All students take three ‘English Communication’ (EC) classes in their first year: 1 (Speaking and Listening); 2 (Reading); 3 (Writing). Although each class has a different skill focus this does not mean that teachers cannot use other skills.
In addition to improving students’ overall proficiency in English, key goals of the first-year classes are to increase students’ fluency, confidence, and motivation. Teachers are encouraged to use high-interest topics and real-world tasks to improve student communication in the target skill. In order to increase students’ autonomy and fluency in the four skills, it is recommended that all first-year classes have an independent learning component. This may include utilizing e-learning or visiting the L-café in EC1, extensive reading in EC2, or blogging or freewriting in EC3. Resources for independent study (ie, links to recommended resources) can be found at OkadaiEnglish.com. The first-year classes should introduce more academic skills and topics towards the end of the course.
In the second-year, students have four classes, called Integrated English 5 (IE5): presentation; listening; reading; and, writing (these courses will change to English Communication 4-6 in 2017). In contrast to the first-year classes which emphasize fluency and communication, second-year classes should focus much more on academic content and tasks. This is to prepare the students for their academic studies in their third and fourth years (and graduate school, for many students) and to fulfill the university’s mission as a research university.
4.1 Pedagogy and classroom management
LEC and the university are promoting active learning pedagogies, especially now that courses are 120 minutes long. In addition to helping students better develop English proficiency and motivation, these teaching methods help students develop twenty-first century skills, such as communication skills, critical and creative thinking, and digital literacy. As different teaching methods have various advantages, we hope teachers can utilize a variety of teaching methods and use them purposely. Teachers can get an overview of various active learning approaches at bit.ly/activelearningokadai.
Teachers (and students) are encouraged to use English as much as possible during class. In some instances it may be useful to use Japanese in conjunction with English, but this should be done as infrequently as possible.
At the beginning of each semester, a course description or explanation on classroom standards and grading policy is recommended. As mentioned above, it is also a good idea to inform the students on how and when you plan to assess them. Written confirmation of these policies for the students will avoid any misunderstandings.