Modelling the perceived value of compulsory English language education in undergraduate non-language majors of Japanese nationality

Abstract

Adopting mixed methods of data collection and analysis, the current study models the ‘perceived value of compulsory English language education’ in a sample of 138 undergraduate non-language majors of Japanese nationality at a national university in Japan. During the orientation period of a compulsory 15-week English language programme, the 138 students (from four individual classes) wrote about and discussed their beliefs in regard to the institution's position that English language education was important (as reflected through the compulsory status of the English language classes undertaken in their freshmen year). The qualitative textual responses gathered during the orientation period were thematically divided into three categories: an international friendship orientation, an international career orientation and an international engagement orientation. The theoretical principles underpinning these three categories were used to inform the creation of a Japanese language survey instrument administered at the end of the 15-week programme. The quantitative survey data gathered were subsequently fit to a three-factor model of the ‘perceived value of compulsory English language education’. The findings are discussed in relation to the various positions of English language education within the Japanese context.

Keywords:

• compulsory foreign language education
• foreign language policy tensions
• Japanese tertiary education
• non-language majors

Acknowledgement

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the editor and the two anonymous reviewers for offering constructive feedback on the original version of this paper.