授業をするうえで柱となる考え方　～日本語教育の参照枠を手掛かりに～　（日本語教師の学び直し・復帰促進アップデート研修事業④）

Main ideas / concepts conveyed

• The video focuses on a “pillar of thinking for teaching” in Japanese language education, using the Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education as a guiding resource.
• It addresses problems in the current field:
  • Learners and learning needs are becoming increasingly diverse.
  • There is no single common national indicator to evaluate Japanese proficiency across diverse domestic/international contexts.
  • There is also a lack of clear standards for strengthening language abilities connected to productive skills such as speaking and writing (noted as a problem area).
• To respond to these issues, the Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education was developed to serve as a common reference indicator for learning, teaching, and evaluation across stakeholders in Japan and abroad.
• Context driving its creation:
  • Increased worldwide cross-border movement means learners’ backgrounds are more diverse.
  • In 2021, the framework was compiled to help learners set goals and self-assess proficiency even when moving between countries/regions or educational institutions.

What the Reference Framework is (and what it’s based on)

• A framework for strengthening Japanese learning and teaching by:
  • Clarifying appropriate content and methods by stage of Japanese acquisition.
  • Supporting “foreigners and others” to receive appropriate and continuous Japanese language education.
• Relationship to CEFR:
  • It is based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
  • It uses almost the same level scales and indicators as CEFR.
  • It also includes guidance specific to Japanese characters/kanji, reflecting Japanese-language teaching realities.
• Intended values/purpose:
  • To help create a vibrant, inclusive society that respects diverse cultures.
  • Uses three pillars (below) to guide language education.

The three pillars of the framework

1. Learners are social beings

   • Learners are not only individuals learning language.
   • They use the acquired language to participate in society and improve their lives.
   • Language acquisition is not the end goal; it is a means to participate more deeply in society and express individuality in more situations.

2. Focus on what learners can do with the language

   • Emphasizes abilities demonstrated in real-life use—what learners can accomplish in society.

3. Respect diverse uses of Japanese

   • Encourages individual goal setting (which activities learners must do, and to what extent).
   • The way native speakers use Japanese is not treated as the sole norm or ultimate goal.
   • The framework recognizes learners’ varied purposes for using Japanese in social activities.

Learning environment goal (“society beyond classroom”)

• By creating learning environments where Japanese learning crosses the boundary between classroom and society, the framework aims for a kind of “society where people meet,” moving toward a “compulsory society” (as described in the subtitle).

Structure: scales, descriptions, and “CanDo”

• The framework includes:
  • An overall proficiency scale by language activity.
  • CanDo-type ability descriptions, including:
    • General “CanDo” structure.
    • Field CanDo: created freely by organizations/institutions using the framework’s CanDo base plus field-specific CanDo.
• Proficiency level system:
  • Six levels from A1 (basic) to C2 (advanced).
  • For language activities, it is divided into five skills/activities:
    • listening, reading, speaking, interacting, presenting
  • (Note: the subtitles list “speaking” twice due to likely auto-caption error, but the intended set is consistent with CEFR-like skill grouping.)

Core teaching emphasis (balance and prioritization)

• Rather than treating “balanced learning of all five activities” as the main rule, the framework emphasizes:
  • Learning through language activities.
• Because learner needs differ:
  • Teachers must consider which abilities to prioritize based on each learner’s objectives.

What “language proficiency” includes (expanded competence model)

• The subtitles describe Japanese proficiency as consisting of four components/abilities:

  1. general ability
  2. communicative language ability
  3. communicative language activities
  4. communicative language abbreviations (likely meaning a sub-component/expanded term; subtitle wording appears imperfect)

• It is supported by more than narrow language knowledge (grammar/semantics) and skill practice:

  • Also includes knowledge, attitudes, and values related to society and culture
  • And the learner’s ingenuity in promoting communication
• The framework contains ability descriptions representing 234 abilities (as stated in the subtitles).

Action-centered approach (how ability descriptions are framed)

• The framework uses an action-centered approach:
  • Views learners as social actors performing verbal/nonverbal tasks such as:
    • shopping
    • using public transportation
    • building relationships in community/workplace
• Language proficiency descriptions are designed to show:
  • The tasks required in society as learning goals.
• Learners can learn from what is necessary to perform tasks:
  • Regardless of how grammar/vocabulary difficulty aligns with the “difficulty” of the language activity.
• Teacher implication:
  • Teachers should learn the “humanities/underpinnings” needed for the target language activities (i.e., plan and implement educational practices where learners build vocabulary and meaning through concrete language activities).

Evaluation methodology: the framework’s principles and approaches

Three principles of evaluation in the framework

1. Promote lifelong independent learning

   • Evaluation is intended to support learners beyond a single test or course outcome.

2. Encourage diverse evaluation methods

   • Evaluation methods should vary according to learning objectives.

3. Ensure common understanding and transparency

   • Evaluation criteria focus on what learners can do in Japanese.
   • Criteria should be easy to reference for:
     • learners
     • teachers
     • and even the general public
   • Ensures transparency of evaluation methods and criteria.

Expected evaluation characteristics / methods

• Evaluation is not limited to examinations.
• Diverse evaluation forms include:
  • Evaluating the ability to perform tasks using language.
  • Evaluating insights/learning processes during study (process-oriented understanding).
• Key requirement:
  • Appropriately grasp what kind of Japanese language ability learners need (based on their tasks/goals).

Four effects/benefits expected from using the framework

1. A comprehensive cross-national indicator set

   • Enables learners/students to receive appropriate Japanese education even when moving between countries or institutions.

2. Field-specific ability descriptions

   • Supports concrete and effective evaluation for people living/working/studying abroad.

3. Broader applicability of examiners

   • Enables consistent evaluation across various domains where Japanese proficiency is required, using shared indicators.

4. Improved exam quality

   • Establishes an appropriate way to assess Japanese proficiency, helping improve examination quality.

Important limitation/stance stated

• The framework is intended to be flexibly referenced.
• It does not attempt to unify all learning/teaching content and methods into one standard approach.

Practical implications emphasized near the end

• Going forward, it is necessary to understand more concretely:
  • What Japanese proficiency is required given diverse learner needs.
• Educators should consider feasible, real-world design questions for each learner/context:
  • what language activities are needed
  • when (timing)
  • where (context/location)
  • with whom (interaction partners)
  • what learners should do (task goals)
• Educational practice should expand to include how learners’ achievable language activities lead to:
  • greater participation in society.

Resources mentioned for further use

• Refer to:
  • the Reference Framework report
  • and training videos for professionals
• Use also:
  • the guide for using the Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education
  • the Japanese language proficiency self-assessment tool called Japanese Check Life CanDo

Speakers / sources featured

• No individual speakers are named in the subtitles.
• Main referenced sources/frameworks:
  • Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education（日本語教育の参照枠）
  • Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)
  • Japanese Check Life CanDo (self-assessment tool)