The Language Teacher
December 2002
Implementing Oral Communication Classes in Upper Secondary Schools:
A Case Study
Taguchi Naoko
Minnesota State University--Akita, Japan
The late 20th century has witnessed the widespread adoption of communicative language teaching in many countries using English as a second or foreign language. English education in Japan is no exception. In 1989, the Japanese Ministry of Education announced a new curriculum that incorporated oral communication as a distinct subject area for upper secondary schools. The national curriculum guidelines (hereafter, Course of Study) were an attempt to promote the communicative approach, emphasizing the development of speaking and listening skills in the classroom. Although the purpose of the 1989 Course of Study was well disseminated by the central government, questions about its impact on local schools remain. Since educational reform requires active participation of all stakeholders for successful implementation, it is important to investigate how the practitioners at the local level have accepted the curriculum. Based on the data obtained in one local prefecture, this case study provides some information on how the curriculum changes are perceived and practiced by local English teachers and curriculum supervisors.
Oral Communication Classes and Implementation Difficulties
The proposal to incorporate an oral communication course into the Course of Study of upper secondary schools first appeared in 1987 in the Third Proposal submitted by the Central Council of Education at the request of the Ministry of Education. The proposal informed guidelines for the nation-wide task of educational reform, due to the necessity in responding to social changes such as internationalization and the growth of an information-oriented society. The Third Report claimed that English education should focus on the development of communicative skills and intercultural understanding in order to produce Japanese citizens who can "earn the trust of the international community" (Mombusho, 1994, p. 101). The Council's deliberation was officially approved, and the English subjects, Oral Communication A, B, and C, were introduced in the Course of Study in 1989 and became mandatory in 1994, in order to "cultivate students' positive attitude to attempt communication" (Mombusho, 1989). The 1989 Course of Study was further revised in 1999 and will take effect in April of 2003. In the more recent curriculum, oral communication receives greater emphasis by promoting the teaching of spoken English in an integrated manner.
The literature indicates an overall difficulty in implementing oral communication (OC) classes in Japanese secondary education because of entrance exams, large class size, or limited class time (Brown & Wada, 1998; Oka & Yoshida, 1997). Gorsuch's (2000, 2001) survey study examined how national, school, and classroom variables are related to teachers' approval of communicative activities. The results showed that the centrality of grammar-oriented college entrance exams presents a well-defined instructional focus and shapes teachers' classroom practices. Teachers' grammar-based instruction is hard to change even after they go through training programs on communicative methods. Pacek (1996) showed that teachers who had a one-year in-service training could not implement the methods due to institutional concerns and tradition.
Top-down innovation may not bring the expected results because of culture-specific beliefs about language teaching which are deeply rooted in local tradition. As Hatton (1985) states, implementation of innovations involves the interaction of two cultures: the culture of the innovators and the culture of actual practice. When there is a gap between the two, a conflict arises and innovation faces difficulty. Ricento (1998) also stresses that policies that violate people's deep values and beliefs will be difficult, if not impossible, to implement. Continuous evaluation of the implementation process is necessary in order to identify specific areas of implementation difficulty of communicative teaching in Japanese educational settings.
Findings for the Present Study
This case study examined the implementation of OC classes in upper secondary schools in a prefecture located in northern Japan. The study compiled information from two perspectives, local English teachers and curriculum supervisors.
Perceptions of English Teachers
Teachers' opinions of OC classes and their classroom practice were analyzed through a survey. The informants were 25 English teachers in upper secondary schools (10 male and 15 female) in the prefecture. The majority of the teachers were in their 20s and 30s, with the mean number of years of teaching being 12.8. A two-page survey was developed in Japanese based on both the researcher's experience of teaching English in an upper secondary school and previous research on teacher perceptions of communicative innovation (Brown & Wada, 1998; Li, 1998; Pacek, 1996).
Current teaching practice
Table 1 presents the results of typical language activities in OC classes. Speaking/listening activities in groups or pairs were reported by the majority, although information as to how such pair/group work is done was not available. The frequent use of more mechanical activities, such as dialogue practice and listening to tapes, may be partially due to the constraint of large class size.
