Early English education a chance to improve the language level
(From The Japan Times April 10 issue)

小学校の英語必修化

Fifth- and sixth-grade teachers will have one new worry starting this month — teaching English. All elementary schools must introduce compulsory foreign-language lessons. Despite the difficulties of implementing this national strategy for English education, it is high time Japan took its English level more seriously.

The biggest hurdle may be the teachers' worries about teaching a new subject. Critics complain that few elementary teachers are specialists in English and that some have not even had training in the recommended curriculum. Yet, the same problem exists in other countries. Students from Taiwan, China, Turkey and Spain, among many other countries, have been learning English from younger ages for over a decade and for more than the one hour per week now mandated in Japanese elementary schools.

By starting early, a better system for learning English can be gradually implemented over longer years of study. Age-appropriate activities can circumvent social feelings of embarrassment and the tendency toward perfectionism. Doing that in fifth and sixth grade will reduce Japan's notorious English phobia before the panic of entrance exams sets in.

To better accomplish that, English classes should not focus on impeccably correct grammar. Instead, they should establish positive attitudes and helpful learning habits.

Helping stimulate interest in other languages and other cultures should be a top priority. As experienced teachers know, confidence inspires confidence. Young students are quicker to pick up attitudes than vocabulary words. With the right attitude, students will always learn more in their future English classes.

The consequences will be a new way of thinking and new approaches to communication. Those teachers starting to teach English for the first time this year will have a heavy burden, but by introducing students to the world of English, they will be building a solid base for Japan's future functioning in international society and commerce.

4月から小学校で外国語活動が必修となり、5、6年生の担任は新たな悩みを抱えている。この国家戦略の実施には困難もあるが、そろそろ日本が英語教育に真剣に取り組むべき時だ。

先生は新たな学科を教えることに不安を抱えている。多くは英語の専門知識がなく、推奨された教育課程の研修を受けていない先生もいる。しかし他国でも、より低学年の生徒に対し、日本より多く英語を学ばせている。

英語教育制度も長年のうちに改善されるだろう。学齢に応じた活動で、恥ずかしさや完璧主義を拭い去ることも可能だ。受験のための英語という苦手意識を軽減することもできる。積極的姿勢と学習習慣を育み、外国の言語や文化への興味を刺激することを最優先すべきだ。

今年英語を教え始める先生には負担が大きいが、生徒を英語の世界にいざなうことで、国際社会における日本の役割の基盤を作ることを手助けすることができる。