Kaigai de Oshieru Nihongo [Japanese Taught Abroad] by Yoshiko HigurashiReview by: Mutsuko Endo HudsonThe Journal of the Association of Teachers of Japanese, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Oct., 1996), pp. 93-96Published by: American Association of Teachers of JapaneseStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/489571 .

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Journal of the Association of Teachers of Japanese I 93

KAIGAI DE OSHIERU NIHONGo [Japanese Taught Abroad], by Yoshiko

Higurashi. Tokyo: Aruku, 1996. Pp. 172. V2,000.

Reviewed by Mutsuko Endo Hudson

Kaigai de Oshieru Nihongo is an easy-to-read guide to teaching elementary Japanese outside Japan, full of personal anecdotes gleaned from the author's 20-year experience in the United States. The book consists of three parts: (1) Cultural Differences and Communication [Ibunka to

komyunikeeshon] (50 pp.)-the differences between Japanese and American cultures that are of particular relevance to language teachers; (2) Effective Classroom Instruction [Kooka o agerujugyoo no susumekata] (90 pp.)-specific illustrations of how the author teaches various items; and (3) Information on How to Become a Japanese Language Teacher in the United States [Shiryoo: Amerika de Nihongo kyooshi ni naru ni wa] (20 pp.)-the state of Japanese language teaching and employment qualifications. The book might thus be more aptly titled Amerika de

Nihongo o Oshieru [Teaching Japanese in the United States]. Part 1 comprises four chapters: "Verbal vs. Nonverbal Culture,"

"Contract-based Society," "Student Disposition" and "Language Instruction Is Also Cultural Instruction." Assuming (since it is written in

Japanese) that the book is designed mainly for Japanese people who are unfamiliar with the American academic scene, many of the topics treated in this part will be useful, such as office hours and the importance of clearly spelling out grading standards. Likewise, those who have never taught Japanese as a foreign language will benefit from Part 2, which contains six

chapters dealing with Japanese sounds, the hiragana syllabary, hiragana writing, basic conjugation of verbs, applications of grammatical structures to real situations, and supplementary materials (e.g., what sort of materials are necessary and how one may obtain them). Even a long-time teacher will find the sections on -masen ka (pp. 127-131 ) and "I like your. . ." (pp. 137-138) particularly informative. The final part, especially the first section, also contains helpful information such as the levels of institutions offering Japanese courses, and employment opportunities and qualifications.

As one who has a different long experience teaching in the U.S., however, I have some disagreements with aspects of this book. One concerns the absence of emphasis on the academic qualifications of teachers. To quote the author: "... Nihongo kyooiku wa, ichi nimojoonetsu, ni nimo

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94 | VOLUME 30, NUMBER 2

joonetsu da to omou ... Joonetsu sae areba, iyoku sae areba, michi wa kanarazu hirakeru no da kara." [I think that what is of the utmost

importance in Japanese language teaching is passion ... With just passion and will, you are sure to find a way.] (p. 7). We the senpai may want to be more cautious in giving such advice to would-be teachers, especially in view of the recent stagnant growth in the number of college-level learners in the United States, as noted in the final chapter. Knowledge and skills should also be considered indispensable, in addition to passion. For example, basic

knowledge and skills in computer-assisted instruction are becoming almost a universal qualification nowadays. As the applicant pool grows, not only do

one's current knowledge, skills and passion (and experience) matter in

landing a job, but also one's continual efforts to better oneself in keeping it. The book would have been strengthened if it had discussed how beginning instructors may continue to improve their abilities, listing samples of recommended books and dictionaries, study opportunities, and relevant e-mail discussion lists, among other things.

Another difficulty concerns the casting of "American" students into one

type. They are generally depicted as a happy-go-lucky, talkative bunch; for

example, "'Iu bunka' no Amerikajin wa, Nihongo o narau toki demo Eigo o hanasu toki to dooyoo niyoku hanashitagaru. Mata, machigai o okasu koto nado ki ni sezu, dondon oshaberi shiyoo to suru keikoo ga tsuyoi." [When learning Japanese, 'verbal culture' Americans are eager to talk just as they are in English. And they tend to talk freely without worrying about making errors.] (pp. 17-18). Maybe this is a typical trait of students in Southern California, where the author has long taught. Many of the students I have had in the Midwest and New England are not so talkative and do worry about making errors, often too much so. In fact, Japanese language students in the United States come from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and many are not Americans. They are also diverse in terms of personality, learning style, age, status (graduate, undergraduate, special), family upbringing, etc. It would be useful to prepare prospective Japanese teachers for the great diversity they will likely encounter in this country. In this connection, the author's repeated mention that Americans lack the concept of modesty (e.g., kenson no gainen no nai Amerikajin (p. 140)) seems

exaggerated, if not downright offensive. Modesty is expressed differently in this country than in Japan and also depending on the people and situations, as anywhere else. (Interestingly, some studies report that young Japanese

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Journal of the Association of Teachers of Japanese 1 95

nowadays indeed tend to accept, rather than decline, compliments given by close friends.)

A third problem concerns the discussion of how grammar is presented in class. An unnecessarily long time seems to be spent on explanation; for

example, discussing the English verb conjugations when introducing Japanese verb conjugations (pp. 102-104) and analyzing how nonda is formed from nom- + -ta (pp. 113-116). As important as it is to relate new items to the prior knowledge of the learner, prospective teachers need to be advised to refrain from talking too much, especially in English. Some structures are introduced without the context and functions specified; for

example, in the section on teaching the past tense forms of verbs, random words are practiced. It would be more effective and fun to have students describe from the start a situation or a topic, such as "what I did last weekend," thereby making every utterance with the past form meaningful, connected, and communicative. The verbs used can be listed on the board and classified into types as they appear, with missing types added, if any. Such practice makes the context, functions and usage clear and also forces students to speak at the discourse instead of the sentence level-a more realistic use of language. "Application to real situations" [Jitsu bamen e no

ooyoo], which is set aside as a separate chapter in the book, could in fact be

provided for every item introduced. As the author herself notes (pp. 125-126), the major goal of language instruction lies in attaining communicative competence, and learners need to become able to cope with various contents, contexts and situations, for which cultural understanding plays a crucial role.

I also found several factual errors (probably "slips of the pen"). It is not

necessarily the case that "whether Japanese or non-Japanese, hiragana is the first Japanese writing system to learn" (p. 79). Some schools teach katakana first to non-Japanese students and for good reasons-the individual symbols are easier to draw than hiragana and the learners already know or can easily guess the meanings of the words. Another example is stating that the initial sound of Fuji is "h" (p. 84). It is actually a bilabial fricative, which should be explained as the sound made when one blows out a candle. Another concerns the politeness marker desu used with adjectives (e.g., oishii), which is identified as the "be verb": keiyooshi to issho ni natta be dooshi (p. 119). These disagreements are by no means meant to be nitpicking, but to remind ourselves to be extra-careful about details when writing teachers' guides, as we are when writing textbooks. A final suggestion: it should be

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96 | VOLUME 30, NUMBER 2

clearly pointed out that not all of the systems and conventions described in the book are enforced at other universities, including not having to answer the telephone or door unless it is during office hours (p. 24), having to make the average grade of a class 'C' (p. 26), and using memorized

questions and answers in the oral test followed by a chat in English between the instructor and the student (pp. 29-30).

All in all, Kaigai de oshieru Nihongo offers useful tips on teaching elementary Japanese in the United States for the intended audience. The reader should keep in mind that the book describes how the author teaches, and does not prescribe how everyone ought to teach. As prospective teachers are surely diverse, not all will follow the same style, but will benefit from

hearing about one successful style.

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