English in Japan in the Era of Globalization

217 Pages·2011·1.312 MB·English

by  Philip Seargeant (eds.)

English in Japan in the Era of Globalization
Also by Philip Seargeant
THE IDEA OF ENGLISH IN JAPAN:
Ideology and the Evolution of a Global Language
English in Japan in the Era
of Globalization
Edited by
Philip Seargeant
The Open University, UK
Selection and editorial matter © Philip Seargeant 2011
Chapters © their individual authors 2011
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2011 978-0-230-23766-7
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First published 2011 by
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ISBN 978-1-349-31502-4 ISBN 978-0-230-30619-6 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230306196
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
English in Japan in the era of globalization / edited by Philip Seargeant.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. English language—Study and teaching—Japanese speakers.
2. English philology—Study and teaching—Japan. 3. English language—
Japan. 4. English language—Globalization. I. Seargeant, Philip. II. Title.
PE1068.J3E64 2011
428.00952—dc22 2011006610
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11
Contents
List of Figures and Tables vii
Notes on the Contributors viii
Introduction: English in Japan in the Era of Globalization 1
Philip Seargeant
Part I English in the Education System
1 Elite Discourses of Globalization in Japan: the Role
of English 15
Mai Yamagami and James W. Tollefson
2 ‘Not Everyone Can Be a Star’: Students’ and Teachers’
Beliefs about English Teaching in Japan 38
Aya Matsuda
3 Parallel Universes: Globalization and Identity in
English Language Teaching at a Japanese University 60
Alison Stewart and Masuko Miyahara
4 The Native Speaker English Teacher and the
Politics of Globalization in Japan 80
Yvonne Breckenridge and Elizabeth J. Erling
5 Immigration, Diversity and Language Education in
Japan: toward a Glocal Approach to Teaching English 101
Ryuko Kubota
Part II English in Society and Culture
6 English as an International Language and
‘Japanese English’ 125
Yasukata Yano
7 The Position of English for a New Sector of
‘Japanese’ Youths: Mixed-E thnic Girls’ Constructions
of Linguistic and Ethnic Identities 143
Laurel Kamada
8 The Ideal Speaker of Japanese English as Portrayed
in ‘Language Entertainment’ Television 166
Andrew Moody and Yuko Matsumoto
v
vi Contents
9 The Symbolic Meaning of Visual English in
the Social Landscape of Japan 187
Philip Seargeant
Index 205
List of Figures and Tables
Figure
0.1 ‘Yes We Kan’ slogan T- shirt 9
Tables
4.1 Participants in the study 88
9.1 List of participants 194
vii
Notes on the Contributors
Yvonne Breckenridge is an English for Academic Purposes instructor
at the University of Alberta, Canada. She has taught EAP in Japan and
South Korea, and has been involved in teacher education projects in
Canada and Japan. Her research interests focus on identity and dis-
course and how these manifest themselves in interactions between
students, teachers and the curriculum. She is currently working on a
research project involving literacy development and technology.
Elizabeth J. Erling is a Lecturer in English Language Teaching at the
Open University, UK. Her interests are in ELT professional development,
English for academic purposes, world Englishes and language policy.
She is editing with Philip Seargeant a forthcoming collection on English
and international development, and has published papers in journals
such as World Englishes, Language Policy and Innovations in Language
Learning and Teaching.
Laurel Kamada is a Senior Lecturer at Tohoku University, Japan, and
has publications in: bilingualism and multiculturalism in Japan;
gender/ethnic studies; marginalized (hybrid and gendered) identities in
Japan; masculinity; and theoretical and methodological discourse ana-
lytic approaches. She serves on the editorial board of the Japan Journal
of Multilingualism and Multiculturalism and is on the Advisory Council
of the International Gender and Language Association. Her most recent
book is Hybrid identities and adolescent girls: being ‘half’ in Japan (2010).
Ryuko Kubota is a Professor in the Department of Language and
Literacy Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of British
Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Her areas of specialization include second/
foreign language teacher education and critical applied linguistics. She is
an editor of Race, culture, and identities in second l anguage: exploring criti-
cally engaged practice (2009) and has published a number of articles and
book chapters.
Aya Matsuda is Assistant Professor of English at Arizona State University,
USA. Her research interests include the use of English as an international
language, and the linguistic and pedagogical implications of the global
spread of English. Her work has appeared in various books and journals
including English Today, TESOL Quarterly and World Englishes.
viii
Notes on the Contributors ix
Yuko Matsumoto is a Lecturer of Business Communication at the
University of Macau, China. She has published in Human Communication
Research and Asian Englishes. In addition to research on English in Japanese
popular culture, she is also conducting a study of the heritage Japanese
expatriate community in Macau, exploring issues of acculturation,
language and cultural maintenance and loss within the community.
Masuko Miyahara teaches in the College of Liberal Arts at the Interna-
tional Christian University (ICU) in Tokyo, Japan. Her interests are in
the area of reading in second language learning, autonomy and language
education, and identity and its c o-r elation with language development.
She has published a number of articles on these s ubjects.
Andrew Moody is an Associate Professor of English at the University of
Macau, China, where he teaches sociolinguistics. His research interests
include varieties of world Englishes and the role of English in popular
culture, with articles in American Speech, World Englishes, Asian Englishes
and English Today. Currently he is c o-e diting a collection of essays enti-
tled English and Asian pop culture.
Philip Seargeant is Lecturer in Applied Linguistics in the Centre for
Language and Communication, The Open University, UK. He is author
of The idea of English in Japan: ideology and the evolution of a global lan-
guage (2009). He has also published several papers in journals such as
Language Policy, World Englishes, Language Sciences and Language &
Communication.
Alison Stewart teaches at Gakushuin University, Japan. She has pub-
lished articles on communities of practice in writing instruction and
teacher development, mediating authentic texts, and multicultural
practice in Japanese university classrooms.
James W. Tollefson is Professor Emeritus at the University of Washington
and Professor in the Department of Media, Communication and Culture, the
Graduate School of Public Policy and Social Research, and the Institute for
Educational Research and Service at the International Christian University
in Tokyo, Japan. He has published 9 books and more than 70 articles on
language policy, language education and the politics of language.
Mai Yamagami is a doctoral student in the School of Journalism and
Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, USA.
Her research on discourse, language policy and political communication
appears in Japan Studies, the Language Research Bulletin, the Encyclopedia
of Applied Linguistics and elsewhere.