The Japan Foundation Los Angeles Language Center
Number Five, December 1993

Introducing Satellite Programs
SERC
Japanese On The Bird
Tim Cook, SERC Japanese I Instructor
Nebraska ETV, Lincoln, NebraskaWhatever connotation birds may have to theJapanese, in American techno-slang, birds
refer to those flying marvels of space-age
technology, satellites. When satellite teachers hear
the message we re on the bird," we know there's nomore time for preparation. For the next fifty minutes,
we're exposed on the nation's airwaves with nothing
to hide behind except our props. After my opening
credits, I announce the schools for the day and for the
rest of the period, I get to talk to students by telephone hook-up. If they send me pictures, I show them.
If they send me clothes, I wear them. Whatever istheirs I make a part of the lesson.
Despite the obvious disadvantage of not being able tosee my students, TV as a teaching medium can bevery powerful. Typical foreign language teachers
often set up imaginary role-play situations which, inthe classroom, can get awkward if only because they
aren't real. It isn't real on TV either, but TV, with its
ability to manipulate picture and sound, makes it
seem a whole lot more believable. That, along withan encouraging director, let me express before aninteractive audience latent theatrical tendencies I
never knew I had. The whole experience is an
exhilarating rush which still makes my palms sweat
and my breath stop.
Satellites aren't particularly new-they've been aroundfor over thirty years already-but their use in live
instruction, commonly referred to as distancelearning, is still new enough that those of us doing it
are basically creating our own model as we go along.
Add to the TV a telephone hook-up with students andit becomes interactive-the TV talks to the viewer andthe viewer talks back. The classic couch potato
becomes a participant in the outcome of the program.
The problem is that there are many students to talk,but there's only one of me to talk to. Until thetechnology figures out how to clone TV teachers,
there will be room for more of us to teach via
distance learning.
Yoshiko Hirano, my Japanese II colleague, and I
teach Japanese for the Satellite Educational
Resources Consortium, better known by theiracronym SERC (pronounced ser-see). A partnership
between state departments of education and publicbroad-casters, SERC allows member states to offer
their courses to other states, as well as receive thecourses that other states produce. The receiving highschools are typically small rural schools that could
not possibly offer such courses were it not forsatellite technology. Of SERC's thirteen courses, only
Japanese is produced in Nebraska, jointly by the
Nebraska ETV Network and the Nebraska
Department of Education.
This year SERC Japanese I and II have a combined
enrollment of just over 2,000 students inapproximately 400 high schools in 26 states. The
numbers and their many locations make for all kindsof interesting references to American geography in
the Japanese lesson, but for the individual student, itmeans that he or she is missing the opportunity to talkto the instructor on a basis frequent enough to build
language fluency. It is a paradox in distance learningthat is particularly problematic in foreign language
instruction. As any foreign language teacher will say,one can't learn to speak unless one speaks, and one
isn't really speaking unless there's someone speakingback.
To resolve this in as meaningful a way as possible,
Nebraska made the decision to create twocomponents to their Japanese course, the TV class
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being one. The other is a telephone-only component
that gives each SERC Japanese student theopportunity to use the Japanese they learn inconversation with real people twice a week. Thosereal people are 35 Japanese people that the program
was able to recruit in Nebraska and, with the help of
New Jersey Public Broadcasting, in New Jersey as
well. On Tuesdays and Thursdays for Japanese I, andWednesdays and Fridays for Japanese II, students ingroupings of ten spend 20 minutes of class timespeaking to their assigned Japanese teaching assistant.
The conversations that Hirano Sensei and I carry on
by TV and telephone with perhaps twenty students
are carried on again by telephone alone with all 2,000
students.
The logistics of creating such a component seemed atfist mind-boggling. How are we going to find thesepeople? How were they all going to get on thetelephone at once and talk to their ten students?
Where would they call from? How would they knowwhat to talk about? When we began the pilot
semester m January of 1989, we had not yet entirely
answered all those questions, but with the course
delivery on our shoulders, we learned awfully fast.
The TV and telephone components worked out what
was to become a rather elegant symbiosis between
instruction on TV days and practice off TV.
Most distance learning programs have a classroom
facilitator, usually another teacher, with the students.
The SERC Japanese program asks facilitators not
only to be present with students, but to actually learn
Japanese along with them. Besides allowing thefacilitator to better verbalize whatever questions or
problems students may have, the mere act of ateacher taking the student's role is an incredible
motivator for students. Another important facilitatorrole is facilitating activities that students do on theirown. The twice-weekly telephone interaction is only
twenty minutes, which leaves thirty minutes withneither TV nor telephone. In the print materials, wehave suggested several activities that students can doeither in groups or independently. While thefacilitator is usually no better able than the students
themselves to judge performance in these activities, itis the facilitator that makes sure students participate
in them. By the end of the year, if the facilitator
keeps up with students, this person is able to sharewith the class in their accomplishment. The dynamicthat goes on, which I only hear about from schools, islike nothing else in the school day.
In the students' mind, they have three scenes, theterebino sensei, the TV teacher, the denwa-no sensei,
their telephone assistant, and the kyooshitsu-no sensei,
their classroom facilitator. Take away any one of us
and there's no class. Large numbers of students
learning Japanese by satellite creates quite a bit ofattention in educational circles, attention that tends tofocus on the TV teacher. I alone will get credited
when much of the credit is due the telephone
assistants and the facilitators. When we hear thestories of students who have kept up their Japanesestudy or gone on to live in Japan, together we takepride that we have impacted countless lives in waysthat none of us ever could before.

STEP
Japanese Language Education ThroughSatellite Program
Atsumi TsukimoriIn September of 1986, Educational Service
District 101 launched a fifty minute Japanese
language program via satellite It was the nation's
first interactive Japanese TV program and based in
Spokane, the second largest city in Washington.
The ESD 101 Superintendent, Dr. Brian Talbott,believed that Japanese would be the future foreign
language for American students to be exposed to. The
goal was to stimulate knowledge and diversity andcloser economic sand social ties between ourcountries. The board members agreed to theinspirational idea. Eastern Washington-based ESD
101 had thirteen school districts sat that time become
interested in Dr. Talbott's idea, enabling the program
to begin. The objective of this program was toprovide students in rural areas with as many varied
quality and educational opportunities as thosestudents in urbane areas.