All teachers reported using written tests and quizzes for evaluation. Only three teachers said that they give interview, conversation, recitation, speech, or listening tests in addition to the written tests. The time spoken in English was reported as 40% on average, ranging from 0 to 100%. A high percentage (80 to 100%) was reported only when team-teaching with an ALT, suggesting that the instructions and directions are given in English. All teachers reported that a tape player is their major classroom equipment, and one teacher reported using a VCR.
Table 1: Summary of Teacher Responses about Their Current Teaching Practices
Survey Questions |
Frequency |
Typical activities in OC classes
|
|
Assessment methods |
|
Note. The frequency in the table refers to the number of teachers who reported individual activities and assessment methods.
Perceptions of communicative competence and curriculum
Nineteen teachers defined communicative competence as the ability to understand others' messages and to convey one's message, presenting the view of communication as information exchange. Three teachers expressed that communicative competence entails sociocultural knowledge: the ability to interact politely and to maintain favourable personal relationships. These responses reflect teachers' understanding that communication refers to the properties of both language and behavior, consistent with the national curriculum.
The teachers seem to have concrete ideas on what it would take to fulfill the curriculum objectives. When asked about classroom activities that could achieve the objectives, they listed a range of ideas: oral presentations, games and role plays, Internet communication, use of audio-visual equipment, discussion, and content/task-based instruction. However, they also mentioned that external conditions such as small class size, ALT support, and an English-only class atmosphere, need to be arranged in order to achieve the objectives. The results present a gap between the ideal activities and the activities in current practice; there seems to be an apparent conflict between what the curriculum demands and what the teaching situation allows.
Fifteen teachers indicated that OC classes have a positive influence on students' communicative ability in terms of increasing opportunities to speak and listen in English and positive attitudes toward oral/aural activities. OC classes seem to help raise students' consciousness toward English as a communicative tool and reduce their resistance towards expressing themselves in English. However, 10 teachers noted that there has been little influence of OC on students' ability. Two teachers in particular expressed that there is little necessity and reason for students to practice communicative skills in the EFL context.
Perceived implementation difficulties
Teachers' perceived difficulties in implementing communicative teaching were investigated through 9 Likert-scaled questions (Table 2). The Likert-scaled items used an ordinal scale ranging from "Not a Difficulty at All (1)" to "A Great Difficulty (5)" for each potential area of difficulty. The greater mean in the table indicates a greater level of difficulty.
Table 2: Reported Difficulty Factors in Implementing OC Classes
Difficulty Areas (Likert-Scaled Items) |
Very Easy |
Easy |
Neutral |
Difficult |
Very Difficult |
1. Teachers'speaking ability |
0 |
1 |
9 |
9 |
6 |
Note. The numbers in the table represent the number of responses received from the English teachers.
Entrance exams and large class size received the greatest response, indicating that these factors are perceived as seriously limiting the implementation of OC classes. Five teachers commented that part of the OC class is used for grammar instruction due to the pressure of preparing students to pass the grammar-based college entrance exams. The following comment illustrates the dilemma between teachers' desire to teach communicative skills and their tacit purpose and goal of teaching English:
Because of the exam constraints, we don't have much freedom in organizing creative or practical classes. Teachers want to develop students' communicative skills, but in reality, our biggest interest now is the standardized scores of various mock exams so that we can prepare students for the entrance exams.
In the surveys, some teachers noted a relationship between large class sizes and student passivity in class: "Students are used to [a] lecture-style class and not used to speaking up in class. They always worry if their answers are correct or not. Smaller classes could help solve such a problem." The teacher-related difficulties also received a relatively strong response. More than 70% of the teachers commented that they do not have enough time. Although 11 teachers responded that OC textbooks are not a problem in teaching OC classes, some teachers commented that the textbooks are a constraint on preparing more creative lessons:
I haven't seen a great OC textbook, so I hardly ever use textbooks. Usually our ALT prepares something related to the topic, and we just do some activities according to the lesson plan. When it comes to enhancing students' practical communicative skills, we are really not sure if this is an effective way.
