Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010LOOKING BACK
Report on the Tokyo Get-together
LD SIG 東京エリアミーティング報告(January & March 2010)
Greater Tokyo local get-together
coordinators
Kay Irie (J.F. Oberlin University)
入江 恵(桜美林大学)
Masuko Miyahara (International Christian
University)
宮原万寿子(国際基督教大学)
１月と３月に東京エリアミーティングが開かれ、集まったメンバーとゲストは各回のテーマを出発点にディスカッションを行った。１月のテーマは視点の取得(perspective
taking)、３月は２月初めに亡くなったス
ティーブ・デイヴィスの人柄と功績を偲び、今年の部会の活動について話し合った。
隔月の第二土曜もしくは日曜に行われるこの東京エリアミーティングはお知らせのメールが東京近郊会員には送られています。参加してみたい方、興味のある方は、
是非入江もしくは宮原までご連絡ください。自律的な学びについての様々な問題やアイディアをリラックスした雰囲気の中で一緒に話し合いましょう！
January Meeting (January 24th, Sunday)
Attended by: Rob Moreau, Kazu Endo, Kayo
Ozawa, Colin Rundle, John Fanselow,
Shoko Kojima, Allen Lindskoog, Masuko
Miyahara
Topic: Perspective Taking
At the end, there were eight of us, but the
turnout was sporadic as people tended to go

Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010

in and out of the room. Our initial intention was
to talk about what "perspective taking" meant tous, and how it was related to our daily teaching,
but we ended up talking about how wonderful
Chris Casanave's presentation at JALT was on
this topic. What interested us most was the factthat her presentation did not follow the usual
convention of a power point presentation, butinstead consisted of a series of beautiful
picturesque slides of photographs accompanied
by one short sentence or phrase related to the
topic. The novelty of this presentation had theeffect of creating a “space” (or “ma” inJapanese), into which the audience weredrawn. As the slides were clicked one byone, we soon realized that we were sharing thesame space as the presenter. Perspective
taking, we thought, in short, is precisely this:sharing the same space and been able to put
oneself in the other's shoes. This is actuallyeasier said than done! (Miyahara)
March Meeting + Social Dinner (March 13th,
Saturday)
Attended by: Alison Stewart, Andy Barfield,
John Fanselow, Kayo Ozawa, Kazuko
Unosawa, Patrick Kiernan, Shoko Kojima,
Stacey Vye, Kay Irie
Topic: Remembering Steve Davies,
brainstorming for events and presentations
As it was the first formal LD gathering after
Steve Davies’ tragic death, we spent the firsthour sharing memories of him. Together, weread the first episode of the Adventure of
Magenta M., which led to an interesting
discussion on the irony of “required” extensive
reading for autonomy in language programs.
We decided to put together a section in thisissue of Learning Learning to honor his

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Looking backcontribution to the SIG. In the second half ofthe meeting, we went through the list of
upcoming SIG related events and opportunities
for publication. Andy, who is the LD SIG
representative/coordinator for the forthcoming
Nakasendo conference, explained that selfassessment would be the theme this year.
John and Patrick suggested the idea ofwatching short video clips of students doing
self-assessment in action. We also talked
about and generally were in favor of the idea ofcarrying on the theme of self-assessment for
the LD Forum for JALT 2010 as having a focus
for a year or a certain period of time would
encourage us to engage collectively andcollaboratively in important concepts of learner/
teacher development.
After the meeting, all of us enjoyed getting
to know each other more over dinner at a
nearby Nepalese restaurant, where we werejoined by Colin Skeates. We would like tothank Stacey for organizing such a pleasantevening (although she had to leave early).
(Irie)
Tokyo get-together is a bimonthly meeting heldat Teachers College Columbia in Suidobashi.
An email notice with the theme of discussion
will be sent to all members who are in thegreater-Tokyo area. However, anybody
interested in joining the get-together iswelcome.
Please contact Kay Irie (kayirie@mac.com) or
Masuko Miyahara (MasukoM@aol.com) for
more information.

Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010

As a token of our thanks, we are pleased torecommend the M.A. in TESOL program at
Teachers College, Columbia University,
Japan Campus:
The Teachers College, Columbia University
Japan Campus has been successfully offering
graduate courses in Suidobashi, Tokyo for the
past 21 years to provide teachers with thesame quality graduate studies as the New York
campus.
The M.A. in TESOL program provides
opportunities to earn a graduate degree parttime by attending weekend classes. This
program offers degree concentrations fornovice and elementary school teachers, as partof its generalist degree for teachers in other
English teaching contexts. Applications are
accepted throughout the year, allowing
students to start in the fall, spring, or summer
semesters. The cooperative nature of the
program emphasizes systematic analysis ofactual practices, in relationship to key theories
in language teaching and learning, and theopportunity for students to be observed byprofessors in their schools in order to explore
teaching ideas.

