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ANNOUNCEMENTS
OF UP-COMING ACTIVITIES & EVENTS
One of the objectives of ITJ is to provide Japanese language teachers with easy access to sources of information about what is happening in the field of Japanese language education. To learn more about any of the events or activities listed below, simply click on the item's title.
If you know of an event or activity not listed below that
you feel Japanese language teachers would be interested in learning about, please
complete the on-line Announcement
Suggestion form and submit it to the ITJ librarian.
New Perspectives: Japan, an innovative Japanese language and culture studies program centered around a two-week study tour to Japan, completed its inaugural program this month. Fifty-nine students and thirteen teachers from eleven middle and high schools across the United States returned from Japan on June 23 following tours of Kyoto, Tokyo, visits to Japanese host schools, and a week-long stay with a Japanese host family.
Participants, host school representatives, and host family members gathered together for a June 22 Sayonara Party. Students received certificates of appreciation and information about earning college-level credit. Teacher were awarded continuing education credit from Beloit College. For more information about the inaugural program and to see pictures from the Sayonara Party, please visit the NP:J website.
Feedback from program participants suggests that the program succeeded in achieving its dual mission of drawing new students to Japanese language studies, and retaining students already enrolled. One four-year Japanese language student from Indianapolis reported that before NP:J, she was unsure about what her college major would be. She reported that
"NP:J helped me realize how much more I need to know about Japan, and that I definitely have to come back" [to Japan]."
Another high school student who had never studied Japanese prior to the NP:J experience wrote that he is rethinking his college major and is considering the study of Japanese and Asian Studies.
NP:J is made possible through participant fees, and support from the Freeman Foundation and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership.
For more information about New Perspectives: Japan and to receive application materials for next year, please contact:
This past August Japanese language teachers from fifty elementary, middle, and high schools across the U.S. met their native speaking teaching assistants. The training program focused on strengthening team teaching skills of the mentor teachers and the Japanese assistants. The assistant teachers also engaged in other training and orientation activities designed to prepare them for a successful year of teaching in a U.S. school.
This training program is designed for participants in the JALEX program. However, any Japanese language teacher interested in this workshop is invited to participate. Next summer's training will take place at Northwest College in Seattle, WA.
The Center for Global Partnership of the Japan Foundation, as part of their support for the JALEX program, are sponsoring this training and orientation workshop.
For infromation on cost and other aspects of this training event or the JALEX program, please contact: