022). Kishimoto lays out three major steps for
adopting anti-racist pedagogy: 1) to include content about race in
one’s classes regardless of subject, 2) to teach from an anti-racist
stance and 3) to organize and fight for change at the institutional
level.

3.2 Anti-racist English education
In the processes of conducting the literature review for thispaper, several academic papers were found that connected antiracist pedagogy with the teaching of English as an additional
language. Kubota (2023) tells us that academic TESOL journals
and applied linguistics associations have been active in their
publication of papers and holding of seminars regarding issues ofcalled native speakers, usually white, are hired for English
teaching jobs over their so-called non-native counterparts. The
literature review portion of this research yielded several results
regarding the connections between race discourse and English
education in Asia. For a direct account, Takeda (2023) details theeffects this ideology has on a Taiwanese Canadian teacher ofEnglish on Japan’s JET Programme. In South Korea, Seo (2023)
recounts the ways in which both students with multiethnic
backgrounds and non-white English teachers experiencemarginalization. Lowe (2021) offers a frame analysis of how
internalized native-speakerism affected the way English teachers
perceived interactions with their Japanese students, and theirinteractions with a so-called non-native English teacher at their
university. Outside of the realm of education, Mori (2018)
conducted a study using the implicit-association test (IAT) in
which Japanese participants across a wide age range held wereshown to hold generally positive views of white characters andpeople compared to Black characters and people. Although notrelated to English education directly, Mori’s research was helpful
in exploring notions of anti-Blackness in the Japanese context.
Although one may think anti-racist pedagogy is difficult toformulate and implement in an English classroom, Kishimoto’s(2022) three steps detailed earlier are a helpful place to start. Fora direct example, Seo (2023) details how they tried to implement
and encourage anti-racist pedagogy with pre-service English
teachers. Seo taught the students the importance of selfreflexivity, and had the students examine various cultures,
racialized experiences, the effects of racism on individuals, andfinally how to take up anti-racist teaching techniques in their
future careers as English teachers. The abundance of academic
research in this field shows that Anti-racist pedagogy could
provide several opportunities at addressing problematic racial
discourses with English education in Asia, and within Japanesesociety. This paper will now turn to how the author of the present

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research paper has attempted to implement anti-racist pedagogy

version of the course, each 90-minute session was roughly

in a course for English major students at a Japanese university.

divided into three 30-minute blocks. The first block contained a

4. Implementation – International Seminar
4.1 Motivation

article based slides. This was followed by independent study, inwhich the students completed a reading component andIn 2020, the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, andcountless others, sparked protests and demonstrations in the USA
and around the world (Protests across globe, 2020), including inJapan (Takahashi, 2020). The author of this research paper
teaches English at a Japanese university, in which English-major
students also study various international social issues. It thus
came as no surprise when students began approaching the author
for context and comments as BLM demonstrations beganappearing in Japanese mainstream news. Soon after the George
Floyd protests began, in June of 2020, the Japanese Broadcasting
Corporation (henceforth: NHK) aired a cartoon aimed at
explaining the BLM demonstrations to local Japanese viewers,
but was filled with racist, stereotypical depictions of Black
protestors (Osumi, 2020). The cartoon was quickly criticized both
inside and outside Japan, (Kunieda, 2020) and NHK has sinceapologized and removed the video from streaming (Hueston,2020). In the 2020 academic year, based on the events andcontext detailed above and having been previously introduced toanti-racist pedagogy, the author of this paper decided to dedicate
their International Seminar course to introducing students to thehistory of racism towards Black people in the USA, as well as toconnections between these themes with Canadian and Japanesesociety.

worksheet. The lessons were then concluded with a group
discussion regarding the day’s topic and reading. The first side of
the printout contains a table organized by themes for students towrite notes as they work through the lesson, and a section wherestudents are encouraged to write new vocabulary they encounter,be it through the teacher’s lecture or the accompanying audiovisual or printed materials. The second side of the worksheet
contains 3-4 open ended questions for students to express theirthoughts before presenting their answers in a mini presentation.
The questions were left intentionally open ended to account for
the varying English abilities of the participating students. Rather
than evaluating their written fluency or their understanding of thecontent through a quiz, students were encouraged to express theiropinions in L2 as best they could with their classmates.
Usually consisting of 3-4 students, groups are often given
different readings or discussion topics. On alternating sessions, asecond pattern is used in which students leave their groups andform pairs with students with opposing or differing topics andpresent their findings with a mini presentation. Having preparedresponses based on their independent work and group discussion
in the session previous, students then independently share thedetails of their worksheets verbally with a partner before
exchanging comments and questions in a few minutes of free
discussion. On the first side of the worksheet, students also have

