Tokyo JALT

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Self-efficacy, Willingness-to-Communicate, Perceived-Communicative-Competence as Predictors of Spoken Task Production: My PLL Journal as an ISLA Researcher

Individual Differences Predicting Spoken Task Production: My PLL Journal as an ISLA Researcher

Speaker: Dr. Joseph P. Vitta

Date: Wednesday, August 7
Time: 7:30pm-8:30pm on Zoom

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/MxEVYTLZyEEZQAEP9

Abstract
In recent years, understanding the psychological factors that influence language learning has become increasingly topical. In this presentation, I will discuss two studies supported by a KAKENHI grant awarded to me to explore this area. In the first (Vitta et al., 2023: RELC Journal), an instrument to measure self-efficacy specifically during English discussion tasks is developed and initially validated. This tool helps capture students' confidence levels in a detailed and task-specific manner, offering a more precise understanding of their self-efficacy. Building on this, the second study (Leeming, Vitta et al., 2024) examined how different psychological factors—willingness to communicate (WTC), speaking self-efficacy (SSE), and perceived communicative competence (PCC)—predict actual spoken task performance. We found that students who felt more confident (higher SSE) and competent (higher PCC) were more willing to communicate, which in turn led to greater language production during discussions. Throughout this research journey, several lessons emerged. Firstly, the importance of context-specific measurements became clear; general measures of self-efficacy were less effective than those tailored to specific tasks. Secondly, the intricate interplay between different psychological factors highlighted the need for a holistic approach when studying language learning. Lastly, the cross-validation process reinforced the value of replicating studies across different settings to ensure the reliability of findings. While presenting this research, I will also unpack how domestic and international collaboration with leading researchers yielded in high quality research.

Bio
Dr. Joseph P. Vitta is an Associate Professor (tenured) at Waseda University where he specializes in academic writing and second language research. His research interests include instructed L2 vocabulary, linguistic complexity, applied linguistics research methods reform, L2 research synthesis, and ISLA. He sits on the editorial boards of several international journals and has published in field leading journals such as Studies in Second Language Acquisition, the Modern Language Journal, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, and RELC Journal.

Did you RSVP yet? If not, RSVP now!

Self-efficacy, Willingness-to-Communicate, Perceived-Communicative-Competence as Predictors of Spoken Task Production: My PLL Journal as an ISLA Researcher

Speaker: Dr. Joseph P. Vitta

Date: Wednesday, August 7
Time: 7:30pm-8:30pm on Zoom

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/MxEVYTLZyEEZQAEP9

Abstract
In recent years, understanding the psychological factors that influence language learning has become increasingly topical. In this presentation, I will discuss two studies supported by a KAKENHI grant awarded to me to explore this area. In the first (Vitta et al., 2023: RELC Journal), an instrument to measure self-efficacy specifically during English discussion tasks is developed and initially validated. This tool helps capture students' confidence levels in a detailed and task-specific manner, offering a more precise understanding of their self-efficacy. Building on this, the second study (Leeming, Vitta et al., 2024) examined how different psychological factors—willingness to communicate (WTC), speaking self-efficacy (SSE), and perceived communicative competence (PCC)—predict actual spoken task performance. We found that students who felt more confident (higher SSE) and competent (higher PCC) were more willing to communicate, which in turn led to greater language production during discussions. Throughout this research journey, several lessons emerged. Firstly, the importance of context-specific measurements became clear; general measures of self-efficacy were less effective than those tailored to specific tasks. Secondly, the intricate interplay between different psychological factors highlighted the need for a holistic approach when studying language learning. Lastly, the cross-validation process reinforced the value of replicating studies across different settings to ensure the reliability of findings. While presenting this research, I will also unpack how domestic and international collaboration with leading researchers yielded in high quality research.

Bio
Dr. Joseph P. Vitta is an Associate Professor (tenured) at Waseda University where he specializes in academic writing and second language research. His research interests include instructed L2 vocabulary, linguistic complexity, applied linguistics research methods reform, L2 research synthesis, and ISLA. He sits on the editorial boards of several international journals and has published in field leading journals such as Studies in Second Language Acquisition, the Modern Language Journal, Language Learning, Language Teaching Research, and RELC Journal.

