Summer Language, Culture and Technology Institute

The Alliance of Associations of Teachers of Japanese is pleased to announce a six-week language, culture, and technology institute in Japan for teachers of Japanese. Funding from the U.S. Department of Education's Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad program will allow the Alliance to award fellowships to twelve teachers for this exciting program.

The institute will be conducted in collaboration with Japan's National Institute for Multimedia Education (NIME). Participants will work with faculty at NIME and also with teachers in Japanese schools to develop standards-based lesson modules using multimedia technology, authentic materials (including video and audio), and web technology. With easy-to-use computer editing programs, participants will create Japanese lessons that include authentic video and audio clips and upload them to a web site. After completing this workshop, participants will be able to develop effective standards-based lesson plans using multimedia, use a digital video camera to develop multimedia classroom materials, and develop web-based lessons for their students using WebCT and other educational authoring software.

The institute will be based in Makuhari New City, located halfway between Tokyo and Narita airport and the site of a number of educational, commercial, cultural, and governmental facilities.

A five-day trip to Nagano Prefecture and numerous shorter excursions in the Tokyo area will allow participants to visit classrooms, meet local teachers, gather materials for their own curriculum units, and collect realia.

Advanced language instruction for non-native speakers will be available as part of the institute curriculum, and cultural activities will be planned in response to the participants' backgrounds and interests.

Fellowships will cover round-trip travel to Japan, domestic transportation, and instruction and materials costs. Participants will be asked to pay only for their meals (estimated at about $150 per week or $900 for the six weeks). Participants will also be asked to share what they learn in the program with other teachers during the year following the institute, by sharing the curricula they develop with other teachers, publishing reports, presenting at local or regional conferences, or in other ways.

Participants should be able to use word processing software in Japanese, use a web browser, and carry out daily conversation in Japanese. Priority will be given to applicants who meet the following criteria:

• be currently teaching Japanese in an accredited American school;
• be a licensed or certified teacher or involved in teacher training;
• have language skills at least equivalent to third-year university-level instruction;
• be a member of ATJ or NCJLT;
• have demonstrated a commitment to K-12 teaching through (a) involvement in professional organizations and activities and/or (b) advocacy of their language program in the community.

Applications must be postmarked by January 15, 2002. Recipients will be notified on or before February 15, 2002.

Institute application forms may be downloaded as a Word document or as a pdf file. Further information on the curriculum will be posted here in coming weeks.

If you have technical difficulties, please email to atj@colorado.edu