4.2 Methodology

a space in which to take notes as they listen to their partner’s

The purpose of the International Seminar course was dual: toencourage a critical awareness of race and racism, and to help
students achieve their English L2 goals. As such, the author was
drawn to the CLIL methodology and since the 2020 academic
year has sought to improve the course through carefulconsideration of student feedback and research. The most recent
iteration of the course, and the basis for this research paper, washeld in the 2023 academic year. The primary language related
learning goals of the course were focused on improving listening
skills, building vocabulary through listening and reading, andmost importantly, on building confidence in expressing one’s
opinion on social issues in English through group and pairdiscussions.
The International Seminar course is held over 15 sessions andis broken into several content units: the history and present realityof racism towards Black people in the USA, deeper theoretical
discussions of race and racism, parallels in Canadian history andsociety, and connections to the Japanese context. In the 202312

lecture on a prescribed topic, consisting of research and news-

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response. After several minutes when the pairs have finished their
discussion, the partners are shuffled, and the discussion begins
again. This shuffle is repeated several times with the goals ofgradually increasing student confidence in their oral
communication skills and in expressing their opinion, as well as
to foster a sense of community in the classroom. This was
influenced by Kishimoto (2016, 2022) and Kubota (2023) who
tell us that anti-racist pedagogy should give students and faculty achance to share their feelings and experiences, and should also
create an environment in which students can help and question
each other through collaborative processes. Despite Japan’s
perceived homogeneity, the author noted a great diversity ofexperiences, opinions, and cultural backgrounds among thestudents during the mini presentations.
The early sessions of the 2023 iteration of the International
Seminar course introduced the students to BLM and issues ofracism in the USA broadly. Following this, students explored thehistorical continuity between the Atlantic slave trade, the Jim

Crow era, the Civil Rights movement, and the present-day BLM

the participants have mixed Black and Japanese heritage who

protests. The first mini presentation during these lessons tasked

were raised in or later relocated to Japan, with parents fromgroup members with comparing the Japanese and English

countries like Bahamas, Nigeria, and the USA. Others included

versions an online article. After discussing the differences withlong-term foreign residents from various countries who chose to

their group members and preparing their responses, students

settle in Japan. Furthermore, the participants of the video often

paired up with students who had been assigned a different article

had strongly differing opinions and experiences on the sameand introduced their findings and opinions. The next mini

questions and topics, which the teacher hoped would encourage

presentation in this content unit tasked students with examining

students to think of Black people not as monolithic, but asnews bias between two ideologically opposed American news

internally diverse as they themselves are.

websites. One half of the class was assigned a news article with a

The final sessions of the class involve responding to anothergenerally pro-BLM stance, and the other half with a news article

documentary film, Being Japanese (Life Where I’m From, 2022a,

with a generally negative-BLM stance. After the initial reading

2022b) by a Canadian filmmaker who has lived extensively inand discussion with their group members was completed,Japan. The driving purpose of the film is for viewers to question

students paired up with students of the opposing article andand investigate what it means to be Japanese, and the great

presented and compared their findings.

diversity that exists within the country’s seemingly homogenous

In the next International Seminar content unit, students were

population. The bulk of the film is made up of interviews with a

introduced to the concepts of implicit bias and systemic racism,variety of Japanese people including, but not limited to, theand the idea of race as a social construct. The midpoint of the

Ryukyuans of Okinawa, the Ainu of Hokkaido, hafu Japanese

course was punctuated by a screening of the documentary film

(the widely used but often contentious term for multiracialth

13 (Duvernay, 2016). Originally broadcast exclusively on

Japanese people), and ethnic-Korean residents of Japan. A

Netflix, the film has since been made available for free on theparticularly memorable moment of the film follows a Black

streaming service’s official YouTube account. For this mini

Japanese man named Joe Oliver, whose parents are Africanpresentation, a corresponding worksheet was once again

American and Japanese. Joe recounts his tortuous childhood

distributed to the students and used to take notes during thebeing bullied by his classmates, and how police ignored andviewing of the documentary. This time, students were not divided

humiliated his mother when they sought help. Joe is later stopped

into opposing sides, but were able to more openly discuss theirand questioned by the police during the filming of thepersonal opinions and thoughts on the film.

documentary, saying “I’ve probably been stopped more than 300

The second half of the International Seminar course thentimes in my life so far,” (Life Where I’m From, 2022b). Students

shifted to an international scope. Two sessions centered ontake notes while viewing the documentary, formulate their

Canada, in which students first compared the experiences ofthoughts and opinions, and share them with their partners during