If you missed our event, Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom, watch it on YouTube now!
https://youtu.be/TLLBcH2Sgag

If you missed our event, Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom, watch it on YouTube now!

Finding the Balance Between TECH and TOUCH in the Young Learner Classroom Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom Event speakers: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto, Budi Azhari Lubis, and Naoko Araki AmanoSu...

1 day before our event, Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom! RSVP now and attend!

Event speakers: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto, Budi Azhari Lubis, and Naoko Araki Amano

Sunday, June 23, 2024 - 10:00am to 1:00pm

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/ygjZsWBkTj1ear479

This event, sponsored by Tokyo JALT and the TYL SIG, is for teachers of kids to young adults, so teachers of preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, junior high school, and senior high school, are all encouraged to come! As always, there will be great presentations and lots of time for discussion and networking.

For more information about speakers' bio and abstract, visit Tokyo JALT's official website: https://sites.google.com/view/tokyojalt

1. Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto
BIO: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto is co-author of the bestselling Let's Go series, author of "The role of technology in early years language education" (in Early Years Second Language Education: International Perspectives on Theories and Practice) and director of the International Teacher Development Institute (www.iTDi.pro). She is an English Language Specialist with the U.S. State Department, and has conducted teacher training workshops in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and online.

ABSTRACT: In this presentation I’ll introduce ways that teachers can incorporate technology tools into their teaching to make learning more inclusive and accessible for all students, but especially for those who need extra support. I’ll try to answer some questions I often hear from teachers, such as When should I consider combining tech and touch? How do I decide? How can I add one more thing to my lesson planning when I’m already overloaded? I’ll introduce some simple guidelines to help you decide when and how to combine tech and touch activities that will save you time ( and maybe your sanity, if you’re feeling overloaded). And finally, we’ll do this with real-classroom examples, showing you step-by step how to create some simple but very effective tech and touch activities.

2. Budi Azhari Lubis
BIO: Budi Azhari Lubis is a teacher and co-founder of English Zone, a language school based in Tegal, Central Java in Indonesia. He began his formal ELT career during his high school years as an EFL Teacher in the TAGORE English Course, based on a student-centered teaching approach from India. After graduating from the State University of Medan in Sumatra, Budi continued his teaching career, working with both children and adults at language schools throughout Indonesia. He is a teaching and learning enthusiast who believes that we grow as individuals through connecting with others and sharing ideas. He also believes that anyone who dares to teach must continue learning.

ABSTRACT: In the constantly changing world of English education, combining technology with tactile hands-on learning activities can have a strong and lasting influence on children’s learning. The dynamic interplay between tech and touch can transform any young learner classroom in a positive and powerful way. However, when access to state-of-the art technology is unreliable or even non-existent, educators must use any available resources to provide meaningful and effective lessons. My presentation will focus on the unique difficulties faced by Indonesian EFL teachers lacking access to stable infrastructure and especially the strategies they use to overcome the challenge of keeping English learning both relevant and motivating. As educators, we must also be problem-solvers; my presentation will highlight how teachers can make use of resources available to them to give their learners the benefits of both tech and touch.

3. Naoko Araki Amano
BIO: Naoko Amano, an Eikaiwa owner and teacher, has twelve years of experience teaching English to young learners at her language school, the Yellow Banana Academy, based in Kishiwada, Osaka. Her journey as an educator has been shaped by her own experience of collaborative learning as well as a passion for intercultural exchange. Inspired by her daughter’s introduction to and progress in English language study, Naoko embarked on her career as a Japanese teacher of English, working to foster communication between local Japanese teachers of English and non-Japanese native English speakers working in Japan. Through a variety of courses as well as a study abroad program to Cairns, Australia, Naoko challenges her students to achieve excellence, to explore the world around them, and to share their knowledge through collaboration.