For more information on this and otherprograms visit www.tc-japan.edu or contact the
TC Office (Phone 03-3221-9771 or Email<office@tc-japan.edu>)

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Looking back

JALT LD SIG Forum: Snapshots: Active
Mirror of Identity「スナップ・ショット：アイデンティティとそのアクテイブな鏡像」
Masuko Miyahara, International Christian
University
宮原 万寿子 （国際基督教大学）
2009度の学習者ディベロプメント研究会発表テー
マはアイデンティティです。教師からみた学習者のアイデンティティ、または学習者からみた教師のアイデンティティなど、鏡を通してみる像によって、様々な角度からいろいろなことを垣間見ることができます。スナップ・ショットでは、教師、生徒の教室内、教室外のアイデンティティだけではなく、現在、過去、未来のアイデンティティをポスター、写真、ビデオなどの様々な媒介を通して発表しました。教師や生徒のアイデンティティ

1. Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Professional
Identity Construction: Collaborative,
Metacognitive, and Reflective Learning
Processes
英語教員志望者の教職アイデンティティの形
成：協働的・メタ認知的・省察的学びのプロセス
Hideo Kojima, Hirosaki University!"#$%&$'()*In this forum, I introduced my teacher
education program that aims to develop new
EFL teachers’ professional identities andteacher-learner autonomy. Taking theparticipants’ comments into consideration, I
was able to propose the following:!

について、大胆、かつ創造性に満ちたあふれた取り組みがそろいました。フォーラムは、各々のプ
レゼンテーション後、発表者によるパネル・デイ
スカションという形式をとりました。以下、発表者のコメントの一例です。

The 2009 JALT LD SIG Forum took the topic
of identity as its central theme, and focused on
exploring teachers’ representations of theirstudents, and students’ representations of
their teachers. Understanding “snapshots” asa way to capture and present learner andteacher identities, both in and out of theclassroom, in the present, past and future, atotal of seven presenters gathered to discuss
the matter from a variety of perspectives andusing a variety of media. Throughpresentations, activities and discussion, we
explored how perceptions of ourselves andothers shape our learning experiences. The
session was facilitated by Masuko Miyahara,
Alison Stewart and Martha Robertson, andchaired by Steve Brown. Here are somereflections and comments from the presenters:
Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010!

!

New teachers’ professional identities arereconstructed both inter-subjectively andintra-subjectively in the collaborative,
metacognitive, and reflective learning
processes.
In each ELT context, Japanese and nonJapanese teachers need to promote mutual
recognition from which their identity orcommunity membership arises.
EFL teachers need to clarify their teaching
philosophy, to take responsibility for theirinstruction, and to develop theirprofessional identities and autonomy
through positive interdependence inlearning and teaching communities.

2. The Electronic Dictionary: Changing
Perspectives and Identities
電子辞書：教師と学習者の立場と主体性の変革
Jim Ronald, Hiroshima Shudo University
ジム ロナルド 広島修道大学
How does the language classroom change if
each student brings an electronic dictionary toclass? What if they share one between two? Or

40

Looking backone between three? How about if the teacher
does or doesn’t bring a dictionary to class?
What if no one does?
For many teachers, at least from highschool onwards, the electronic dictionary may
be so much part of the furniture that thesequestions do not come to mind. There may
also be a sense of conflicting interests forteachers wondering if they should intervene inlearners’ dictionary use; after all isn’t this amodel of learner independence? Yet, at thesame time, teachers may question the effects
of some learner dictionary use. Learners, too,
may look to their teachers for guidance in how
best to use this familiar yet complex language
learning tool.
One aim of this contribution to the LD
Forum was to challenge us to reflect on how
the distribution of dictionaries may affectidentities, roles, and learning in the language
classroom. Related to this was theconsideration of the teacher’s role in this
distribution. A further fulfilled aim was for me
to learn from your reflections – thank you!
Based on these, next semester I’ll be asking
my speaking class students to teach us about
a different feature or function of theirelectronic dictionary, and to discuss thesequestions.
3. Snapshots of Significant Others in
Language Learning
語学学習に重要なもう一人の学習者
Alison Stewart, Gakushuin University
アリソン スチューワート 学習院大学'Snapshots' was an inspired and inspiring
choice of theme for the LD SIG
Forum, eliciting a very varied group ofsubmissions. Learners' and teachers'
representations of each other and themselves
were explored in a variety of ways, many ofthem designed to be interactive 'events' as
Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010