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In the beginning, the primary focus was on the ruralschools in Washington. Two years later it was moved
to Spokane from its initial location sat Eastern
Washington University at Cheney. Later, thereceiving area was expanded to Alaska, Idaho,Montana and Oregon for a five consortium
partnership, known as the Pacific Northwest Star
Schools Partnership.
In 1990-92, the partnership was awarded $9.87
million in grants under the federal S.T.A.R. Schools
project. Four-hundred new school sights in the fivepartnership states received satellite equipment. In
October 1992, the partnership received another $2.15
million in STAR schools funding in a separate
nationwide grant competition for 1992-93. Theseawards enhanced the distance learning program byallowing for expansion in the areas of up-dated
equipment, personnel, curriculum development, andthe purchase of satellite time. We were then able to
add Arizona, Kansas and Colorado to the original
five consortium states.
STEP was originally started with English, Math,Spanish, and Japanese, but it has been expanded toinclude two years of Russian, two years of Spanish,
two years of Japanese, as well as five other classes
under the STAR schools grant.
STEP SCHOOL ENROLLMENT - JAPANESE

A typical day for an instructor begins sat 8:00 a.m.
He or she will usually prepare a lesson plan on thecomputer for the next week, as the lesson plans must
be ready one week in advance. The lesson plan isthen sent to the producer who changes it into
RUNDOWN form to be shared with the director andother TV staff. The instructor must also preview all
visual materials to get a quality check sand also
assure that the written rights have been obtained (satleast four days in advance). Then he or she must
proofread all the fonts which will appear on thescreen a day ahead of class. Following this the
instructor must check to make sure the visual aids,
such as flsashcards, pens, objects are in order. He or
she must also prepare overhead materials, which areusually sentences or words or games that will be done
during class. Then comes the time to teach the fifty
minute class.
After the live class comes the office hour. The
instructor must then answer phone calls from students
and coordinators. Between phone calls he or she must
organize the Japanese 1 staff to perform such tasks as
exam correction, phone tutoring, etc. to further aid
the students to learn Japanese.
Students are required to do homework daily and tocall in for oral practice weekly. A toll-free number isprovided 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., which the student
may also use for the oral practice or with any extra
help he or she requires. The students may either talkto the instructor during his or her office hours, orwith native Japanese. Furthermore, every year many
students visit the studio and participate in the live
program.
Students can also call into the studio for interaction
during the fifty minute live class. The schools arebroken down into four groups and are scheduled tocall once a week. This minimizes monopolization by
a few schools, sand gives everyone a better chance ofgetting through.

This fifty-minute live class is offered mainly to highschool students, but there are a few junior high andelementary school students taking the class on a trial
basis.
The class time for Japanese 1 is PST 10:15 a.m. to
11:05 a.m., and for Japanese 2 11:10a.m. to 12:00
noon, Monday through Thursday. Friday is set aside
for exams and worksheets. This non-broadcast day
also allows the instructors to conduct on-site cluster
meetings/visitations to meet with the students.

A typical day of instruction starts with a four to fiveminute vocabulary and sentence structure test pattern,
next homework review, then comes instruction,
guided practice, monitoring sentence practice, and aconclusion. Every day also includes NHK SatelliteNews in English, two Japanese commercials, andusually another special event. This may be a skit sent
in by students, a video on cooking, culture or karaoke,
or a guest. Recent guests have included such as theConsul General of Japan in Seattle, Masaki Saito, or
the president of Matsushita Avionics, Hideo Onishi.

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The required materials are Learn Japanese New
College Text and Kana Workbook. Interested
students can also earn fifteen college credits sat the
local community college if they successfullycomplete both first and second year Japanese. One
year we had an Alaskan student who carried ashotgun to the class in the community center hut incase she encountered a polar bear on the way! In
some areas English is a second language and thestudents who wanted to enter a four-year college had
no means to fulfill the two years of foreign language
prerequisite those schools required until they
subscribed to our satellite Japanese class. So the
STEP students come from a wide variety ofbackgrounds which make the interaction very uniqueand very rewarding.
STEP STUDENT ENROLLMENT - JAPANESE

Despite the unique situation, our STEP Japanese
students really STEP in the language. Every year
students receive awards and many scholarships toJapan. One example is Billings High School in
Montana. Three out of thirteen students received
scholarships to Japan. These scholarships were theJohn Manjiro Foundation, the US Sensate
Scholarship, and the Essay Contest Grand Prize fromthe Seattle Consulate.
The most crucial part in distance learning is the onsite coordinator. This position does not have to be

filled by certificated staff, but by someone who has apositive attitude towards language and is sable tomotivate the students. We believe that the instructor
will do fifty percent of the work visa satellite, and theon-site coordinator will do the other fifty percent of
the work by giving materials on time, generate
student participation, motivate interaction, monitor
exams, send required homework to the studio in atimely manner, and also report to the instructor any
good news throughout the year to give the class an
extra individualized touch.
During the 1992-93 school year we adopted ascanning system that enables the homework andexams to be scanned sand sent visa modem in minuteor less. Highly trained graders then receive, correct
and record these materials. The graded materials, aswell as new materials are sent back by satellite andare also received in the same amount of time. This
cuts out the mailing time of up to two weeks one way
for some sites, enabling the students to receive
feedback much more quickly and thus effectively.
With the newest technology available, my future task
is to better the satellite class by creating moreindividualized instruction to make distance education
more student-oriented. Another goal is to better serve
some school districts which are adopting an eighty
minute block schedule. Interactive distance classes
require live interaction during the fifty minute class,but with a block schedule the students have fifty
minutes live and thirty minutes taped. And evenworse is the fact that the block schedule has twoclasses one week of one subject and three classes thenext, on a rotating basis. Foreign languages needspecial attention from the student throughout thewhole class. We can only be responsible for the fifty
minutes of live class and not the taped thirty. We areteachers who are three hundred to one thousand miles
away from the student, and cannot be exactly like aregular classroom teacher. We are only effective incertain situations. Satellite teachers look like amiracle worker with a smile. We try our best to
deliver an up4o-dsate model course. Students andcoordinators and instructors are the tripod on which
this technology miracle stands.