ABSTRACT : In my presentation, I will use the term “touch” to mean making connections. Real learning takes place when students' hearts are touched, and parents are more willing to support their childrens’ learning journey when they are included as well. As a teacher of young learners in a language school, I must do both: touch the hearts of students and communicate effectively with parents. By using a variety of technology such as the online dictionary Gamerize, I can help my students practice English outside the classroom in an enjoyable way. Also, the classroom management system ClassDojo enables me to stay in close communication with parents and students as well as tracking attendance. Please join my presentation to see how the effective use of technology can not only enhance students’ learning experience but also build solid communication and trust with parents, facilitating better attendance and better participation in school and study abroad events.

Interested in volunteering for Critical Thinking in the Classroom 2024?

Sign up here! https://forms.gle/mMxfFMzmUHk3nTeS7

The JALT Critical Thinking SIG is looking for volunteers for a conference to be held on August 3rd, 2024 in the Learning Square on the Izumi Campus of Meiji University located near Meidaimae Station on the Keio and Inokashira Lines in Tokyo, Japan. Volunteers would be timing presenters and helping run the front desk. If interested, more details will be provided.

Venue Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/XTBtjBwSDjoQqXr7A

Critical Thinking in the Classroom 2024 Website: http://www.jaltcriticalthinking.org/events/

3 days before our event, Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom! RSVP now and attend!

Event speakers: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto, Budi Azhari Lubis, and Naoko Araki Amano

Sunday, June 23, 2024 - 10:00am to 1:00pm

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/ygjZsWBkTj1ear479

This event, sponsored by Tokyo JALT and the TYL SIG, is for teachers of kids to young adults, so teachers of preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, junior high school, and senior high school, are all encouraged to come! As always, there will be great presentations and lots of time for discussion and networking.

For more information about speakers' bio and abstract, visit Tokyo JALT's official website: https://sites.google.com/view/tokyojalt

1. Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto
BIO: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto is co-author of the bestselling Let's Go series, author of "The role of technology in early years language education" (in Early Years Second Language Education: International Perspectives on Theories and Practice) and director of the International Teacher Development Institute (www.iTDi.pro). She is an English Language Specialist with the U.S. State Department, and has conducted teacher training workshops in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and online.

ABSTRACT: In this presentation I’ll introduce ways that teachers can incorporate technology tools into their teaching to make learning more inclusive and accessible for all students, but especially for those who need extra support. I’ll try to answer some questions I often hear from teachers, such as When should I consider combining tech and touch? How do I decide? How can I add one more thing to my lesson planning when I’m already overloaded? I’ll introduce some simple guidelines to help you decide when and how to combine tech and touch activities that will save you time ( and maybe your sanity, if you’re feeling overloaded). And finally, we’ll do this with real-classroom examples, showing you step-by step how to create some simple but very effective tech and touch activities.

2. Budi Azhari Lubis
BIO: Budi Azhari Lubis is a teacher and co-founder of English Zone, a language school based in Tegal, Central Java in Indonesia. He began his formal ELT career during his high school years as an EFL Teacher in the TAGORE English Course, based on a student-centered teaching approach from India. After graduating from the State University of Medan in Sumatra, Budi continued his teaching career, working with both children and adults at language schools throughout Indonesia. He is a teaching and learning enthusiast who believes that we grow as individuals through connecting with others and sharing ideas. He also believes that anyone who dares to teach must continue learning.

ABSTRACT: In the constantly changing world of English education, combining technology with tactile hands-on learning activities can have a strong and lasting influence on children’s learning. The dynamic interplay between tech and touch can transform any young learner classroom in a positive and powerful way. However, when access to state-of-the art technology is unreliable or even non-existent, educators must use any available resources to provide meaningful and effective lessons. My presentation will focus on the unique difficulties faced by Indonesian EFL teachers lacking access to stable infrastructure and especially the strategies they use to overcome the challenge of keeping English learning both relevant and motivating. As educators, we must also be problem-solvers; my presentation will highlight how teachers can make use of resources available to them to give their learners the benefits of both tech and touch.

