【JET 20th Anniversary Panel Discussion】
>The Enrichment of Foreign Language Instruction (1)
Matsumoto: Thank you, everyone. Let me provide a brief overview of the JET Programme itself. The JET Programme is an undertaking run by local governments. Three national government entities -- the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), and Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT) -- as well as the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR) provide assistance to the programme.
First, individual local governments describe the type of person they want. MIC then gathers all that information and puts together a general plan. Based on that plan, MOFA begins recruiting personnel through its embassies and consulates overseas. MEXT in turn has the role of providing training for programme participants upon their arrival in Japan. CLAIR itself provides liaison and coordination for the entire programme. In short, the JET Programme is a product of the efforts of these four organisations in cooperation. Financing for the programme is derived from local government tax allocations.
At this point, I would like to move our panel discussion to the two declared objectives of the JET Programme: namely, the enrichment of foreign language education and the promotion of international exchange and understanding throughout Japan.
Let's begin with foreign language education. Mr. Greene, given your own personal experience as an assistant language teacher, I would like to ask you start with your comments.
Greene: (Like many other ALTs) I took advantage of a summer vacation in my high-school years to come to Japan on a home-stay arrangement. On that occasion, I was enrolled for short-term exchange study at Ofuna High School, a public school in Kanagawa Prefecture. Several years later I applied for participation in the JET Programme and in line with my wishes, was assigned to serve as an ALT at Ofuna High. That proved to be an extremely fun and rewarding experience in team teaching together with one of my former instructors at the school.
On another note, I think that the participation of ALTs from China will prove highly meaningful. Needless to say, exchange with Asia at large is of vital importance to Japan's own future, and in that context, promoting personal exchange at this level will be essential. Furthermore, I believe that providing young people in Japan with opportunities to learn other Asian languages will ultimately be a major plus for the future of Japan.
Matsumoto: Mr. Greene, it's my understanding that many employees in the US Department of State are former JET Programme participants?
Greene: That's true. The JET Programme has served a vital role in helping to train human resources for careers not only with Britain's Foreign Ministry but also with the US State Department. Right now there are about 20 JET Programme veterans working at the US Embassy and consulate offices in Japan. However, this trend is not limited to the diplomatic corps, as you also find plenty of JET veterans pursuing careers in the business and academic communities. In my view, that can be expected to translate into a long-term investment for Japan, and not only in terms of personnel exchange through the JET Programme.
Matsumoto: Mr. Fujii, what is your perspective on this subject?
Fujii: First of all, I confess that I feel extremely envious. By that, as the oldest member on this panel, I am referring to my own student days, as we did not have any ALTs in our school to speak of, and hence studied English without really knowing for certain whether our instructors, all Japanese, had good English pronunciation skills or not.
To gain a better understanding of how classes are taught, I visited a high school weeks prior to this panel discussion and had a firsthand look at the team teaching approach. In that particular class, the ALT had the primary instructional role, with the English teacher -- a Japanese national -- occasionally explaining difficult concepts to the students in Japanese.
For the ALT and the students alike, active, lively conversation was the driving force in that classroom. I came away with the feeling it would have been nice had I myself been in such a class when I was a student.
Another point is that the emphasis is on putting these classes not in every elementary school across the board, but rather only in schools where they are deemed necessary. As a local government official, I sense that the issue for now should be not on whether English should be a required subject or not, but rather on the question of how we can influence how it is taught.
Matsumoto: Ms. Chan, any thoughts on this?
Chan: Had I not started out with a singing career back in my university days, I believe I would have liked to participate in the JET Programme -- had it been in existence then, of course. Consider this. Usually, visitors to Japan try to go to all the best known cities, say, Tokyo, Kyoto, or Tottori (laughter). JET participants, however, have the opportunity to travel to many different parts of Japan and actually live together with the residents in each of these communities. I really envy them for that experience.