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The University of Alabama
Japanese By Satellite at the University of
Alabama
Caroline R. Raymond, Producer/DirectorDistance Education is thriving sat the
University of Alabama, and Japanese by
Satellite is the cornerstone of this program.
Now in its fifth year, Japanese I was the first distanceeducation course produced by the University of
Alabama's Center for Communication and
Educational Technology (CCET). During those five
years, we have continuously refined our Japanese I
and II courses to a level of excellence of which weare very proud. Competing with 170 other programs,
our Japanese language courses won Best Distance
Learning Program K- 12 at the 11th Annual TeleCon
Awards ceremony in San Jose, California, last year.
Our format for Japanese by Satellite is composed ofthree 50-minute live, interactive classes of on-air
instruction a week. The interactive aspect of theclasses is very successful, as our students call in on
the toll4ree audio bridge and converse with the
instructors and with the other schools. We haveschools participating in the program from all over thecountry. It is exciting to hear a student from rural
Mississippi speaking Japanese with a student from
Ipswich, Massachusetts!
On the off-air days (Mondays & Fridays), thestudents are given assignments to complete with their
Teaching Partner's supervision. In our course set-up,
the Teaching Partners are a key component in thestudents' success. They are teachers hired by theirindividual schools to coordinate with the Course
Management Office sat CCET and the on-air
instructors to ensure that the students are watching
the broadcasts, doing off-air assignments, and taking
tests properly. Our Teaching Partners often go theextra mile by organizing educational trips for theirstudents, inviting special guests to speak to the local
class, or facilitating creative games to help thestudents better learn Japanese. The Teaching Partners
are not required to have any knowledge of theJapanese language to be hired, but most learn the language along with the students.
The textbook we use is Eleanor Jorden's Japanese:
The Spoken languages, which is designed for college
use. As a result, our students are prepared to enter
successfully a second-year college level class after

two years of our program. Our instructional team,with the leadership of foreign language pedagogy
expert Dr. Rebecca Oxford, developed its own
supplemental materials. Our Student Manuals, a fourvolume 600-page set, contain exercises based on theon-air instruction, grammar points in cartoon format,
and informative essays on Japanese culture. We havesupplemental writing materials, as well, to teach ourstudents hiragana katakana and lOO kanji.
In addition to Dr. Oxford, we have a remarkable teamof people sat The University of Alabama working
together to make our program a success. Laurie andKoji Ailizumi are our husband and wife on-air
instructors. They are a great combination to teach
American students the Japanese language since Koji
is Japanese and Laurie is an American fluent inJapanese. Originally from Tokyo, Koji offers theauthenticity of a Japanese native speaker, and Laurieoffers the perspective sand role model of a non-native
who has learned this difficult language. In addition to
the Arizumis, Cindy Sakurai, an Osaka native,
teaches writing one day a week on-air, and Miyumi
Okada, a Hiroshima native, regularly helps withconversational role-play on-air Also, we are fortunate
to be sable to use many University of Alabama students from Japan in taped skits that we produce toenrich our language instruction.
A critical component in our language instruction is
the telephone tutoring by Japanese native speakers. In
addition to the on-air instructors, we have two othertutors who devote many hours every week to helping
our students with their required call-in assignments.
Our enrollment over the past years has fluctuatedbetween 220 to 330 students combined in Japanese I
and II. Because we have kept our enrollment numbers
relatively low, we have been sable to give theessential individual attention to our students byphone.
As the producer/director for Japanese by Satellite forthe past three years, I am primarily responsible forthe production quality of the on-air broadcasts. I
work very closely with the instructors to be sure wekeep the appropriate balance between sound, in-depth
instruction and optimum production value. We try to

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
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make the most of the opportunities that the television
medium affords, such as using a light pen to write on
computer generated graphics and chromakeying the
instructors into any scene we select. We believe
strongly in the importance of teaching Japaneseculture along with the language, so we show frequent
videos on various aspects of Japanese culture or
recent news stories about Japan. A production teamtraveled to Japan two years ago to shoot video for
cultural segments, and we use these video clips often
to enhance instruction.
In order for me to maintain the high production
quality that we are committed to, I must have awell4rained, dedicated production crew. We are
fortunate sat The University of Alabama Center for
Public Television, the production facility for CCET,
to have excellent personnel behind the scenes
operating the equipment to make the on-air classes gosmoothly. In addition to my direction in the control
room, we have seven crew people working various
positions for each broadcast. We are also very
fortunate to work in such a well-equipped studio,
using four cameras for all broadcasts. Our students
are always amazed when they come to campus forour annual Sakursa Festival that there is so much
involved in the on-air broadcasts.
I am thrilled about the fact that, with the help oftechnology, we are able to make learning Japanese
fun. A student from Olive Branch High School in
Mississippi says, "It's my most exciting subject. No
other class can compare with it!" With the shortage ofcertified Japanese language teachers in high schools,
it certainly is exciting that students can take thelanguage so successfully through distance education.
The University of Alabama Japanese by Satellite
Program is proud to be a vital part of this process.

Textbooks for
Pre-Collegiate Level (4)Supplementary Materials for the Pre-Collegiate Level Part 1We will take a break from textbook analysis
this time and introduce supplementarymaterials for the pre-collegiate level. The
selection is made based upon the following criteria:
how easy the material is to use, availability in ourlibrary (call number is listed), and availability forpurchasing in the U.S. Although the target group is
the pre-collegiate level, the following materials canalso be used at the college level.