3. Naoko Araki Amano
BIO: Naoko Amano, an Eikaiwa owner and teacher, has twelve years of experience teaching English to young learners at her language school, the Yellow Banana Academy, based in Kishiwada, Osaka. Her journey as an educator has been shaped by her own experience of collaborative learning as well as a passion for intercultural exchange. Inspired by her daughter’s introduction to and progress in English language study, Naoko embarked on her career as a Japanese teacher of English, working to foster communication between local Japanese teachers of English and non-Japanese native English speakers working in Japan. Through a variety of courses as well as a study abroad program to Cairns, Australia, Naoko challenges her students to achieve excellence, to explore the world around them, and to share their knowledge through collaboration.

ABSTRACT : In my presentation, I will use the term “touch” to mean making connections. Real learning takes place when students' hearts are touched, and parents are more willing to support their childrens’ learning journey when they are included as well. As a teacher of young learners in a language school, I must do both: touch the hearts of students and communicate effectively with parents. By using a variety of technology such as the online dictionary Gamerize, I can help my students practice English outside the classroom in an enjoyable way. Also, the classroom management system ClassDojo enables me to stay in close communication with parents and students as well as tracking attendance. Please join my presentation to see how the effective use of technology can not only enhance students’ learning experience but also build solid communication and trust with parents, facilitating better attendance and better participation in school and study abroad events.

Did you miss our last event, VocAPPulary Land : A 1-Hour Tour by Helen Hanae? If so, check out our YouTube channel now!

YouTube link: https://youtu.be/ijhwcZIlD-s

Abstract:
This is a boots-on-the-ground session to introduce accessible tools for 1) assessing and aligning student vocabulary competence, teaching materials, and course standards, 2) extracting and managing target vocabulary, encouraging self-access, and 3) output and assessment.

Let’s take a short hike through tools provided by Paul Nation, LexTutor, Voyant Tools, and Kristofer Kyle, and Laurence Anthony, with some examples on how to manage vocabulary resources in Excel/Google Sheets, and self-access resources such as Quizlet (with audio!!!), NGSL Builder, Adam Jenkin’s NGSL resources for Moodle…right down to affix monster battles on Padlet.

Bio
I’m a New Zealander fascinated with attention, emotion, and memory in communication. I also practiced and researched kyogen drama, so I’m interested in humor and in the amazing synergy of verbal/visual communication. My past life as a university Japanese teacher in resource-poor pre-internet days alerted me to the need for relevant, specific vocabulary resources, and nearly 20 years working as a translator and interpreter taught me how valuable lexical competence is.

5 days before our event, Finding a Balance Between Tech and Touch in the Young Learner Classroom! RSVP now and attend!

Event speakers: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto, Budi Azhari Lubis, and Naoko Araki Amano

Sunday, June 23, 2024 - 10:00am to 1:00pm

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/ygjZsWBkTj1ear479

This event, sponsored by Tokyo JALT and the TYL SIG, is for teachers of kids to young adults, so teachers of preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, junior high school, and senior high school, are all encouraged to come! As always, there will be great presentations and lots of time for discussion and networking.

For more information about speakers' bio and abstract, visit Tokyo JALT's official website: https://sites.google.com/view/tokyojalt

1. Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto
BIO: Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto is co-author of the bestselling Let's Go series, author of "The role of technology in early years language education" (in Early Years Second Language Education: International Perspectives on Theories and Practice) and director of the International Teacher Development Institute (www.iTDi.pro). She is an English Language Specialist with the U.S. State Department, and has conducted teacher training workshops in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and online.

ABSTRACT: In this presentation I’ll introduce ways that teachers can incorporate technology tools into their teaching to make learning more inclusive and accessible for all students, but especially for those who need extra support. I’ll try to answer some questions I often hear from teachers, such as When should I consider combining tech and touch? How do I decide? How can I add one more thing to my lesson planning when I’m already overloaded? I’ll introduce some simple guidelines to help you decide when and how to combine tech and touch activities that will save you time ( and maybe your sanity, if you’re feeling overloaded). And finally, we’ll do this with real-classroom examples, showing you step-by step how to create some simple but very effective tech and touch activities.

