The Language Teacher
October 2000
Ten Years of Kokusaika: Has progress been made?
Judy Yoneoka
Kumamoto Gakuen University
This is the second in a two part series of articles. The first article, "What is a Kokusaijin?: A 10-year study," appeared in the September TLT.
Kokusaijin (lit. international person) is a Japanese term with a relatively recent history that conjures up images of a well-traveled English-speaking socialite in the minds of most Japanese. Yoneoka (2000a) found that Japanese students' images of kokusaijin differed greatly from those of US and Indian students' images of an internationally-minded person and German students' images of a weltoffener Mensch. Specifically, cognitive factors such as knowledge of a foreign language (especially English) and experiential factors such as living abroad and having foreign friends were stressed over more affective factors such as lack of prejudice, fear towards foreigners, or interest in world issues, peace, and the environment (Table 1).
(from Yoneoka 2000a, Table 2)
| . |
(N=105) |
(N=19) |
(N=78) |
(N=76) |
(N=32) |
(N=92) |
(N=95) |
| Cognitive (knowledge) | 53.7 | 37.8 | 62.4 | 57.8 | 1.2 | 21 | 25 |
| Experience | 23.2 | 31.1 | 15.0 | 12.4 | 3.6 | 2 | 7 |
| Affective (Heart) | 23.1 | 31.1 | 22.6 | 29.8 | 95.2 | 77 | 68 |
Table 1 shows 4 different sets of data for Japanese students. The 1989 and 1999 +E groups were majoring in international economics and English, respectively, whereas both -E groups studied economics. Comparing these groups, two major trends can be seen. First, there is a marked longitudinal shift in the 1999 data away from experiential attributes (such as foreign friends and studying abroad) and towards cognitive attributes, especially foreign language knowledge. Second, the Japanese students with more interest in international matters (the two +E groups) show a higher level of affective attributes, such as lack of prejudice and interest in world peace, than did their less-interested peers, although the figures are still much lower than in any of the other three countries surveyed.
The heart-shift hypothesis
In 1989, comparison of the actual international experience of students from the four countries (measured in terms of international travel, communication and friendship) showed that Germany led the other countries by far (Yoneoka 1993). Indeed, with respect to the four countries surveyed, a mutual correlation was found to exist between actual experience and the prevalence of affective attributes of a kokusaijin. Thus, the following hypothesis was proposed:
The Heart-Shift Hypothesis: An increase in actual international experience leads to a shift towards a more affective heart-based interpretation of the attributes of a kokusaijin.
In other words, having international experience may lead to the realization that such experience is neither a sufficient nor even a necessary criterion for a kokusaijin. Preliminary support for this heart-shift hypothesis was found in the 1989 +E group, a small sample of Japanese 4th year students who had all participated in a seminar trip to China (Yoneoka, 1989). These students indeed showed a relatively higher percentage of affective responses than the general Japanese student population sampled.
To test this hypothesis, the 1989 questionnaire (with minor changes, see Yoneoka, 2000a for sample questionnaire and details on its administration) was given in April 1999 to an equivalent population of Japanese students in two groups. The first part of this questionnaire dealt with the question of how students define kokusaijin, and was discussed in detail in Yoneoka, (2000a). The second portion of the questionnaire is designed to provide the background necessary in order to test the heart-shift hypothesis above.
Specifically, the following research questions are discussed:
- As compared to their counterparts of 1989, how much actual international experience do a group of equivalent Japanese students have in 1999, in terms of travel and study abroad, interaction and communication with foreigners?
- If this actual experience has increased, does this result in a shift towards a more affective interpretation of kokusaijin and kokusaika, as defined in Yoneoka, 2000a?
The results of these research questions pose several implications for the progress of kokusaika for Japanese society as a whole and especially for the educational system; these are addressed in the discussion.
Results
Besides providing information on students' perceptions of what and who a kokusaijin is, and of how the students saw themselves in terms of kokusaika, the questionnaire requested details on various facets of students' actual international-oriented experience. Cross-comparisons of these data with similar data from the 1989 survey of students from four countries are presented in this section.