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The Fourth Washington state Japanese Language and Culture CampT

he Japan-America Society held the 1993
Japanese Language and Culture Camp for
American high school students from July 18 to
24 at University Prep Academy in Seattle. In order tocontinue the Camp this year, it was moved from its
previous location in Eatonville and scaled back to aone-week intensive experience for 34 enthusiastic
students from high schools in Washington, Oregon
and California.
The Camp was started in 1990 to improve Japanese
speaking and comprehension skills of high school
students and to encourage them to continue theirstudy of this difficult language. As an overnight
resident camp in Eatonville in past years, the program
immersed teenagers in Japanese language around theclock and introduced them to Japanese culture andcustoms. The goal of this year's camp was to provide
the same immersion experience in an urban day campformat.
Thanks to the generosity of local Japanese families
recruited by the Shunju Club (Japan Business
Association in the State of Washington), most
students attended intensive language and cultureclasses at the Camp during the day and stayed
overnight with Japanese host families. Students
returned "home" each evening and immediately usedphrases and customs learned during the day tointeract with their adopted Japanese families.
Each day the Camp started with rajio taiso (morning
exercises) and chorei (formal announcements). In themorning students took three hours of intensive
Japanese language classes offered sat two levels:
beginning (Level I) and advanced (Level II).
Language classes reviewed basic grammar andvocabulary learned by students in their regularclassrooms during the year and covered a wide rangeof patterns and phrases needed to survive in Japan as
a visitor, such as asking for directions, talking on thetelephone, ordering in a restaurant, changing money,
and meeting new people.

The "no English" rule was enforced as much as
possible and all signs and written materials were in
Japanese. Authentic Japanese lunches were cateredby Uwajimaya in Seattle and students had additional
opportunities to practice their Japanese by purchasing
Japanese snacks and souvenirs with yen at the school
store.
In the afternoon, campers participated in various
cultural classes sponsored by Hyogo Cultural Center,
including Japanese bookbinding, cooking, customs,
koto, judo, calligraphy, tea ceremony and Japanesechorus. After their cultural courses, like in Japan,
students cleaned up their classrooms sand went toafter-school or club activities such as volleyball, badminton, games or karaoke.
The week ended with presentations and performancesby students for parents, host families and teachers.
The chorus class sang traditional songs such as'Akatombo" and "Soranbushi;" student ikebanaarrangements, works of calligraphy and sumie
paintings were displayed on the walls; and students
who studied the tea ceremony during the week had a
special opportunity to wear Japanese yukata

and experience an authentic tea ceremony at
Shoseian tea house sat the Washington Park
Arboretum Japanese Garden, thanks to
Urasenke Foundation.
On Friday night, host families, Society hoard
members and Camp donors visited the Camp to viewpresentations and to participate in an Obon-style
festival in the school gym. Participants donned yukata
and happi and danced to Japanese folk songs. The
evening ended with a concert by Tsunami, a local
taiko drum group.
Many thanks to the sponsors, donors, host families,
volunteers and staff, whose generous contributions
made the 1993 Camp possible.
Note: The JFLC provided support of $1O,OOO for thisprogram.

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
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JALEX-YEAR III Search & Selection
The Japanese Language Exchange Program is pleased
to announce an extensive search for potential schoolsites in the following states:
DelawareIllinois*
Iowa*
KentuckyMichigan*
Missouri*
New Jersey
Ohio
Tennessee
Utah
Washington*

Wisconsin*
Georgia
Indiana*
Kansas*Maryland*
Minnesota
NevadaN. Carolina
S. Carolina
Texas
Virginia*
W. Virginia*States with JALEX schools. Fax: (309) 467-3273
for information.

Recipients of The Japan Foundation Language Center Grant Program
January-March 1994 Workshops sand Conferences
Grant Program
1. Dade County Public Schools "Florida Japanese
Teachers' Conference" $1 ,5OO.OO
2. Iowa Critical Language Program The University of
Iowa"Language Teaching is Communication: A
Workshop for Teachers of Japanese"
February 1994
$1,800 .OO
3. The Washington Assoc. of Teachers of Japanese(WATJ) "WATJ Annual Conference-Motivation"
F$elblrul0sa.1&)1 994