Black Canadians through the colonial period to the present day,the final mini presentation.

and next explored the history and parallels of discrimination andviolence against Canada’s indigenous peoples. In the minipresentation for these lessons, the students independently
researched one of Canada’s six major indigenous cultural areasand its corresponding people groups. This time, rather thanforming pairs, students formed new groups with one
representative from each cultural area and presented theirresearch to one another.
The remaining sessions of the International Seminar course arethen focused on connecting what the students have learned thus
far with issues of race and diversity in Japan. The first minipresentation during these sessions is a response to a YouTube
video by Jubilee (2022) in which seven Black women and men
share their perspectives and experiences living in Japan. Topics
include finding community, romance, and their experiences being
profiled by Japanese police officers. This video was chosen as it
highlights the diversity of the Black experience in Japan. Some of

5. Case study: Student voices
5.1 Response collection
After the conclusion of the 2023 iteration of the International
Seminar course, including final grading and assessment of thestudents, and after receiving informed consent from student
volunteers, several of the mini presentation worksheets werecollected for analysis. Responses collected were from the second
half of the course, specifically regarding the topics of Black inJapan (Jubilee, 2022) and Being Japanese (Life Where I’m
From, 2022a, 2022b). Participants were also given theopportunity to answer several optional questions regarding theirexperiences in the course. The following does not seek toestablish a quantitative analysis of the students’ language andcontent goals, but serves as both a record of the participants’thoughts and experience, and as a form of qualitative analysis as
the author reflects on the course. The data collected, and the

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process of analysis will be used to plan for future courses in thepresented by common themes, rather than individually, toauthor’s career.

preserve the anonymity of the participants. In response to theBlack in Japan video (Jubilee, 2022), several students brought up

5.2 Observations: Language goals

their own experiences and interactions with Black people in

Several observations were made based on the analysis of theJapan, and in the case of two students, unpacked their own

collected International Seminar worksheets. For these responses,

previously held stereotypes and biases. Students also expressed

students were encouraged to write in English but could choose tosurprise and sadness at the fact that discrimination against Black

write their notes in their L1. Of the total ten students who

people occurs in Japan, noting examples such as racial profilingconsented to be included in this paper, three students wrote theirby police, and the influence of popular media in creating negativenotes entirely in English, while the remaining students used a mix

stereotypes and unconscious biases. Some mentioned the positiveof their L1 and English. The printout focused on the documentary

aspects recounted by the people in the video, such as a relative

film Being Japanese (Life Where I’m From, 2022a, 2022b) wassense of physical safety in Japan, and another found themore likely to be written in the students’ L1, possibly due to thedifferences in opinion and experience between the people in theconstraints of writing notes and watching a long-format film

video interesting. These student responses are consistent with thesimultaneously compared to the shorter video.

content goals of the class, namely those of self-reflexivity and of

Regarding the section dedicated to writing new vocabulary,considering how race and racism operate in their communities.

students on average noted between 4-6 new words per worksheet.

Several students expressed a desire for more education about race

This included a mix of instances where only the English

and racism for children in Japanese schools, which inspired a

vocabulary was written, and others in which the L1 definitions

sense of optimism in the author of this paper.

were also included. One student was an exception to this trend,

The next set of collected mini presentation worksheets are innoting over 25 words and their definitions. It bears repeating that

response to the film Being Japanese (Life Where I’m From,

there was a great range of English ability levels among the2022a, 2022b). As mentioned above, the film contains interviews

students in the course, and among the consenting participants towith a multitude of minority groups living in Japan, and students

this study. However, the previously mentioned student’s

were given the choice to write a response based on whichever

engagement with the new vocabulary section of the printouts wasgroup or groups they found the most interesting. Of theinterpreted as enthusiasm rather than as a struggle to engage withparticipants, the Ryukyu people native to Okinawa were the mostthe English language use in the film. Additionally, anotherpopular choice, followed by the native Ainu of Hokkaido. Bothstudent participating in the study did not often include many new

regions were colonized by mainland Japan, and their indigenous

words in their vocabulary section but showed very high levels of

peoples were forced to abandon their traditions and language, asconfidence in their open-ended written responses.

detailed in several of the documentary’s interviews. This

Finally, although not evidenced through the collected handouts,

popularity suggests that the students are interested in examining

the author wishes to express great satisfaction with the outcomesthe colonial history of Japan and the continuity with the Ryukyu

of the verbal components of the mini presentations. The

and Ainu people presently living in Okinawa and Hokkaido,

atmosphere in the classrooms was lively and a strong sense ofsatisfying another of the content goals of this class. When asked

community was felt among the students. The author noted awhat they found the most surprising from the film, student

diverse range of experiences and opinions when listening to the

responses included Ryukyuan children being humiliated andstudent discussions, and felt the students demonstrated highpunished for speaking their home language, the bullying thatlevels of motivation. Although L1 use was not explicitly

children in the film faced, and the unanimous experiences ofprohibited during the discussion portion of the mini

discrimination across all the people groups in the film. One

presentations, many students, including the participants of thisstudent critically examined their understanding of Okinawa as astudy, showed a strong desire and commitment to holding theirpart of Japan after hearing many interviewees express their

discussions in English, only reverting to L1 for clarification

identity as Okinawans or Ryukyuans over being Japanese.

purposes in aid of communication.