Perception of the Curriculum Supervisor
Three 40-minute interviews were conducted with English curriculum supervisors who belong to the prefectural authority that provides in-service training programs for local teachers. The supervisors had been in the position between one and three years and had taught for more than two decades in local upper secondary schools. The interview proceeded with six questions that were mailed to the supervisors prior to the interview. The questions asked about teacher-training programs, roles of ALTs, observed changes in English classes, and perceived difficulty in adapting OC classes. What follows is a collective summary of the interviews.
Teacher training
The supervisors reported three annual teacher-training programs for volunteer participants in lower and upper secondary schools: a Communication Seminar (2 days), Listening Training (1 day), and a Team-Teaching Seminar (2 days). The purpose of these programs is twofold: to improve teachers' English skills and to introduce useful "teaching methods," although the former receives greater emphasis. Listening/reading exercises using TV news, commercials, movies, TOEIC materials and newspapers were sample activities. ALTs are invited to the teacher-training sessions, so interactions with ALTs also contribute to the skill training of the Japanese participants. No special sessions were provided to prepare teachers specifically for OC classes within the prefecture.
Changes in English classes
The supervisors indicated some observed changes in classroom activities and equipment after the curriculum innovation. Although tape/CD players still occupy the main place, the use of overhead projectors, language laboratory, and computers has increased. Along with textbook changes, teachers are shifting from exclusive use of grammar-translation methodology to the inclusion of some communicative activities. However, they also remarked that OC classes have been unable to produce their intended outcome because the subject, Oral Communication, has not been fully adopted in classrooms due to the continuing emphasis on reading/grammar instruction.
Some reasons for this include teachers' limited repertoire of communicative activities, as well as their limited practice in expanding the use of activities. For instance, as reported by one supervisor, listening and reading activities should not be mere meaning comprehension exercises; extending practices such as outlining, paraphrasing and transferring the information to others, or responding to the information in writing should accompany the exercises.
According to another supervisor, there is a need for creating authentic situations and purposes for using English in a classroom. For example, by using English as the instructional medium, students can experience how English works in actual settings. As another example, rather than having teachers read students' essays or letters, students could exchange their writings and provide feedback to each other (e.g. peer writing journals) in order to provide some authenticity into their language practice.
Influence of ALTs
All three supervisors expressed positive impressions about the roles of ALTs in local English education. ALTs are considered beneficial in providing students and Japanese teachers with opportunities for listening to native-speaker English, creating occasions for authentic communication and promoting intercultural understanding. Two supervisors said that since ALTs are supportive about team-teaching, it is Japanese teachers' responsibility to make full use of their contributions (e.g., planning lessons in a more cooperative manner).
Perceived implementation difficulties
All supervisors reported that college entrance exams are the greatest obstacle. Since the exams are largely based on reading comprehension, teachers seem to have a common understanding that doing communicative activities exclusively in class does not help students to pass the exams. However, according to one supervisor, the style and content of entrance exams have indicated some change. More and more exam questions in individual universities, particularly essay questions, aim to measure students' ability to express their ideas. One supervisor indicated that in the near future the national Center Exams will include a listening section. Another major obstacle reported by the supervisors is teachers' ability and confidence in communicating in English, along with their knowledge of communicative teaching methods and assessment techniques. Since many teachers have little experience in learning and teaching in using the communicative approach, they do not yet have established patterns as to how to organize and develop communicative lessons. A lack of precedent and examples in their immediate environment also impedes the actual practice of the communicative teaching.
The supervisors further agreed that large class size is another factor causing difficulty, but students' ability and passive learning styles, textbooks, and ALT support are not. They indicated that it is the teachers' job to motivate students and provide appropriate materials according to their levels. The problem of large class size could be also overcome because some schools now split the class into two sections when teaching OC (20-25 students per class). The supervisors considered that teachers' low participation rate in in-service training or workshops is another problematic issue.
