Perceptions of Value in Japanese English Education: Self-Reflections of ALTs on the JET Programme

doi:10.65961/AJELT-2018-1-003

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Asian Journal of English Language Teaching ›› 2018, Vol. 27 ›› Issue (1) : 83-112. DOI: 10.65961/AJELT-2018-1-003

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Perceptions of Value in Japanese English Education: Self-Reflections of ALTs on the JET Programme

Blake TURNBULL

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Despite a global increase in the number and importance of assistant language teachers (ALTs) in English language classrooms, very few studies have looked specifically at how ALTs view their own contribution to students’ English learning. Based on the results of a questionnaire survey, this study investigates the self-reflections of 426 ALTs on the JET Programme in Japan regarding their own sense of purpose and value. A combination of quantitative statistical analysis and qualitative interpretation was used to analyse the data. The results suggest that, whilst ALTs did feel a sense of contribution, they also felt as though they lacked chances to implement communicative teaching methods over the dominant grammar-based pedagogy. This article suggests the need for team-learning between ALTs and Japanese English teachers so that ALTs may both come to have a fulfilled sense of value and contribution to the develop- ment of students’ communicative skills in the Japanese English classroom.

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Blake TURNBULL. (2018). Perceptions of Value in Japanese English Education: Self-Reflections of ALTs on the JET Programme.Asian Journal of English Language Teaching , 27(1): 83-112. https://doi.org/10.65961/AJELT-2018-1-003

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