much as 'posters'.
The theme prompted me to explore
something I have often noticed in my students'
language learning histories. Many learners
describe a person, usually not a teacher, who
has had a significant influence on theirdevelopment as speakers of other languages
and even on their identity more generally. This
resonated with my own experience, so I
started to ask my students and colleagues for
specific examples of significant others relating
to their language learning. Some of thesedescriptions were displayed on my poster, andI encouraged participants to write and add
their own to the collection.
It struck me that surprising little attention
has been paid to the factor of personal
influence in language learning and identity
formation. During the Forum, I wanted to
introduce the work of the literary theorist,
René Girard, who has developed a theory of'mimesis' as an explanatory account of humandesire and motivation. Girard has applied his
theory to the fields of literature, religion, mythand politics, but his work work seems to bepractically unknown in Applied Linguistics.
Since the Forum, I have been reading more of
Girard's work and trying to understand his
ideas and their possible application tolanguage learning. My thinking about this is
still far from coherent, but I'm grateful to theForum for giving me the initial impetus, and to
all the participants who responded so
encouragingly to this idea.
4. Expressions Through Cinquains:
Snapshots of Current and Future Selves
五行連による表現: 自分の現在と未来をみつめて
Kay Irie, J.F. Oberlin University +,$-$.
/0)*
Following the theme of the forum, I gave aposter presentation on Expressions Through41

Looking backCinquains: Snapshots of Current and Future
Selves in which I explored how the second
year university students who returned from ashort-term study overseas program perceived
their current and future selves through writingcinquains, simple pattern poems. As I said at
the forum introduction, poetry writing was partof the unified syllabus I had to follow. However,I discovered pattern poetry could function as atool of reflection and self-expression andprovide opportunities to experience the target
language in personal and meaningful ways.
Participating in the forum also provided mewith an opportunity to assess what I did withmy students and revisit their work.
On that day, at the forum, I was excited toshare my students’ work. Everybody whocame to see my poster gave me not only
encouraging comments but also thoughtful
suggestions which will help me modify the way
I use cinquains in the classroom next time.
Some people said they would also try pattern
poetry with their students. This is the merit of
having a theme-focused poster session.
Although the time given was limited, it brought
people who were interested in the theme andwilling to exchange ideas. My only regret wasthat I didn’t get to talk to other presenters andsee their posters!
5. Snapshots of Teachers’ Shared Learning
Journeys
共に学ぶ教師たちの探求――スナップ・ショット（ビジュアル・イメージ）の共有
Stacey Vye, Saitama University andTeacher College Columbia Tokyo
ステイシー ウ“イー (コロンビア大学ティー
チャーズカレッジ日本校、埼玉大学）

to work commitments. I felt well informed by
the organizers, Masuko, Alison, and Martha, inthe months preceding the event, and had agood grasp of what was expected of me.
During the presentations I had remarkableexchanges with participants. When I described
the Teachers College Autonomy Workshop
Course, the autonomy-inspiring activities Nanci
Graves and I facilitated with our in-service
teachers, and the teachers’ perceptions of theirautonomous journeys, four participants
naturally shared their classroom practices that
resonated with what we were doing. This
meant I had ‘Active Mirror of Identity’ dialogue
exchanges with these participants, whichhappened to be the theme of the forum.
Lastly, I enjoyed Steve Brown being theguest MC, because he asked questions that
helped participants to consolidate what they
got from the posters, and those actions
seemed to draw out reflective responses for us
all to ponder. Then he guided us into the wrapup by highlighting salient themes andcommonalities the presenters shared. My only
regret is that I couldn’t view the otherpresenters’ posters as a participant.
Organizers, thank you very much.
6. Looking in the Mirror: Difficult Teachers
鏡に自分を映してみる：とっつきに教師像
Miguel Sosa, International Christian
Universityミゲルソーサ 国際基督教大学
Our session began with a series of questions
printed on a hand-out. Those questions
provided us with a “mirror” we could look into inorder to reflect on our practices. On the one
hand, the mirror showed that it is very difficult
to evaluate our beliefs and methods, because

It was refreshing to participate in the LDForum after a couple of years of absence due
Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 201042

Looking backit often means evaluating the paradigms thatmake us who we are. On the other hand, themirror showed that a shift of perspective - trying
to see what it is like to be a student in our own
classes - is a humbling experience. The mostimportant memory I have from the session isthat kindness has unexpected benefits for both,students and ourselves.
7. Learner and Teacher Roles: Developing a
Writerly Consciousness
学習者と教師の役割：書き手としての意識を発達させることHugh Nicoll, Miyazaki Municipal University
ヒュー ニコル 宮崎公立大学
During the forum at JALT 2009, I presented"snapshots" of my students as learners, with a

Learning Learning 17 (1) Spring 2010

focus on their images of themselves as aslearners and in their relationship with me asteacher and academic advisor. Now, fivemonths later, I feel as if my classroom data
was/is/will always be inadequate to thechallenge of empowering students in thedevelopment of their academic literacy andwhat I called in my presentation a "writerly
consciousness." My primary goal in the writingclasses for first year students and with myAmerican studies seminar students is tointegrate the use of literary texts into the work
we do together in developing their language
abilities. In the coming year, I am going to workon improving my strategies for gatheringclassroom data, in the forms of (1) reflective
writing by students, and (2) in video-taped selfassessments, interviews, and group
discussions. It seems like a very long (butworthwhile) row to hoe.

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