Summary and Conclusion
The results of this case study revealed some internal and external constraints that may discourage the practice of the communicative approach in English classrooms. One major internal constraint reported by the teachers is students' passivity. Students' lack of motivation and their reluctance to participate in class seem to be a primary limitation in implementing communicative teaching practices. Some teachers stated that the problem is common in all classes, not only in English classes, and arises from the Japanese education system as a whole. The expected roles of a student in a traditional Japanese classroom are to listen to the teacher attentively and to take notes; however, such roles are obstacles to the success of a communicative class where it is crucial for students to engage in speaking. In contrast to the teachers' opinions, the curriculum supervisors did not indicate students' passivity as problem. They seemed to have high expectations of the teachers, assuming teacher responsibility in promoting positive classroom atmosphere and attitudes to communicate.
The principal external constraints identified in this study are large class size and university entrance exams. The teachers and curriculum supervisors reported that it is extremely difficult to promote communicative activities with 40 students in one class. Large class size is probably the factor that limits classroom activities to mechanical and structured exercises, such as dialogue practice or listening to a tape. Although teachers seem to share a similar understanding of what communicative ability entails, enhancing students' performance in OC classes appears to be difficult. The teachers seem to limit their expectations to doing some kind of oral/aural activities in class, without questioning the degree of communicativeness of the activities. Although a majority of teachers and the curriculum supervisors acknowledged the positive influence of OC classes, their comments were concentrated around "students' positive attitudes" and "increasing opportunities in speaking and listening" as the primary benefits of OC, rather than on actual improvement of communicative proficiency.
Lack of systematic assessment of OC classes also provides support for this interpretation. The data seem to indicate that teachers do not appear to have clear ideas of how to assess communicative skills. These results are consistent with Li's (1998) findings that teachers in Korea found it disconcerting that there are no efficient ready-made tools to assess communicative abilities of a large group of students. At present, the teachers' goal in OC classes seems to be focused on creating opportunities to use oral/aural skills, rather than on enhancement of communicative proficiency for authentic purposes.
Similarly, the teachers and the supervisors seem to be aware of students' pressing need to study English as an academic subject rather than a communicative tool, acknowledging the reality that grammar and reading are still the instructional focus in class.
The fact that current teacher training programs do not cover foundation theories and methods of communicative teaching and assessment seems to imply that incorporating a few oral activities into the OC classes is considered to be sufficient. This oversight permits individual teachers to draw their own conclusions as to what is important in the class, resulting in the formulation of an unstated philosophy that "OC instruction should not interfere with entrance exam preparation."
According to the teachers and supervisors, entrance exams are themselves another external constraint that restricts the practice of communicative teaching. The teachers' opinions are a reflection of washback effects, or the influence of testing on teaching and learning. As Shohamy (2001) states, high-stake public exams are often used as instruments of control in a school system and provide focus and guidelines for classroom instruction. In the present analysis, the washback effect is evident in teachers' pressure to prepare students for the exams, as expressed in the survey.
In conclusion, local English teachers surveyed in this study seem to be in an awkward position, caught between the objectives of OC and the constraints that discourage their active practice. This EFL context presents challenges for attaching value to OC because acquiring knowledge to pass entrance exams seems to be the majority of students' authentic goal for studying English. The curricular innovation planned by the Ministry of Education seems to have symbolic rather than functional meaning. The end users of the innovation have established a tacit practice in order to circumvent the formal curriculum and to fulfil their practical, genuine objective of English instruction. Other internal and external factors (e.g. class size, student passivity, etc.) seem to jointly contribute to this local practice.
Based on the present case study, it seems that future research on the participants' perceived difficulties and their actual practice is needed. Furthermore, longitudinal data on the perceptions of teachers and students could add to our understanding, as many concerns expressed by the teachers (e.g., students' low ability and motivation, time for material development) are not static factors. They are dynamic in nature and thus have a potential to change with increasing experience in new pedagogical attitudes and beliefs (Markee, 1997; van den Berg & Ros, 1999). Thus, future research that investigates teachers' and students' changing practices in the communicative classroom could prove interesting.
Acknowledgements
I sincerely thank the local English teachers and curriculum supervisors who spared their busy time and provided valuable information to this study. Thanks also go to Dr. Mary McGroarty at Northern Arizona University for her guidance throughout this study.
References
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