2. Budi Azhari Lubis
BIO: Budi Azhari Lubis is a teacher and co-founder of English Zone, a language school based in Tegal, Central Java in Indonesia. He began his formal ELT career during his high school years as an EFL Teacher in the TAGORE English Course, based on a student-centered teaching approach from India. After graduating from the State University of Medan in Sumatra, Budi continued his teaching career, working with both children and adults at language schools throughout Indonesia. He is a teaching and learning enthusiast who believes that we grow as individuals through connecting with others and sharing ideas. He also believes that anyone who dares to teach must continue learning.

ABSTRACT: In the constantly changing world of English education, combining technology with tactile hands-on learning activities can have a strong and lasting influence on children’s learning. The dynamic interplay between tech and touch can transform any young learner classroom in a positive and powerful way. However, when access to state-of-the art technology is unreliable or even non-existent, educators must use any available resources to provide meaningful and effective lessons. My presentation will focus on the unique difficulties faced by Indonesian EFL teachers lacking access to stable infrastructure and especially the strategies they use to overcome the challenge of keeping English learning both relevant and motivating. As educators, we must also be problem-solvers; my presentation will highlight how teachers can make use of resources available to them to give their learners the benefits of both tech and touch.

3. Naoko Araki Amano
BIO: Naoko Amano, an Eikaiwa owner and teacher, has twelve years of experience teaching English to young learners at her language school, the Yellow Banana Academy, based in Kishiwada, Osaka. Her journey as an educator has been shaped by her own experience of collaborative learning as well as a passion for intercultural exchange. Inspired by her daughter’s introduction to and progress in English language study, Naoko embarked on her career as a Japanese teacher of English, working to foster communication between local Japanese teachers of English and non-Japanese native English speakers working in Japan. Through a variety of courses as well as a study abroad program to Cairns, Australia, Naoko challenges her students to achieve excellence, to explore the world around them, and to share their knowledge through collaboration.

ABSTRACT : In my presentation, I will use the term “touch” to mean making connections. Real learning takes place when students' hearts are touched, and parents are more willing to support their childrens’ learning journey when they are included as well. As a teacher of young learners in a language school, I must do both: touch the hearts of students and communicate effectively with parents. By using a variety of technology such as the online dictionary Gamerize, I can help my students practice English outside the classroom in an enjoyable way. Also, the classroom management system ClassDojo enables me to stay in close communication with parents and students as well as tracking attendance. Please join my presentation to see how the effective use of technology can not only enhance students’ learning experience but also build solid communication and trust with parents, facilitating better attendance and better participation in school and study abroad events.

A comment from past attendee about Christopher Nicklin:

Folks, let me tell you, attending Chris Nicklin's talk is a MUST! This guy is the BEST, believe me. Nobody knows more about the cutting-edge stuff in our field than Chris. He's got the knowledge, the experience, the insights—total genius, just tremendous. His talks are packed with VALUE, and you won't get this kind of knowledge anywhere else. It's like getting the keys to the kingdom. If you want to be a WINNER, you gotta be there. Don't miss out on this, it's going to be HUGE. Make sure you're in the room, because this is a game-changer, believe me

Attend Nicklin’s event on tonight!
Applying Lexical Sophistication Indices to Word List Development by Christopher Nicklin

RSVP link: https://forms.gle/3Qu3oUMdABHYifep9

Date: Tuesday, June 18

Time: 19:30 to 20:30

Location: Zoom

Applying Lexical Sophistication Indices to Word List Development Speaker: Chris Nicklin Date: June 18 Time: 19:30 -20:30 Location: Zoom Fee: Free for everyone

Remember to attend our event tonight!