The international experience score
To determine the relationship of images of kokusaijin with (a) actual international experience and (b) general attitudes towards internationalization, an "international experience score" and "international consciousness score" (%/100) were determined for each group on the basis of various conditions. The conditions and figures for each score are shown in Tables 2 and 3 respectively.
| . |
(N=105) |
(N=19) |
(N=78) |
(N=76) |
(N=32) |
(N=92) |
(N=95) |
| (a)Traveled abroad (x2) |
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| (b) Spoken with foreigner |
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| (c) Int'l com- munication |
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| (d) International friends |
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| Total (2a+b+c+d) x 2/10 |
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Note. *data from Yoneoka, 1993. **data from Yoneoka, 1991.
The "international experience score" was derived by multiplying the percentage of students who had (a) traveled abroad by 2 (100 x 2=200) and adding to this the percentage of students who (b) had spoken with foreigners; (c) telephoned, written or otherwise communicated abroad; and (d) had international friends (100 x 3=300). The sum was then multiplied by 2 (500 x 2=1000) and divided by 10 to get a score out of 100.
For the four Japanese groups, the most striking result was the dramatic rise in personal international experience of the -E students in ten years, from a mere 8.2% in 1989 to 36.8% in 1999. Most of this rise might be attributed to the educational efforts-the overwhelming rise in JET program participant numbers, increased numbers of school trips taken abroad, and more foreign students on Japanese campuses. Although this score is still relatively low compared with those of other countries, it is rapidly approaching that of India. Also, comparing the two +E groups, the 1999 group had higher percentages for all criteria except experience abroad (remember here that the 1989 +E group had all been abroad on a seminar trip to China). This too shows the positive influence of educational reforms of the past decade.
The International Consciousness Score
The "international consciousness score" was obtained by multiplying (a) the average self-evaluation of students with respect to their own level of kokusaika by 2 (100 x 2 =200) and adding to this (b) the percentage of students who desired to travel abroad, (c) felt the need to become more international rather or very strongly, and (d) listed their own personal influence on their international awareness as one of the three top choices out of six possible (100 x 3=300). The sum was then multiplied by 2 (500 x 2=1000) and divided by 10 to get a score out of 100.
In contrast to the dramatic rise in the actual experience scores of the Japanese students over 10 years, the international consciousness scores have increased only slightly, from 36.0 to 41.4 for E students and from 51.0 to 57.6 for +E students. The fact that this rise occurred in both E and +E students indicated that the educational milieu may be responsible, rather than the simple heightened interest and experience abroad which differentiates the two groups.
| . | **Jpn89-E (N=105) |
**Jpn89+E (N=19) |
Jpn99-E (N=78) |
Jpn99+E (N=76) |
*Germany (N=32) |
*India (N=92) |
*USA (N=95) |
| (a) Subjective self- evaluation (x2) |
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| (b) Desire to travel |
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| (c) Need to inter- nationalize |
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| (d) Personal influence on intern- ationalization |
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| Total (2a+b+c+d) x2/10 |
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The lack of a strong rise in the "international consciousness score" was due mainly to the persistently and dismally low Japanese subjective self-evaluations. Although self-evaluation has increased slightly in ten years for both groups, Japanese students continue to rate themselves (and their poor fathers) much lower than any famous politician or personality, including dictatorial world leaders, who were rated between 1-3 by students of the other countries but averaged over 5 for Japanese students. These ratings are also much lower than the self-evaluations of students in other countries.
This trend towards low esteem in terms of personal internationalization may partially be attributed to Japanese kenson (humbleness), but it also shows a clear continuing correlation with the expectations of cognitive and experiential over affective factors when we look at the data of the other three countries. In other words, for each country, the higher the emphasis placed on knowledge and experience, the lower the student average self-evaluations become. On the other hand, the slight rise in self-evaluation over 10 years in both Japanese groups may be due to the possibility that increased actual experience with foreigners and international travel, to some extent at least, has been of some benefit in developing increased confidence with respect to self-internationalization.
Discussion: The "thirstless horse" syndrome
The lack of confidence shown in the international consciousness scores (particularly in self-evaluation) can be at least partially attributed to the high emphasis placed on the nuance of kokusaijin in terms of cognitive factors, i.e. knowledge. Students may assume that they cannot be responsible for such a demanding task as internationalizing oneself in terms of knowledge and experience, especially when the passive aspect of the kokusaika process is taken into account (Yoneoka, 2000a, Note 2). This assumption then leads to a feeling of self-helplessness with respect to active attitudes and participation in the kokusaika process. In other words, this could be understood as a "thirstless horse" syndrome: Students have been led to the international waters, but they are not drinking as they should.
