Japanese Language Instruction in the United States: Resources, Practice, and Investment Strategy. National Foreign Language Center Monograph Series

A survey was conducted to examine the depth and breadth of Japanese language instruction offered in the United States, to analyze the impact of mainstreaming instruction in one of the most difficult languages to teach, and to make recommendations leading to increased instructional effectiveness. Teachers, administrators, and students were surveyed directly, and additional information was gathered from agencies and from institutional site visits. These sources included elementary and secondary school teachers, administrators, and students; college teachers, administrators, and students; alumni of a Cornell University (New York) intensive Japanese program; 17 companies doing business in Japan, 10 federal agencies providing language training; 34 proprietary language schools; and 15 local Japanese-American societies. Data gathered included program characteristics, student characteristics, language learning problems and withdrawal rates, instructional materials, teacher characteristics, classroom practices, and student progress rates. Results in each population are analyzed separately, and a concluding section outlines general findings, the principal problems of Japanese language instruction, and program development strategies suggested by the survey results. Appended are lists of working committee members, site visit team members, and pre-collegiate conference participants, as well as charts showing survey respondents by category and institution. (MSE)