Similar to the Black in Japan responses, students expressed theneed for diversity education for young children in Japan to

5.3 Observations: Content goals

combat feelings of alienation and othering. Overall, theseIn the following section of this paper, the author would like toresponses satisfied the content goals of the course as students

showcase some of the thoughts the participating students

showed an interest in examining how race and racism operates in

expressed during their mini presentations. These will be

Japan, and through self-reflection and critical thinking appear to14

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have deeply understood and engaged with the course content.

called native-speaker country could impact the learning

Finally, the optional International Seminar course feedback

environment.

questions will be introduced. These responses were collected in

Finally, as Kishimoto (2022) mentions, action at theprivate and not shared as mini presentations and as such offer ainstitutional level is an important pillar of implementing effective

perhaps more candid glimpse of the participants’ thoughts andanti-racist pedagogy. This is unfortunately, at the time of writing,opinions. Not all participants chose to answer these questions, butdifficult in the circumstances of the author to achieve on an

those who did expressed a deep interest in issues of racism andofficial level. Over the years, efforts have been made to discuss

appreciated the chances to not only learn through the lectures, butrace, racism, and other forms of discrimination among colleagues

especially to discuss the content with their peers. One student

at an unofficial level. However, fighting for such awareness andexpressed sadness and shock at the historical realities of racism inchange at an institutional level will be a primary goal of thethe various countries discussed in the course, and that they

researcher going forward.

realized discrimination is not a foreign problem, but something
connected to their country and community as well. Regarding the

6. Conclusion

CLIL format of the course, two students wrote that studying the

In this paper, a literature review regarding the history andtopics in English was not overly difficult, two expressed

effectiveness of CLIL abroad and within Japan was conducted.

satisfaction with the challenge level, and two found the English

Additionally, research was also done in the field of anti-racist

to be quite difficult, but equally as rewarding. One student

pedagogy and the needs and potential for the application of such

expressed that the knowledge and skills gained in the class willteaching methods in the context of English education in Japan

directly help them in the future.

other countries in Asia. Finally, as a type of action research

5.4 Areas for future refinement and limitations
It is worth briefly mentioning some aspects of the International(Burns, 1999), the author assumed the role of teacher-asresearcher to both document and improve their university courseon racism through the use of CLIL for English major students.

Seminar course the author aims to improve in the future, based on

After conducting this research and reviewing the relevant

recent feedback and the research conducted during the literatureliterature, the author felt strongly convinced that CLIL teaching

review process of this paper. As mentioned earlier, CLIL can be

and anti-racist pedagogy can work simultaneously to both help

thought of as a spectrum from Soft CLIL language focused

students reach their L2 goals while also inspiring critical thinking

lessons to Hard CLIL content focused lessons (Ikeda, 2022).

and deeper understandings of race and racism.

After conducting this course for several years, and throughCollecting and analyzing the participant responses was a

research and reflection, the author wishes to provide moreparticularly fulfilling part of this project, and the author would

scaffolding and support for future students to reach their L2

like to sincerely thank the students who consented to be a part ofgoals. If there are chances to collect data from future iterations of

this research. Their efforts are greatly appreciated, and they will

the International Seminar course, long term analysis of L2 skill

undoubtedly continue to achieve great things both in their

attainment may also be possible. The focus on the content side ofEnglish language goals and in the confronting and dismantling of

the course in its current form, in which students examine andracism in their communities. The author hopes that readers of this

discuss race and racism around the world and in theirpaper may also be inspired to take up CLIL and anti-racist

communities, is undoubtedly crucial for anti-racist pedagogy, butpedagogy in their own university classes, or in younger tiers ofa more balanced approach to the English language aspect of theeducation, to meet the needs and demands of our increasingly

course will be a goal for the future.

globalized society.

Secondly, as mentioned by various scholars in this study(Kishimoto, 2016, 2022, Kubota, 2019a, Sakamoto, 2022, Seo,2023) self-reflexivity on the part of the anti-racist teacher

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