tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post113816173131141548..comments2023-07-22T23:33:58.038+09:00Comments on EFL in Japan: Historical change, historical fossilization5330http://www.blogger.com/profile/11752690938113124517noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138770680059111592006-02-01T14:11:00.000+09:002006-02-01T14:11:00.000+09:00JH,I hope listening isn't reduced to listening to ...JH,<BR/>I hope listening isn't reduced to listening to that kind of stuff. It would be nice if teachers could adopt extensive listening syllabuses for their learners. This is a great resource for that from Rob Waring (http://www1.harenet.ne.jp/~waring/er/index.html). Great stuff, and would really be empowering for the students. (So read the last comment and guess what will probably happen.)5330https://www.blogger.com/profile/11752690938113124517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138769943587303962006-02-01T13:59:00.000+09:002006-02-01T13:59:00.000+09:00It will take a pretty long time. Education will ha...It will take a pretty long time. Education will have to retool itself to empower people, and that isn't the paradigm presently.5330https://www.blogger.com/profile/11752690938113124517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138602965022768392006-01-30T15:36:00.000+09:002006-01-30T15:36:00.000+09:00I proctored the center test. We were nervous that ...I proctored the center test. We were nervous that something would go wrong given the logistic difficulty but luckily nothing did. I understand the acoustics of many classrooms are not so great, but I think that they should play the listening text on a loud stereo. There are bound to be a couple of defects with 500,000 machines. I also think that the Japanese media is absolutely ludicrous for making an issue of such a small percentage of machines malfunctioning (or it could have been test-takers not understanding directions). There were a lot less problems than I thought there would be. <BR/>Still, will adding a listening component to the center test really improve English education? Adding a listening component to me seems to mean that now students will spend more time listening to cheesy artificial dialogues of eikaiwa Bob and Jane on tape.JHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01179353111986149963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138374824083193352006-01-28T00:13:00.000+09:002006-01-28T00:13:00.000+09:00The degree of social control, and the docility of ...The degree of social control, and the docility of those subjected to it, is pretty frightening, frankly. The industrial system that created the need for this kind of "education" is long gone, but few seem to have noticed...How long to get them out of this mind-set, I wonder?Guy Jeanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04096668246272788520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138234116968875322006-01-26T09:08:00.000+09:002006-01-26T09:08:00.000+09:00I agree with you about which one is the best answe...I agree with you about which one is the best answer, but after having asked some very proficient learners about their choises, I don't think this is a question they can answer.5330https://www.blogger.com/profile/11752690938113124517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5396360.post-1138176566891995402006-01-25T17:09:00.000+09:002006-01-25T17:09:00.000+09:00I think the answer is obviously #2. Contrast with ...I think the answer is obviously #2. Contrast with "everyone." "Didn't" is possible but sounds weird. "Check" is a little better, but "I" is still the *best* answer, which presumably was the question. However, can students taught in the Japanese system, mostly paying attention to reading/writing and grammar, really answer this question anyway?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com