Nara JALT continues its exploration of the 2019 JALT International Conference theme with this September event focusing on “Teacher Efficacy, Learner Agency” at the local level and from the perspective of both established and early-career educators.
Speakers:
Presentation 1: Robert Maran (Osaka Shoin Women’s University)
Promoting Collective Teacher Efficacy and Learner Agency in an EFL program
Presentation 2: Sayaka Ishimizu (National Institute of Technology, Nara College)
Forming a Study Habit through a Study Tracker based on the Bullet Journal Method
Date: Sunday, September 8, 2019
Time: 10:00-12:00
Venue: Nara Women’s University
https://jaltnara.wordpress.com/venues/
https://goo.gl/maps/g7xPwDM4sa3BorGVA
Fee: Free for JALT members. ¥1,000 for non-members.
Presentation 1
Promoting Collective Teacher Efficacy and Learner Agency in an EFL program
Robert Maran: Osaka Shoin Women’s University
This presentation, while citing key background events that affected the required EFL program at the former Osaka Shoin Women’s Junior College and at the current Osaka Shoin Women’s University, will introduce some of the key changes, tweaks and innovations that were made to the required EFL program in successive attempts to promote collective teacher efficacyand learner agency. These include such elements as curriculum design rationale, classroom management, teacher management, teaching methodology, common syllabi/ teaching materials, proficiency testing, and e-learning. The presentation will introduce and discuss these chronologically as they appeared in the program, citing the pluses and minuses, successes and failures. It is hoped that participants will get a sense of the challenges an institution faces when attempting to implement and maintain collective teacher efficacyand learner agency, as well as perhaps taking away some ideas that they may incorporate or adapt to their own EFL programs.
Robert Maran’s Bio:
Robert Maran retired in 2019 and was made Professor Emeritus and a Study Abroad Advisor at Osaka Shoin Women’s University. He has been teaching in the Japanese university system for more than 35 years. His main research interests while focusing on Study Abroad and e-learning have also included curriculum development.
Presentation 2
Forming a Study Habit through a Study Tracker based on the Bullet Journal Method
Sayaka Ishimizu: National Institute of Technology (Kosen), Nara College
This presentation will introduce a teaching approach using a study tracker based on the Bullet Journal Method (BJM) developed by Ryder Carroll. The BJM provides a way of mental inventory that leads to “intentionality.” Simply put, keeping a journal of everyday life gives you opportunity to visit “your belief = why” behind “your action = what” by tracking the past, ordering the present and designing the future. The presenter, a practitioner of the BJM, modified this method as a study tracker for approximately 200 students of hers in a one-year English course and implemented this study tracker system this academic year. The aim of the study trackeris to help students form a study habit in a more organized, observable, and autonomous way in hope of encouraging learner agency. The students have kept a log of the number of hours they studied on monthly study track sheets, and by doing this they have tracked their own study habits. At the beginning and in the middle of the course, listening and reading tests were administered to the students to monitor their comprehension abilities. At the same time, questionnaires were distributed to have the students self-evaluate their four English skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). The preliminary results of the tests and surveys, and the possibility of further modification of the study tracker for the latter half of the course will be discussed in this presentation.
Sayaka Ishimizu’s Bio:
Sayaka Ishimizu is an associate professor at National Institute of Technology (Kosen), Nara College, and has a master’s degree in education from Nara University of Education. Her research interests include listening pedagogy and teacher training.
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