Applying Lexical Sophistication Indices to Word List Development by Christopher Nicklin

Date: Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Time: 7:30pm to 8:30pm

Location: Zoom (The link will be provided to all those who RSVP)

RSVP: https://forms.gle/3Qu3oUMdABHYifep9

Abstract:
Language teaching stakeholders, such as teachers and textbook writers, generally rely on corpus-derived frequency to create wordlists for pedagogical purposes, which can be problematic. For example, words that are instinctively easier for learners, such as pizza, can occur less frequently in reference corpora than words that can be assumed to be more difficult, such as physics. Additionally, research demonstrates that combining frequency with other lexical sophistication indices, such as age of acquisition (AoA) and concreteness, can produce better predictions of word difficulty than frequency alone. In this presentation, I will introduce research involving lexical sophistication indices as predictors of L2 word difficulty. I will also present a study involving the practical application of lexical sophistication research to wordlist development. By combining frequency with five other empirically-justified lexical sophistication indices, a set of frequencyPLUS difficulty scores for 14,054 of the 20,000 most frequent lemmas in the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) was created. In a series of short studies involving students from across Japan and Korea, frequencyPLUS scores successfully addressed the pizza/physics problem and displayed larger correlations with word difficulty than commonly used wordlists across two linguistic domains; English for Academic Purposes and Business English. Importantly, frequencyPLUS performed comparably to a knowledge-based vocabulary list, but contained almost three times as many lemmas for a small fraction of the time and financial costs. Implications for language researchers and teaching stakeholders will be discussed along with avenues for future work to develop language- and discipline-specific frequencyPLUS wordlists.

Bio:
Christopher Nicklin is a project assistant professor in the Center for Global Education at the University of Tokyo, and recently completed his PhD in Applied Linguistics at Temple University, Japan. His research interests focus on vocabulary, particularly in the subdomains of psycholinguistics and research methodology. He has published in several leading applied linguistics journals, including The Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, Language Testing, Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, and others. He is currently serving as Associate Editor of Vocabulary Learning and Instruction.

1 day before our event!

Applying Lexical Sophistication Indices to Word List Development by Christopher Nicklin

Date: Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Time: 7:30pm to 8:30pm

Location: Zoom (The link will be provided to all those who RSVP)

RSVP: https://forms.gle/3Qu3oUMdABHYifep9

Abstract:
Language teaching stakeholders, such as teachers and textbook writers, generally rely on corpus-derived frequency to create wordlists for pedagogical purposes, which can be problematic. For example, words that are instinctively easier for learners, such as pizza, can occur less frequently in reference corpora than words that can be assumed to be more difficult, such as physics. Additionally, research demonstrates that combining frequency with other lexical sophistication indices, such as age of acquisition (AoA) and concreteness, can produce better predictions of word difficulty than frequency alone. In this presentation, I will introduce research involving lexical sophistication indices as predictors of L2 word difficulty. I will also present a study involving the practical application of lexical sophistication research to wordlist development. By combining frequency with five other empirically-justified lexical sophistication indices, a set of frequencyPLUS difficulty scores for 14,054 of the 20,000 most frequent lemmas in the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) was created. In a series of short studies involving students from across Japan and Korea, frequencyPLUS scores successfully addressed the pizza/physics problem and displayed larger correlations with word difficulty than commonly used wordlists across two linguistic domains; English for Academic Purposes and Business English. Importantly, frequencyPLUS performed comparably to a knowledge-based vocabulary list, but contained almost three times as many lemmas for a small fraction of the time and financial costs. Implications for language researchers and teaching stakeholders will be discussed along with avenues for future work to develop language- and discipline-specific frequencyPLUS wordlists.

Bio:
Christopher Nicklin is a project assistant professor in the Center for Global Education at the University of Tokyo, and recently completed his PhD in Applied Linguistics at Temple University, Japan. His research interests focus on vocabulary, particularly in the subdomains of psycholinguistics and research methodology. He has published in several leading applied linguistics journals, including The Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, Language Testing, Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, and others. He is currently serving as Associate Editor of Vocabulary Learning and Instruction.