On The Teacher Training Course Held at The Japanese Language Institute in
Urawa, Japan
Diane M. Guibron son, Wisconsin High School TeacherFor eight weeks this past summer, nine
Wisconsin Japanese language teachers,
including myself, participated in the short-termTraining Program for Foreign Teachers of Japanese
held at the Japan Foundation Japanese Language
Institute in Urawa, Japan, compliments of The JapanFoundation. Shortly after our arrival sat Urawa,
however, our group's enthusiasm and excitement
were temporarily dampened when one woman fromour original group of ten had to suddenly return to theUnited States upon receiving the tragic news of adeath in her immediate family. It was unfortunate that
Natalie's first trip to Japan was cut short before it everreally began. Fortunately, thanks to theprofessionalism and kindness of the Urawa Institutestaff, she was able to catch the next immediate flightback to the States and has been invited to participate
in next summer's program.
The prograrn had three main components: language
training, teacher training, and a curriculum project.
Participation in all three was required. Before
discussing the details of the pro-gram, I would like tobriefly describe the Center itself where we studied
and were housed for those eight weeks.
The Institute in Urawa is located in a truly splendid
facility. Just four years old, it is designed to house
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one hundred and fifty participants comfortably inprivate dormitory-style rooms. The rooms are airconditioned and each is furnished with a bed, desk,bookshelf, radio, television and private bath. These
are all welcome luxuries when one is away fromhome as long as eight weeks.
The Institute boasts an extensive library completewith Japanese language texts and curriculum guides
from all around the world, high-tech language
laboratories and spacious classrooms. The Institute isequipped with its own cafeteria, coffee shop,
bookstore, laundry facilities and lounge where
program participants can relax, read the newspaper,
chat, play piano and table tennis or sing along withthe karaoke machine (at least until ten o'clock whensocial time abruptly comes to an official close). The
second floor features a state of the art auditorium
with tiered seating for two hundred and fifty people
which can be mechanically retracted to convert theroom into a spacious hall for receptions, banquets,
performances or demonstrations. Both the welcome
and farewell ceremonies, as well as the host family
reception and Kabuki and 0-Bon demonstrations,
took place there. The entrance to the hall is flanked
on either side by an enormous, breathtaking mural of
the four seasons.
Outside the Institute are tennis and volleyball courts
where participants can expend some of their energy
on weekends or after daily classes since much time isspent sitting. Bicycles are also available for use,allowing participants to explore the neighborhood,meet the Japanese people, take photographs andcollect other cultural realia to take back to theirclassrooms. A Japanese teahouse, which is alsoutilized for Ikebana instruction, is located just behind
the Center's main building and is bordered by abeautiful Japanese garden complete with a pond,
ducks and carp. A walk to the garden for some quiet
meditation was always a welcome part of my daily
routine. The peaceful garden occupies center-view
through the enormous glass windows that encase thereception area lounge near the Institute's main
entrance.
The program participants numbered forty-eight andcame from all over the world. Together they
represented twenty4wo different countries including
thirteen from Asian countries (Hong Kong, Mongolia,
Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore,
Myanmar, India and Pakistan), eighteen from North
America (Canada and the United States), four fromCentral America (Mexico, Bolivia and Brazil), sixfrom Western Europe (England Holland, Denmarkand Germany) and seven from Eastern Europe(Lithuania, Russia and Czechoslovakia). As Korea
has the greatest number of Japanese language
teachers, a separate program for Korean teachers thatcaters to their needs was taking place concurrently
with ours. That group numbered seventy-five.
Our group was a mix of university and adulteducation instructors, secondary-level language
teachers and a few individuals teaching at theelementary level. The fact that we are all teachers ofJapanese was our common thread, however, given
our different cultural backgrounds, levels of language
proficiency, students populations, years of teachingexperience and degrees of teacher training, our needs
and goals were more diverse than similar.
The richness of the group made my eight weeks at theInstitute a most memorable experience in terms ofmaking friends from around the world, but thegroup's diversity also presented a most unusual
challenge in terms of instruction and program design.
Consequently, despite the Institute's tremendous
efforts, one might question the overall success of the
pro-gram.
The first part of the program was the languagetraining component. Trainees were divided into four
ability levels based on the results of their placement
tests. Again, the challenge here was quite great given
the disparity in proficiency levels which ranged fromnovice-low to advanced-superior. Several participants
were basically self4aught with little or no formal
instruction, others were Nisei (second generation
Japanese) who grew up in home where Japanese was
spoken and the majority fell somewhere in-between.
There was also great disparity between certain
individual's oral skills and their reading and writing
skills, further complicating class placements.
As there were nine Wisconsinites in the program, wemanaged to have at least one individual in each of thefour groups and therefore received feedback on each.
While the level-three participant was generally
satisfied with her training classes, the others, myself
included, were disappointed in the mode of
instruction and our limited degree of achievement
attained by the end of the eight weeks of training.
While every trainee was pleased with certain aspectsof his/her training classes, each voiced dissatisfaction
sat the training's overall lack of cohesiveness andabsence of specific goals. Trainees complained that
there was no connection between what they learnedor practiced in Class A and in Class B. Languagetraining classes tended to be separated into isolated"chunks" of learning, each taught by a different
instructor. For example, Kanji (9:30-10:30),
The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
11/17

Grammar (10:30-11:30), and Conversation (11:3012:30), rather than classes in which skills areintegrated and taught within a context, theme orframework.
The trainees' sense of frustration and inability toknow where to focus their energy may possibly be
explained by the differences in teaching styles andphilosophies found in Japan and the United States.
Whereas the trend in foreign language instruction inthis country is the integration of skills and "holistic"language learning, the Japanese seem to still teachskills separately, perhaps overlooking the "bigpicture."In addition, trainees had expected more dynamic
teaching styles, whereas, much of the teaching
methodology employed was viewed as rather
traditional. Again, due perhaps to cultural differences,
American students, especially teenagers, but evenadults, demand a more dynamic, varied mode of
instruction which includes the frequent use of
student-centered, highly motivational activities.
The second component of the summer program wasteacher training. A number of elective classes on avariety of topics were offered: Classroom Activities,
Kanji Education, Grammar Instruction, Culture,
Vocabulary, Course Design, Japanese Education andJapanese Literature to mention a few. In theory, thisallowed participants an opportunity to elect classes
that would best meet their needs and delve into topics
of interest. In reality, however, each participant's
needs are so diverse and specialized, that much of theclass content was neither pertinent nor adaptable tothe participant's own teaching circumstances.
Essentially, these elective classes were made up ofparticipants with varying levels of proficiency anddifferent teacher-training backgrounds. The students
they teach differ in age and in their motivation or
purpose for studying Japanese. Further, the teaching
setting, class frequency and length of each class alsovary. Finally, the resources or technology available
for teaching are also quite different. And yet, these
individuals found themselves in the same classes andInstitute instructors were given the ominous task ofshowing them collectively, how to teach Japanese.
In addition, elective classes were too brief, offering
only a general overview of topics. For example, mostclasses met only once for two hours and a couple,
twice for two hours. The latter, however, like manyof the language-training classes, were scheduled aweek apart, thereby disabling continuity and preventing rapport to be built with the instructor. In

planning future programs, it may be beneficial toreduce the number of elective classes and expand thecontent and duration of each to allow for a morethorough and meaningful exploration of topics.
Imagine addressing the topic of "Course Design" inthe mere four hours allotted by the current schedule.
It may be helpful to remember that sometimes, "lesscan be more."
Needless to say, there is no prescription formula forsuccessful instruction and the "best way to teachJapanese" will certainly vary depending on the goals
and setting of the institution and the needs of its
students. Yet, regarding teacher-training classes, it
seems reasonable to say that grouping trainees byshared goals and similar teaching situations (i.e.
secondary teachers with secondary teachers) has real
benefits over grouping by topics. It also seems thattraining would be much more meaningful if native
Japanese trainers had experience teaching abroad insettings similar to those of their trainees.
The third component of the training program was acurriculum project. Each participant had time allottedto research and design a project of choice which
would benefit his/her own teaching. Participants wereencouraged to work in groups, but had the option ofworking independently, if desired. Instituteinstructors assisted trainees in a mentoring capacityand provided suggestions and any necessary supplies.
This aspect of the program catered most to thediversity of the group and allowed trainees to focus
on specific goals or areas in depth. Yet, since eachparticipant had to divide his/her time also among
language training and teacher training, s/he,
unfortunately, seemed to have little energy left toexpend on a project of major proportions.
In retrospect, I wonder whether the scope of theInstitute's program was overly ambitious. While eightweeks sounds like a long time, there is a limit to howmuch one can focus on simultaneously. Participants
often felt disjointed and exhausted as they jostledthrough their busy, ever-changing schedules. One
seemed caught in a tug of war, constantly pulled
between the opposite roles of language learner andteacher trainee. Sometimes, one felt like preparing fora language-training class, but had to focus instead ona presentation for a teacher-training class. Quite
frankly, the dichotomy was so strong, one never felt
particularly adequate or fulfilled sat either.
Although the schedule was busy and the coursework
rigorous, the program also provided participants witha variety of cultural demonstrations and culturalenrichment activities during their limited free time.
The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
12/17

