In response to a globalised education context that places increasing pressure on higher education institutions for pedagogical innovation and reform, universities are attempting to carve out more meaningful identities through reimagining campus design. As universities introduce more decentralised spaces, from strictly learning environments to a…

This paper reports an attempt to enhance Japanese learners' Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) through an undergraduate English class in 2022. The students read essays on an American writer's experience living in Japan, exchanged thoughts, and gave individual presentations. They also learned and practiced discussion skills in the first…

Widespread use of mobile instant messaging (MIM) both formally by educators and voluntarily by students to support coursework has resulted in increased interest in the academic utility of the technology. However, due to the relative newness of the technology there is a call for more studies on how MIM impacts teaching and learning. To address this…

Amid the increasing popularity of task-based language teaching, task motivation is considered one of the keys to success, but motivational influence among learners has not been sufficiently addressed in the literature. The purpose of this study is to investigate the process of motivation contagion in language learning pair work. Specifically, it…

Student preferences for group size were investigated. Pre- and post-study surveys, student written comments, and teacher observations were used to record changes in attitude and perception of group work while learning English over an eight-week period. In this study, I observed how arrangement impacted my students' impressions of individual, pair,…

The aims of this paper are to (a) examine the relatedness needs of Japanese university EFL learners, and (b) make suggestions on how instructors could organize group work in their classes. Self-determination theory postulates that, the more individuals' relatedness needs are fulfilled, the more they are intrinsically motivated. However, some…

This research investigates how foreign language learners learn vocabulary in an English as a Second Language (ESL) classroom. The participants are eleven foreign students from an advanced ESL Reading class in Edmonds Community College in Lynnwood, WA. A questionnaire was used as an instrument to inquire about the students' vocabulary learning…

Incivilities are words and actions that may be perceived as impolite. This article reports a study of perceptions of and experiences with incivilities during group activities in English class. Participants were 119 students at a women's university in Japan. They completed the Pair/Groupwork Incivility Scale, a Japanese-language instrument, which…

Task-based language learning (TBLL) has heavily influenced syllabus design, classroom teaching, and learner assessment in a foreign or second language teaching context. In this English as foreign language (EFL) learning environment, the paper discussed an innovative language learning pedagogy based on design education and technical writing. In…

Despite a culture with cooperation as a core value, (Nagao, Takashi, & Okuda, 2011) Japanese higher education generally uses rigid lecture-test teaching models that neither support nor condone small-group learning methods in the classroom. As a result, Japanese college students usually work outside the classroom to develop the collaborative…

This paper explores, from a sociocultural perspective, the nature and functions of "zemi" or seminars in which Japanese undergraduate students received group supervision for research and thesis writing. The study also investigates how the "zemi" contributed to completion of their theses. It was found that the "zemi"…

They sat in the Cubberley Education Lecture Hall to hear visiting experts. More often they could be found meeting in reduced-size classes, or working on small-group activities. They usually took notes; sometimes they took field trips. They memorized lists and sat for exams, but they also watched films and acted out scenarios. Rather than take…

This article explores project-based cross-cultural and cross-institutional learning. Using Web 2.0 technologies, this project involved more than 240 students and eighteen academic staff from seven international universities. The focus of this article relates to a project-based learning activity named "The Gift". At each institution the…

In Japan, Internet based learning is still at an early stage. However, adult learners in Japanese society expect the development of flexible e-learning programs. This case study examines motivational factors affecting online learning in a Japanese and Australian MBA program, using observations, interviews and a questionnaire survey. The data were…