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More evidence for this "thirstless horse" syndrome is seen in the percentages of students who are not interested in going abroad, shown below. We saw in Table 3 that, encouragingly, over 87% of students everywhere want to travel abroad. However, the lowest figures are still among the Japanese E students. Turning the question around, Table 4 shows the percentages of students who replied that they were not interested in going abroad (again), and reveals that nothing has changed in ten years. For both E groups, over one student in ten would prefer to stay at home than to travel to a foreign country.
Even more revealing, and perturbing, is that fully 22% of the 1999 -E students -- more than one in five -- who had already been abroad responded that they were not interested in going abroad again. Personal communication with students who have had experience abroad prior to university reveals that in most cases, this experience was in the form of a school trip. Thus, again, these figures intimate that school-based efforts at internationalization may be backfiring, and that at least some of the horses are not drinking.
Making the horses drink: training in kokusai ishiki
The little-known Japanese term kokusai ishiki (lit. international consciousness, Ishii et al, p. 237) is defined as "consciousness of one's thoughts, feelings and actions with respect to values, opinions and attitudes towards the international society as a whole and towards any of its manifestations." This kokusai ishiki is also recognized as forming at least part of what kokusai rikai kyoiku (education in international understanding) should be (ibid. p. 153).
However, we have seen from the data that kokusai ishiki is still not regarded as an integral aspect of a kokusaijin by the majority of Japanese students surveyed, even with the significant rise in actual international-oriented experience. Rather, the role of this experience itself has been downplayed, implying that the young Japanese in this study did not see their own experience as making them much more internationalized. Thus, the image of a kokusaijin shifted more towards cognitive attributes (knowledge and language ability) rather than affective attributes. This implies that international education may do better to prepare students emotionally to take a more active interest in international matters rather than simply throwing them into international situations and hoping they sink or swim. Many Japanese may still cling to myths of uniqueness, inferiority/superiority and insularity, and these present major stumbling blocks in the minds of would-be kokusaijin.
There are at least three possible ways to proceed with development of kokusai ishiki. One of these is direct cross-cultural training with an emphasis on respect and value for human rights and the ability to "be in another's shoes." The elementary school cross-cultural education curriculum due to be implemented in 2002 may provide an excellent opportunity for such training. The first point on such a curriculum, however, should be to break down any notions that Japanese society and people are inherently unique and different from other peoples, or else any such training may end up reinforcing the very prejudices and stereotypes it is meant to avoid. It should also endeavor to instill a healthy pride in one's own personal identity and culture that does not necessarily require knowledge of minute details of specific items of Japanese cultural heritage, such as tea ceremony or sumo wrestling. It should also emphasize that language knowledge, especially of English, while extremely helpful in international communication, (a) is not a necessary condition for development of kokusai ishiki and (b) does not by any means guarantee the development of an individual as a kokusaijin. (1) The same is true of actual experience with foreign countries and people. Finally, an interest in other countries, cultures and customs extending far beyond a simple dosage of US pop culture must be instilled along with the motivation to continue developing international bonds, ties and friendships.
A second method might be to "give the horses what they think they need," by providing a strict and thorough education in language (especially in communicative competence) and world affairs in addition to the experience-oriented education they are now receiving. This would perform the role of a placebo in the sense that students who have extensive experience and language ability would perhaps come to realize that something more is needed to actually be a true kokusaijin. Instruction in world affairs should include exposure to issues and problems such as poverty, overpopulation and environment from a world point of view rather than a national one.
A third method, and perhaps the most simple and direct, is to reteach the meaning of kokusaijin itself. Simple presentation of the data from this series of surveys should be enough to make some students realize that they have been downplaying affective factors. When students come to their own reassessments of these terms, they should tend to develop an increased self-confidence in their own international worth, which may lead to increased interest and motivation to gain more knowledge and a better understanding of the world situation. As one student put it, "I had originally rated myself as a 3 in terms of my kokusaika level, but after realizing that the important thing is not necessarily language ability, I now give myself a 6."