Participation in most of these planned activities was
optional, yet each drew large crowds and was
enjoyed by all who attended. These activities included demonstrations and instruction in Ikebana, Kabuki,
Tea Ceremony, Calligraphy and Japanese dance. Our
completed flower arrangements and calligraphy
added a touch of beauty to our dormitory rooms
where participants proudly displayed their work. The
local festival held in the Center's parking lot during
0-Bon also gave participants a chance to perform thedances they had been taught. One concern I haveregarding these activities, however, is that only
traditional culture was introduced. As a high school
teacher, I see the need to show my students that Japan
has contemporary culture as well. Perhaps suchactivities could be added to the selection for future
programs.
Fieldtrips were another educational aspect of the
program. Participants had the opportunity to spend
half a day at an elementary school where they were
warmly received like guests of honor by the entire
student body. Each person visited an individualclassroom where s/he enjoyed participating in the
day's lesson and interacting with the students of theclass. Other fieldtrips included visits to Asakusa, theEdo Tokyo Museum and several sights around
Saitama Prefecture including Bonsai gardens and asake factory. We were also very privileged to betaken to see an actual Kabuki performance completewith all its fanfare. The final highlight was a six-day
excursion which included stops at Kyoto, Nara,
Takamatsu, Himeji and travel across the Seto 0-hashi
which links Honshu and Shikoku islands.
For those who had never been to Japan before, as
well as the "old-timers," these excursions and culturalactivities were thoroughly enjoyable, as well as
educational. Participants were eager to hone theirskills and knowledge so they would be able to sharethese activities and information with the students intheir own classrooms upon their return.
In summary, the Japan Foundation Japanese
Language Institute in Urawa is off to an ambitious
start in its mission to train teachers of Japanese tomeet the shortage of qualified teachers worldwide. To
ensure the successful training of American teachersof Japanese at the Institute, I see the need torestructure the current program so that the languagetraining component and teacher-training component

are separate programs. It is also imperative, I believe,to require participants of the teacher-training program
to have a minimum of intenmedisate4evel proficiency
to be accepted into the program. It is unrealistic tobelieve that someone with only novice-proficiency ata language can successfully teach it to others.
In order to design a more meaningful program, I
would group secondary-level teachers and university
instructors with their respective counterparts rather
than mixing classes. Ideally, the curriculum designand delivery of instruction should be done by a jointstaff of Japanese, as well as American instructors,
drawing on the strengths of each. To effectively train
American secondary-level teachers, the trainers needteaching experience in American high schools. Alltraining classes should be taught with a variety ofdynamic teaching styles, activities and approaches
and should be models for teachers to emulate upon
their return to their American classrooms.
Every opportunity should be made to promote the useof Japanese outside the classroom. If the classschedule were changed to eight o'clock until twelvethirty each day, participants would have afternoons
free to get out into the community to pursue theirown projects or simply to interact with Japanese andlearn about the culture firsthand. In the future, if
participants are to attend the Santa Monica Center for
training prior to attending the Institute in Urawa, thenthere must be collaborative planning and articulation
between the two institutions.
In closing, as a representative of the Wisconsin group,
I would like to express our gratitude to the JapanFoundation for the generous financial support andopportunity it provided us to become better teachersof Japanese. Our eight weeks at the Institute in Urawa
passed too quickly, but the memories, friends andenthusiasm for teaching we found there will remain
ours forever. Like the Japan Foundation Japanese
Language Institute, the field of Japanese language
education across the globe is still in its infancy.
Hopefully, my feedback in this article will help tomake the Institute's program more valuable for future
participants. Likewise, I hope that one day in the near
future, I and other fellowship recipients will be able
to make a positive contribution to the field ofJapanese language education as a result of thisexperience.

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
13/17

REPORT
JFLC Workshop for Secondary Teachers of Japanese Session II
Aug. 9 - Aug.20, 1993
Participants
For Session II of the workshop, by July's preparation
phase, we planned for fifteen participants throughcombining the fourteen screened applicants and theone who was unable to participate in Session I due tourgent business. However, sat the final phase, four
declined, sand one was unable to participate becauseof hurricane related damage. This gave us a total of
five who would not be participating. In the end,
though we began the session with ten people, becauseof the beginning of classes, faculty meetings and thelike, sand grievances about the housing
accommodations, there were four who left in the
middle of the session, giving us six people who completed the workshop.

Contents of the Workshop
The goals sand contents of this second workshop
were the same as Session I (announced in The Breeze#4), but we made minor revisions making use of ourexperience at and reflections on Session I. Below, I
will report on the main points of the revision.
1) In Session I, on the final day, we had each individual report on their completed Lesson Plans, but
this time we had reports given after each section(Textbook Analysis, Curriculum Design, Lesson
Planning). Through this, the significance of eachseparate section was recognized, and moreover, wewere sable to establish the goal of making efforts
to present separate reports on each of these
individual subjects.
2) Paying attention to the fact that time was left overon Session I's Curriculum Design sand was notlong enough for Lesson Planning, we adjusted thetime allotments of these two items, sand created aschedule with enough room for Lesson Planning.
As a result, carefully deliberated class plans werereported.
3) Due to the fact that we learned that one of theobjectives of participating in the workshop was thecollection of activities, teaching materials and thelike, we arranged for time for "Activity Exchange"and "Introduction of Supplementary Materials."
By combining this with the workshop's objectiveof creating curricula, the participants were able toexchange information about specific classroom
activities, teaching materials and the like.