Getting back to the goals behind the JET Programme, I recall that one is the promotion of international exchange and understanding throughout Japan, and the other is to encourage everyone to study English. Although one of these two goals has a clear-cut, positive aspect, the other seems to me to have a murkier side. In my view, the JET Programme has been a resounding success in terms of fostering international exchange and understanding at the community level. On the subject of English language education, though, the impression I've gained through discussions with JET veterans and friends familiar with the situation is that not very many who come to Japan as instructors are actually enthusiastic about working as English teachers or helping Japanese kids learn to speak English. Rather, the majority come with the expectation of improving their own knowledge of the Japanese language. Given that we are looking at a phase in Japanese children's education where we should be trying to nurture a fondness for English along with methods that instill language skills through play, my feeling is that certain additional steps will be needed if we are to improve the direct benefits of the programme itself.
Naoyama: I feel we mustn't assume language instruction will be more effective simply by adding ALTs to the classroom. The effectiveness of an ALT in the classroom setting really depends on how the Japanese teacher of English decides to bring that ALT into the instructional process and how the children and the ALT interact. I personally am not very fond of the notion of describing a person as effective or not. I think the Japanese teacher in an English language class has to take the right approach if students are to experience for themselves the benefits offered by having an ALT in their classroom. It is not enough for the ALT to merely be there.
Chan: May I ask a question? Personally, I would like to see many more participants brought into the JET Programme. For instance, expanding the programme from current 5,000 to 50,000 ALTs sounds nice. My question is, how much does it cost per individual ALT, in general?
Matsumoto: I have investigated that subject and am told that the cost per individual ALT averages around 6 million yen per annum if you factor in travel expenses and other fees. Multiplying that number by the 65 ALTs now active in Tottori Prefecture alone, that works out to a total of about 400 million yen each year. In effect, prefectural governments are allocating tax revenues ranging from several hundred million to upwards of a billion yen each year for this purpose. Perhaps these figures would be useful in calculating the total cost if the programme were expanded from 5,000 to, for example, 50,000 ALTs. Ms. Chan, do these statistics help?
Chan: Wow! Well then, I guess if the annual cost per ALT were somehow held down to around 3 million yen, it would then be possible to bring in twice as many (laughter). Of course, I realise that would be rather unrealistic.
Matsumoto: Mr. Tanaka, could we have your thoughts on this matter?
Tanaka:I believe the cost figures you just quoted are accurate. Please bear in mind that the per-individual average does not go entirely to each ALT in the form of salary compensation. It also includes an assortment of other expenses, including those for social insurance premiums and training.
No matter how you look at it, this is a programme that costs money. As to the proper context, we are aware that opinions are divided on the issue, especially considering the fact that many local governments across Japan are now under serious financial strain.
Nonetheless, I think there is immense value not only in having JETs and ALTs in particular, come to Japan and participate in school class instruction, but also in the motivation kids gain from interacting with young foreign nationals through various events and club activities. Some kids have even gone on to become teachers themselves and credit that to their encounters with JET participants. Having this kind of impact is, in my view, immensely meaningful. Some kids also eventually develop a yearning to visit other countries and come to realise Japan needs to become a more open society.
Another aspect of the JET Programme is that it aids in increasing the number of people worldwide who have a better understanding of Japan. This is an especially important benefit. If the JET Programme is evaluated in that light, it should be recognised that it fulfills a huge role that more than offsets the associated monetary costs.
Fujii: Since local tax allocations have been mentioned, there is something I feel needs to be cleared up at the outset. Local tax allocations cover a variety of expenses, but outlays for the JET Programme have been rather generous. That is a fact, but now we are gradually reaching a limit. The reality is that we have entered a difficult period for tax allocations in general, and therefore some revisions may be coming.
However, if the cost per individual ALT were actually cut to a level around 3 million yen, it is questionable whether the programme could any longer attract people with proper qualifications. In my view, we will eventually need a mechanism that enables us to select the best candidates for the job.
No question about it, with the JET Programme we do have to identify those schools to which ALTs should be assigned and where the money should go. Also, there is now talk of having the best-qualified ALTs extend their stay to five years, up from the current three-year time frame. In addition I believe various resourceful improvements will become necessary from now on, such as creating mechanisms that would allow ex-JETs to continue working at the request of local communities. Frankly, rather than pursuing outright programme expansion, we've reached a stage where local governments themselves have to improvise, attract qualified human resources, and create an environment that makes it easier for those persons to work in.