At the very least, it is clear that some of the educational programs meant to cultivate kokusaika should undergo a review or quality control process. Especially, we need to address the problem raised by the fact that 22% of the students in Jpn99-E who had gone abroad were not interested in going again. Suggestions for improving this figure would include encouraging more independence and freedom of choice with respect to school trips, not only with respect to the destination, but also with where to stay, what to do, and how to forge long-lasting friendships and ties. In addition, parents could be encouraged to take a more active role in the international education of their children by actually taking them abroad themselves, and allowing and encouraging them to travel abroad alone or with friends, if they so desire.
Conclusion
In the past decade, thanks to the JET program, international school trips, efforts of parents and English teachers, and advanced communications, the rate of actual international experience of students has more than doubled. Indeed, there has been a marked shift away from experience as a characteristic of a kokusaijin, which can be attributed to the increasing international experience of the students themselves. However, the answers as to whether this increased actual international experience has resulted in a more affective interpretation of kokusaijin and improved self-evaluations towards kokusaika unfortunately must be no on both accounts. For kokusaijin, the shift away from experience has resulted more in an increase of emphasis on cognitive factors rather than affective attributes. Thus, for students who feel they are lacking in such knowledge (i.e. most students), this puts the goal of becoming a kokusaijin in an even more unattainable position than it was before. Perhaps because of this, desire to travel abroad remains unchanged, even decreasing among -E students who have already been abroad.
These results provide little support for the heart-shift hypothesis discussed in section 1.1. A slight shift towards affective responses was indeed found to occur in students with more international experience, but there was also a corresponding shift towards emphasis on language ability. In addition, as higher figures for affective attributes are seen in both the 1989 and 1999 +E students, this phenomenon must be interpreted as coming not from increased exposure but rather from an inherent interest in internationalization itself on the part of these students.
Of course, as measurement of language ability did not play a role in this paper (although we assume that the +E students, being foreign language majors, in general have more language ability than the E students), we can still argue a modified form of the hypothesis: that increased confidence in both language and world knowledge in addition to increased experience may push students closer to affective responses. Repeating this questionnaire with a group of highly advanced language students with extensive experience abroad would serve to address this argument.
Finally, the problem of school-based cross-cultural training backfiring and producing anti-kokusaika sentiment is a real one, shown by the fact that over 1 in 5 E students who had been abroad were not inspired enough by that experience to want to do it again. Thus, it may be that a more fundamentally humanistic approach to cultivating kokusaika is needed. It is hoped that the cross-cultural education due to be introduced in 2002 into elementary schools may provide this approach, although care must be taken that stereotypical walls are broken down rather than built up.
References
Ishii, T. et al. (1996). Ibunka kommyunike-shon handobukku : kisochishiki kara oyo, jissen made (Intercultural communication handbook, in Japanese). Tokyo: Yukaikakusensho.
Yoneoka, J. (2000a). (in press). What is a Kokusaijin?: A 10-year study. The Language Teacher, 24 (9).
Yoneoka, J. (1999). Towards the 21st century: goals and obstacles in English education in Japan. Kumamoto Gakuen University Ronshu Sogo Kagaku 5-2 (p. 53-73).
Yoneoka, J. (1993). Kokusaika no ime-ji;: nihon, doitsu, indo, amerika no daigakusei no hikaku. (Images of internationalization: comparison of survey responses from Japan, Germany, India and the United States, in Japanese). Kumamoto Shoka Daigaku Kaigai Kenshuron 20-2 (p. 81-95).
Yoneoka, J. (1991). Nihon to doitsu no wakamono no kokusaika ni taisuru ishiki ya taido ni tsuite. (Student attitudes towards internationalism in Japan and Germany, in Japanese). Kumamoto Shoka Daigaku Kaigai Kenshuron 19-1 (pp. 1-10).
1 As English is to form part of the 2002 curriculum, a potential pitfall to be carefully avoided is reinforcing the equation internationalization = westernization = English (Yoneoka, 1999). If English must be taught in conjunction with cross-cultural education, it must be done so as an international language, i.e. one that can be used among Asian, African and other peoples of the world, rather than simply a language to be used with North Americans, British, Australians and New Zealanders.
Judy Yoneoka has been teaching English language, linguistics, and cross-cultural education in Japan for almost 20 years. Her research interests include computers and the Internet in language education, World Englishes, and corpus linguistics. She currently resides in Kumamoto, Japan. <judy@kumagaku.ac.jp>
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