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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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 Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 1:45 am Post subject: |
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Its also known as Action research where teachers conduct research studies using their own students to collect data.
research is not just men and women in white lab coats hunched over test tubes. Research is about finding answers to problems and using the appropriate tools to seek the answers. That will be doing surveys that have been piloted, asking the right questions, avoiding bias and loaded questions etc.
I might also add that in most universities in the west and in Japan, the universities will expect teachers to conduct basic research as well as teach their classes. i work full time as well as you, teach my classes but do research studies on the side.
A study that does not collect valid and reliable data that can not be replicated and does not follow standard procedures in not research at all. You will probably be able to publish something in the journal and have something to write on your resume, but if you don't make the effort to do primary research e.g. through the articles I have posted above, the results will be meaningless. You could probably get away with it in Taiwan but in many universities in Japan the standards will be more rigorous.
Research is about finding out what has gone before and somehow adding to knowledge, by doing your own analysis as well. |
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martinphipps
Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 55
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 2:07 am Post subject: Re: Tell me about teaching in Japan |
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[quote="shmooj"]
| martinphipps wrote: |
Of course, for the past eight years I haven't BEEN a full time researcher: quote]
If you look back at your 8 years, you might find that you have been carrying out a lot of research in actual fact. |
Yes, exactly. Though I wouldn't describe reading the teacher's manuals that come with most textbook series or general books on how to teach English as "research", I question the accusation that I have been doing "no research at all" all this time.
By the way, thanks to PAULH for all the information.
Martin |
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martinphipps
Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 55
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 2:24 am Post subject: Re: Tell me about teaching in Japan |
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| PAULH wrote: |
| I assume its to be an unrefereed article in a university journal? |
I asked a collegue if the school has a journal. She said, "We have this," and all the articles were in Chinese. Great.
As I said before, it will be a year before I have anything that I can publish. I've written five chapters already but it mostly consists of anedotes, advice and a short review of literature on motivation. That's it. I've got a lot of work to do.
Martin |
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kittykelly
Joined: 09 Nov 2004
Posts: 21
Location: Toronto, ON Canada
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 6:37 am Post subject: |
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Wow. I honestly feel sorry for you Martin. You've taken a real beating in this forum. I just wanted to say that your questions and the answers that have come from them, have helped me in MY research. The research I'm doing is to learn as much as I possibly can about Japan and teaching English in Japan before I go there to do just that, teach English. Your questions have cleared up many of my own and some that I wouldn't have even thought to ask. So I am going to thank you:
Thank you  |
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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 8:50 am Post subject: Re: Tell me about teaching in Japan |
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| martinphipps wrote: |
I asked a collegue if the school has a journal. She said, "We have this," and all the articles were in Chinese. Great.
As I said before, it will be a year before I have anything that I can publish. I've written five chapters already but it mostly consists of anedotes, advice and a short review of literature on motivation. That's it. I've got a lot of work to do.
Martin |
Martin, just to make sure you follow, a refereed article is one that goes through an editorial committee before it is published. Some journals in Japan have committees that will vet articles before they publish them. In most universities, articles are unrefereed and are published as-is. I have seen articles that would be politely described as doggy litter, while others are well written and researched. Many university journals especially if they want something (anything) in English, they will accept whatever you have written. Just becuase it is published doesnt make it good or worth reading though.
To be considered for a full professor's position, you need publications, preferably good ones in large numbers (Washida, 2001, p. 87-8 . Some universities or even individual departments have ranking systems for publications and presentations. Even if the university to which you apply does not have an official ranking system in place, some informal ranking will naturally exist; e.g., a TESOL Quarterly publication will carry more weight than a local newspaper editorial. My university--a national one--as well as those at which close colleagues of mine now work, value such achievements along the following simplified lines, from highest prestige to lowest: sole authorship in a refereed international journal, in a refereed domestic journal, in a non-refereed journal; shared authorship in any of the above (worth less than sole authorship); a single presentation at an international conference, at a domestic conference, at a local conference, and finally as a poster presentation. In short, publications are worth more than presentations, books more than articles, refereed more than non-refereed, single author works more than shared, and international more than domestic. Similar systems may exist in other universities and may differ slightly in details, but I trust they are basically the same. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 2:04 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| I've got a lot of work to do. |
Yes, you do. Would you mind answering the very first (and un-rude) question I asked? I think you are pretty much writing without necessary focus, and from the sounds of things, even with a year to go, you have not really compiled sound material for a serious publication. No offense; that's just the way I see it.