Apart from the above, we carried out improvements
regarding distribution items and class contents. Also,
to create a chance for interchange between local Los
Angeles teachers, time was arranged for "Joint
Meetings with Local Teachers."
In order to accomplish even more than the first
Session's workshop's objective, we carried out these
improvements. There were a few minor schedulechanges during the workshop, but on the whole,everything went according to plan.

Completion of the Workshop
With revision of session contents sand other items,
Session II went as we all hoped, but while there weresome participants who gave high praise, there wereothers who didn't grasp the basic objectives. It
appears, therefore, that from now on, sat theparticipant enrollment stage, there will be a need toboth specifically sand clearly present the workshop's
objectives.
Since there were a rather high number of complaints
about the housing accommodations, we would like tocome up with a workshop plan that takes into
consideration the daily environment of theparticipants during the workshop. Also, because ofinconveniences due to the workshop being too close
to the start of a new school semester, it was also
necessary to rethink the timing for Session II.
While there were several areas to be reconsidered, it
seems that the original workshop objective of"Making Specific and Realistic Plans" holds
significance for the secondary teachers kept busy
throughout the semester. I hope to, by making thebest of what we have learned from this year's
workshops, to come up with an even more beneficial
workshops in the future.

Participants Who Completed the Workshop
Ms. Amanda Alexander, Mooresville High School
Mr. Kagenobu Nakamoto, Fort Bend Independent
SchoolMs. Trasey Nomachi Venice High School
Ms. Kyoko Shoji Brentwood School
Ms. Mariko Sugawara Mesa High School
Ms. Jane Uyeda University High School- San
Francisco

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
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NEH Summer Institute for Secondary School Teachers of Japanese 1992-1993
Toshiko Mishima, DirectorT

he NEH Summer Institute for Secondary
School Teachers of Japanese was a two-year
program designed to assist and instruct a
selected group of teachers currently teaching
Japanese at the secondary level in the Western UnitedStates. The Institute participants met during two
consecutive summers for an intensive Japaneseimmersion program which was designed with threegoals in mind:
1)
To train the participating teachers in
proficiency oriented instructional method;
2)
Where necessary, to improve their Japanese
language competency;
3)
To deepen their knowledge of Japanesesociety and culture which is vital in
conducting effective language classes that
impart cultural awareness.
It was anticipated that such a program would beparticularly valuable for those instructors teaching inareas far from the larger cities where their exposure
to Japanese culture and their opportunities tomaintain their Japanese language skills may hesubstantially limited. However, such a program wasthought to he important also for those instructors who
are native speakers of Japanese. The participants
were selected from an applicant pool with priority
given to those most in need of exposure to one ormore of the Institute's proposed objectives. In
addition, geographical considerations were taken into
account, and in the end, participants from the sevenstates of Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada,
Oregon, and Washington were chosen. The participants' commitment to their teaching profession
was an important criterion throughout the selection
procedure.
Summer 1992: The 1992 portion of the Institute took
place on the San Francisco State University campus
in California. Many prominent lecturers and guests
were invited to speak to the participants. Participants
actively took part in the many cultural activities
which included brush painting, calligraphy, flower
arranging, a tea ceremony, Kyogen plays, and 0-bon
dancing. The participants expressed that they foundtheir experience "stimulating" and "energizing". To
quote one participant who wrote in a letter to us:"what I learned was more than just a few individual
lessons and activities, what I learned was a different
way of looking sat teaching. In my classes, mystudents participate much more actively than before
and I use Japanese to a much greater extent."
However, although efforts were made to enhance thelanguage proficiency of the participants (such as bypairing non-native speakers with native speakers intheir accommodations), we found that further
strengthening of language instruction was needed, as
well as more active involvement by the participants
during the classroom lecture series. Plans were madeto improve these areas for the 1993 portion of theInstitute.
Interim Period: During the academic year between
the summers of 1992 and 1993, the participants wereencouraged to read more materials about Japaneseculture and to try to improve their Japanese language
skills in preparation for the 1993 Summer Institute totake place in Japan. An intensive weekend language
workshop was held in Oregon for those who needed
additional help and practice. They also tried out intheir own classrooms what they learned about
proficiency-oriented teaching methods during theprevious summer. They reported on their new classroom techniques which included songs, plays,
painting, calligraphy, poster making, and exciting
communicative activities. We shared these reports
through newsletters to the participants.
Summer 1993: The first day of the 1993 Summer
Institute was a scene of wonderful reunion where all
the attendees came together filled with renewedenergy and excitement. This year, the Institute took
place in Japan, with lectures, demonstrations, anddiscussions held at the Gakushuin University campus
in Tokyo, a beautiful and tranquil setting with
abundant trees and historical buildings. Each day, atheme for the day was established throughlecture/demonstration, followed by group discussion/language practice, which in turn was followedby an excursion in the afternoon to wrap up the day's
theme. These themes were constructed to give theparticipants opportunities to experience the broader
aspects of Japanese culture first-hand, and included
such topics as cultural history, tradition incontemporary life, education, agriculture, andbusiness. They visited several sites around Tokyo, in
addition to trips outside of Tokyo which followed thehistorical chronology of Japan, beginning with Ise,then through Nara, Kyoto, and Mount Hiei, extending
to Kamakura and Hakone, and Hiroshima. They

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
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witnessed contemporary Japan as well by touring
modern sites such as an automobile factory and ahigh school, in addition to enjoying the traditionalarts such as the Kabuki and Noh theaters. The visitswere arranged to provide participants with access toplaces and people usually inaccessible to tourists. We,for example, visited Enryakuji guided by the monks
in charge of various rigorous training activities.
Mount Hiei was shrouded in mist, enveloping us with
an aura of spirituality. Some of the participants
stayed in the secluded monastery to experience theausterity of a monk's life. Whenever possible, theparticipants were given opportunities to plan sandvisit sites of their own choice. They resided with families in home-stay situations which provided themwith exposure to Japanese family life and ways ofthinking, as well as opportunities to exchange ideas
with Japanese people on a more personal level. In
fact, many of the participants became very close with
their host families during their short stay. While inJapan, the participants also gathered authentic
materials for use in their classrooms back in the
United States.
In the end, the NEH Summer Institute for Secondary
School Teachers of Japanese was a tremendous
success, both on a professional and personal level,