My question was:
What exactly is the difference between your book and the many others out there that tell the same thing? |
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AsiaTraveller
Joined: 24 May 2004
Posts: 908
Location: Singapore, Mumbai, Penang, Denpasar, Berkeley
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 4:08 pm Post subject: |
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..
Last edited by AsiaTraveller on Mon Dec 06, 2004 4:14 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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AsiaTraveller
Joined: 24 May 2004
Posts: 908
Location: Singapore, Mumbai, Penang, Denpasar, Berkeley
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 4:13 pm Post subject: Re: Tell me about teaching in Japan |
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| martinphipps wrote: |
| Look, the fact is the school wants me to publish something to raise the prestiege of the school and the department and I want to publish something mainly out my own interest in the subject (intrinsic motivation) and the fact that it might mean more money and more pretiege for me doesn't hurt either. Everybody wins. |
Glenski, he's only writing this pseudo-tome because his department asked him to -- for nonacademic reasons, no less. He doesn't know how to go about it, but he wants to keep his superiors happy. Give him enough info and links, and he'll leave us alone. Then surely "everybody wins"!!! And he and his department will have their prestiege. |
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myesl
Joined: 04 Jun 2004
Posts: 307
Location: Luckily not in China.
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 1:17 am Post subject: |
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| This is why these sorts of books and travel books have so many inaccuracies. You've never taught in Japan, so you're going to listen to anyone on Dave's who writes in? Some people here give good advice; some people don't know what they're talking about, though that doesn't stop them from talking; some people deliberately give misinformation. If you're not familiar with the current situation in Japan first hand you have no way of knowing who's giving you the straight scoop. Come to think of it, maybe Robert Storey wrote his Lonely Planet Taiwan Guides this way . . . That would explain a lot. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 3:58 am Post subject: |
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Just in case you don't know what kind of books I'm talking about, martin, here is a modest list of titles.
Ganbatte Means Go for It! Or. . . how to Become an English Teacher in Japan by Celeste Heiter (Paperback - January 2002)
Chopsticks and French Fries: How and Why to Teach English in South Korea by Samantha D. Amara (Paperback - April 15, 2002)
The World is a Class: How and Why to Teach English Around the World
by Powell. Caleb, Caleb Powell (Paperback - April 15, 2002)
Teaching English in Japan: Japan (Teaching English)
by Jerry O'Sullivan, et al 1995
Make a Mil-Yen: Teaching English in Japan
by Don Best (Paperback - June 1, 1994)
English in Asia: Teaching Tactics for Japan, Korea, Taiwan
by John Wharton 1992
A Guide To Teaching English In Japan
by Charles B. Wordell (Editor) (Paperback - 1985)
Foundations for English teaching,: Including a corpus of materials upon which to build textbooks and teachers' guides for teaching English in Japan, by Charles Carpenter Fries 1961
The Asia employment program: The American job opportunity in Asia : a comprehensive guide to teaching English in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan by Clarke Canfield 1993
Preliminaries to English teaching, essays for the teaching of English in Japan by Charles T Scott 1969
Teaching Tactics for Japan's English Classrooms
by John Wharton 1986
A Survey of English Language Teaching and Learning in Japan
The British Council (English Language publications) (1990)
Diffusion of Innovations in English Language Teaching: The ELEC Effort in Japan, 1956-1968 (Contributions to the Study of Education)
by Lynn Earl Henrichsen (Hardcover - December 8, 1989)
A Handbook for Teaching English at Japanese Colleges and Universities
by Paul Wadden (Paperback - January 1, 1993)
Understanding Change: The Impact of In-Service Training on Teachers of English in Japan by Judith Lamie, Judith M. Lamie (Hardcover - September 1, 2001)
English Historical Linguistics and Philology in Japan (Trends in Linguistics, Studies and Monographs , No 109) by Jacek Fisiak, Akio Oizumi (Hardcover - April 1, 1998)
Korea Calling: The Essential Handbook for Teaching English and Living in South Korea by Jay W. Freeborne, Allegra J. Specht (Paperback - November 1996)
Jobs in Japan: The Complete Guide to Living and Working in the Land of Rising Opportunity by John Wharton, Liz Netzel 1993
The World is a Class: How and Why to Teach English Around the World
by Powell. Caleb, Caleb Powell (Paperback - April 15, 2002)
The Teaching Gap: Best Ideas from the World's Teachers for Improving Education in the Classroom by James W. Stigler, James Hiebert (Hardcover - September 1, 1999)
Teaching in Japan: A Cultural Perspective by Nobuo K. Shimahara (Hardcover - December 2001)
Gems of Japanized English: "Is That an 'L' As in Rome?" "No, It's 'R' As in London (Yenbooks) by Miranda Kenrick, Motomi Naito (Paperback - February 1, 1989)
Importing Diversity: Inside Japan's JET Program -- by David L. McConnell 2000
Case Study Of Japanese Middle Schools, 1983-1998: A Reflection On Practices, Trends, And Issues by Whitman, Nancy C. July 2000 |
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JimDunlop2
Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Posts: 2286
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 4:25 am Post subject: |
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Wow, Glenski. That's pretty intensive. Have you had the opportunity to read some of these books? If so, do you have any favorites?
JD
/Class, your book reports are due next Monday. |
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AsiaTraveller
Joined: 24 May 2004
Posts: 908
Location: Singapore, Mumbai, Penang, Denpasar, Berkeley
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 5:22 am Post subject: |
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| GREAT list!! |
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shmooj
Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1758
Location: Seoul, ROK
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 5:33 am Post subject: Re: Tell me about teaching in Japan |
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| martinphipps wrote: |
| I wouldn't describe reading the teacher's manuals that come with most textbook series or general books on how to teach English as "research" |
Neither would I. It startled me that you would think that might be what I was referring to. I was referring to more innate processes that go into such skills as grading material, needs analysis, giving feedback, lesson planning etc
I recommend the book The Self-Directed Teacher (CUP) for extremely practical self-directed professional development |
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myesl
Joined: 04 Jun 2004
Posts: 307
Location: Luckily not in China.
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 2:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Glenksi wrote: |
| Jobs in Japan: The Complete Guide to Living and Working in the Land of Rising Opportunity by John Wharton, Liz Netzel 1993 |
I can't believe anyone would recommend this book. There are people who want to kill him for writing this book.
| Glenksi wrote: |
Teaching Tactics for Japan's English Classrooms
by John Wharton 1986 |
And yet, this is a very good book. Lots of very practical ideas and the best succinct introduction to the field (and it's variety) I've seen.
| Glenski wrote: |
English in Asia: Teaching Tactics for Japan, Korea, Taiwan
by John Wharton 1992 |
Not really any better than the first item.
I can't comment on the other items on the list, except that _Importing Diversity_ gets rave reviews. |
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taikibansei
Joined: 14 Sep 2004
Posts: 811
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2004 6:57 pm Post subject: |
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| myesl wrote: |
| I can't believe anyone would recommend this book. There are people who want to kill him for writing this book.... |
Glenski is not specifically recommending this--or any--of the books on his list. What he is simply trying to do is demonstrate a major problem with this whole 'research' project--i.e., there are literally thousands of published books, articles, and essays on the topics Martin has so far proposed. Indeed, just on the shelves in my office, by rough estimate, are another 30 books and over 700 academic articles that Glenski does not list.
Again, nobody on this thread, in my opinion, has been rude; people, however, have been honest--true researchers (and teachers, frankly) know the difference, and appreciate the latter when they can get it. |
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