thanks to many supporters of the program-teachers,
Buddhist monks, home-stay families, the JapanFoundation, the people sat the Japan Forum, thechairman of the Yorozu Motor company, and manyother friends. The enthusiasm, professional
commitment, and supportiveness of the participatingteachers throughout the two year period was a key
factor in making this Institute such a meaningfulexperience for all who were involved. Participants
expressed that they have had "more opportunities inthis program than many people have in a lifetime,"and have "experienced Japanese culture to thefullest," and that they are "really thrilled that [they]
can introduce [Japanese culture] to the students withconfidence." The participants have stated in theirmost recent reports that they are already applying
their experiences from Japan toward their teaching, as
well as taking leadership roles in many meetings andconferences. Lasting friendships were made andtogether these teachers will make a difference inJapanese teaching by opening new dimensions oflanguage and culture.
In closing, on behalf all the participants, the Institutedirector would like to express her deepest gratitude to
the Japan Foundation for its generous support for thetrans-Pacific flight.

Library ServiceT

he Japan Foundation Language Center Libraryoffers library services in order to provide
access for teachers of Japanese to teachingmaterials sand resources.

Library Membership
Teachers who are affiliated with one or more of thefollowing associations are eligible for membership:
Association of Teachers of Japanese (ATJ)
National Council of Secondary Teachers of Japanese(NCSTJ)
Teachers of Japanese in Southern California (TJSC)Applicants for library membership are required toprovide the following:
1.
Individual application form.
2.
A copy of identification, such as a driver's
license.
3.
We may ask for proof of membership in theapplicant's affiliated association if we are not sable toverify such membership from our lists.

Circulation Loan Period and Limits
Circulation books3 weeks, 3 items at a time
Audio-visual materials .... 3 weeks, 1 set sat a time

Items may be renewed one time only.

Circulation by Mail
The registered patrons are also allowed to borrow thelibrary materials by mail. Requests can be made by
telephone or by mail. The borrowing period throughthe mail is three weeks with an additional one weekturnaround period.

Library Materials List
A list of our library holdings, including audio-visualmaterial, textbooks, teaching materials, magazinesand others, is available to all the members.

Library Hours and Holidays
Monday through Friday 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
The library is closed on the following days fromJanuary-July 31st to observe these holidays:
New Year's Holiday
January 3, 1994
Martin Luther King Day January 17, 1994
President's Day February 21, 1994
Memorial Day May 30, 1994
Independence Day
July 4, 1994

The Breeze. Number Five. December 1993
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Breezy Message

Ibelieve that this year's annual meeting of
ACTFL was, for all those involved with Japanese
language education, the best meeting so far.
There were 20 Japanese language related sessions all
together. Prof. Ohtsubo of Tohoku University andProf. Murakami from Nagoya University also
attended the session on the Japanese Language
Proficiency Test. This year, Prof. Eleanor H. Jorden
received an award which was, for all of us associatedwith Japanese language teaching, a truly wonderfuloccasion. NFLC's Director Emeritus Dr. Richard D.
Lambert and Ms. Helena Curtain of Milwaukee
Public Schools in Wisconsin, among others, also
received awards. Dr. Lambert and Ms. Curtain havebeen great supporters of Japanese language education.
JFLC had the great honor of presenting Prof. Jordenwith a Special Recognition gift.
JFLC held its Annual Luncheon during this ACTFL
meeting, and 80 Japanese language education related
people attended. We did not expect so many people,
and therefore were not able to accommodate all who
wished to join. Since we will try to avoid this sort ofinconvenience from occurring again, please give us
your understanding.
At our luncheon this year, we held a raffle which
included a pair of executive round trip tickets toJapan courtesy of Japan Airlines, and many books
from The Japan Forum and The Japan Book Center.
Our warmest thanks!
Staff of The Japan Foundation Language Center. Our
warmest thanks! Prior to the ACTFL annual meeting,
Prof. Ohtsubo, Prof. Murakami and myself visited
Middlebury College, Princeton University and ETS,
sand held a discussion regarding the Japanese
Language Proficiency Test. We also exchanged ideas
with Prof. Eleanor H. Jorden sat the AC]'TL site. We
received a lot of information, but the biggest gain wasthat it was decided through Prof. Seiichi Makino's
proposition, aiming at the 1994 ACJFL annual
meeting, to conduct comparison and research of theJapanese Language Proficiency Test and the
ACTLL£ Proficiency Guidelines.

U.S. We also received some comments that theReports of The Recipients of JFLC Grant Programsof the Special Supplement had not been edited. We
will try to prevent this from happening again in futureissues.
The Breeze #5 is a special issue on satellite programs.
We have introduced 3 programs here, but we would
also like to introduce you to some other programs in
the future. We're waiting to receive yourcontributions! Also in this issue, we had Diane
Gulbronson contribute an article about Teacher
Training at the Japanese Language Institute in Urawa,
Japan. We had two reasons for publishing this article:
one, we wanted to share the Japanese Language
Institute Teacher Training Program in Urawa as seen
through the eyes of a U.S. participant with our otherreaders, and two, we thought that this would be an
important piece of information for the National InService Training Program which we are now
planning. We are anticipating that this article aboutteacher training will be a key point of discussion .We
are eagerly awaiting your contributions. For future
topics, we have the following in mind: articulation,
Japanese language education of U.S. born Japanese,teacher training, certification/qualification. We would
be pleased to hear your comments as to what sort ofteaching materials you feel necessary, and any othercomments as well.
Best wishes for 1994! (YK)• Since October of this year, I joined the Language
Center in the capacity of new Chief Language
Specialist. Prior to coming to America, I worked at
the Japan Foundation Japanese Language Institute in
Urawa, Japan. I look forward to putting myexperience to use, helping to broaden the scope ofJapanese language teaching here in the U.S. (Noriko
Yokoyama)

After The Breeze #4 and the Special Supplement were
issued, we received many comments from our readers.
There were a few claims that some of you whoshould have been in #4's Recipients of the JapanFoundation Language-Related Programs 1993(1994were not. We had promised to list your names in #5,
but due to space constraints, we were unable to do so.
We are sorry for the inconvenience, but please refer
to The Japan Foundation 1993-1994 Awards in the

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