AATJ - American Association of Teachers of Japanese

**SIGN THE PETITION TO REINSTATE THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE PROGRAM AT Cupertino HS! **

Students at Cupertino High School have started a petition to bring back their Japanese class (instead of phasing out Japanese in a couple more years). Join this petition by adding your signature!

Can you spare a minute to help this campaign? Bring Back Japanese at Cupertino High School

Atsuko Suga Borgmann sensei, a past president of WiATJ and currently teaching at Brown University, is seeking your support for her husband:

Hi everyone, I'm reaching out to ask for your help and support for my husband, who is recovering from a major stroke. We've started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover his medical expenses and ensure he receives the care he needs. Any contribution, no matter how small, would make a significant difference and is deeply appreciated. Please consider donating and sharing this message to help spread the word. Thank you.
https://gofund.me/8b6cfa6b

こんにちは。
大変突然ですが、主人が三月に脳卒中で倒れました。現在はリハビリ施設で治療中ですが、リハビリを続ける必要があります。アメリカの高額な治療費を賄うため、皆さんのご協力をお願いしています。メッセージ拡散希望です。よろしくお願いします。

Atsuko Suga Borgmann

Donate to Support for Karl`s Road to Recovery, organized by Takumi Borgmann Hi everyone, We are organizing a fundraiser on behalf of … Takumi Borgmann needs your support for Support for Karl`s Road to Recovery

The International Conference on Japanese Language Education (ICJLE) 2024, Global Network consisting of 12 organizations involved in Japanese language education, was held at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from August 1st to 3rd. Approximately 540 participants from around the world gathered to share research findings and practical reports, and the event was a great success. We will report on the outcomes in the AATJ newsletter and other channels. A big thank you to all the members of the organizing committee for their hard work!

世界の日本語教育12団体が加盟するグローバルネットワークの日本語教育国際世界大会であるICJLE 2024が8月1日から3日にかけてウィスコンシン大学マディソン校で開催されました。世界各国から540名ほどの参加者が集まり、研究成果や実践報告を共有し、大盛況に終わりました。成果についてはまたAATJニュースレター等でご報告します。実行委員会の皆様、お疲れ様でした。
https://web.cvent.com/event/ebf085e5-afea-4752-9bd6-4c7b1e60ccc0/summary

We have received the news that Professor Yoshiko Jo, who taught Japanese at Swarthmore College, has passed away. Professor Jo was not only dedicated to Japanese language education but was also active in marathons. We extend our heartfelt condolences and remember her with great respect and admiration.
スワスモア大学で日本語を教えていらっしゃった城佳子先生が亡くなったとのニュースが届きました。城先生は日本語教育のみならず、マラソンでもご活躍されていらっしゃいました。城先生のご冥福を心よりお祈り申し上げます。

In Honor of Senior Lecturer in Japanese Yoshiko Jo "Yoshiko is remembered for the passion for Japanese language and culture she instilled in her students, as well as for her love of running, with her success as an ultramarathoner serving as a model for working hard while also leading with enthusiasm and joy," says Acting Co-Presidents Tomoko Sakomur...

**Japanese-Language Proficiency Test 2024**
JLPT registration will begin on August 5. Please check the flyer for the starting dates and times for different levels and sites. A new site in Middleburg, VT, has been added in 2024.
日本語能力試験の申し込みが、8月5日より始まります。レベル、受験地によって受付開始時間が異なりますので、詳しくはフライヤーをご覧ください。今年から、バーモント州ミドルベリーでも受験できるようになりました。

**Japanese-Language Proficiency Test 2024**

JLPT registration will begin on August 5. Please check the flyer for the starting dates and times for different levels and sites. A new site in Middleburg, VT, has been added in 2024.

日本語能力試験の申し込みが、8月5日より始まります。レベル、受験地によって受付開始時間が異なりますので、詳しくはフライヤーをご覧ください。今年から、バーモント州ミドルベリーでも受験できるようになりました。

**當作靖彦先生御退官記念講演会のお知らせ**

カリフォルニア大学サンディエゴ校におきまして、9月21日（土）に當作靖彦先生の御退官記念講演会を開催いたします。アメリカ各地、世界各国からご参加いただけますように、講演会はハイブリッドで開催いたします。また、これまで當作先生に教えていただいたことをどのように研究や教室活動で活かしているのか、ご発表いただける参加者を募集しております。詳細は、フライヤーをご覧ください。（PDFをダウンロードしていただきますと、参加申し込み、発表募集、ホテル情報のハイパーリンクをクリックしていただけます。）大勢の先生方にご参加いただけますと幸いです。どうぞよろしくお願いいたします。
https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1EVxVXQMU-gEkIwguv_LvH2_WENjNnwDf&export=download

カリフォルニア大学サンディエゴ校
グローバル政策・戦略大学院
ジャパニーズスタディーズプログラム

**Please Share Your Advocacy Ideas!”
We are creating a Padlet to showcase ideas and activities and would love to hear what you are doing in your Japanese programs. Let’s share our ideas with each other! Please contact us if you have any questions. (AATJ Advocacy team at [email protected])
https://www.aatj.org/advocacy/

Apply for J.LIVE Talk 2024!

We are happy to announce that the J.LIVE Talk 2024 will be held on Sunday, November 3rd in-person on the George Washington University campus! J.LIVE Talk is a national presentation contest with the focus on 21st century skills, held annually since 2015. The preliminary round application deadline for individual divisions is September 24, 2004. Selected finalists will be invited to Washington, DC with travel subsidies of up to $500.

We will have two categories (Intermediate low-mid, Intermediate high and above) in the high school division and three categories (Intermediate mid-high, Advanced Low-Mid, Advanced High and above) in the college division this year. We also have a high school group video competition. Please check our website and YouTube channel for more detailed information.

Application deadlines are as follows:

- Individual: Sep. 24
- Group video: Oct. 18

If you have questions, please contact us by email.

Attached is the flyer for the J.LIVE Talk 2024. Please encourage your students to apply!

The Free Response Questions for the 2024 AP Japanese Language and Culture Exam have been released!

AP Japanese Language and Culture Past Exam Questions – AP Central | College Board Download free-response questions from past AP Japanese Language and Culture exams, along with scoring guidelines, sample responses, and scoring distributions.

The May issue of the AATJ Newsletter is now available!
https://www.aatj.org/aatj/publications/

**日本語レベル別読み物サイト「本　だいすき！」のご案内**

カリフォルニア州立大学ロングビーチ校名誉教授のダグラス昌子先生が、荒山メラニー先生、藤江千絵先生、降矢恵美子先生、武田千絵先生と一緒に2023年春よりプロジェクトを始められ、早期リテラシーのレベル別の本のコレクションを完成されました。プロジェクトの詳細やレベル別読み物コレクションへのアクセスに関しては、ウェブサイトをご覧ください。大変有益なリソースです。是非ご活用ください！

本　だいすき！ はじめに

**Continue the Japanese Language Program at Northshore High Schools**
ワシントン州教師会からのお願いです。ご協力、よろしくお願いいたします！

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー
ワシントン州イングルモア高校の日本語プログラムがカットされることになってししまいました。なんとか食い止めたく、署名を集めております。

ご協力よろしくお願いいたします。

こちらがリンクです。
https://www.change.org/p/continue-the-japanese-language-program-at-northshore-high-schools-96e5bcfe-9fd5-4dae-9590-ce0686800ac4?recruiter=1093048668&recruited_by_id=48e681b0-9d97-11ea-84f4-dfe6f72f4f1d&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=share_petition&utm_term=ff63e8f4f5414731823a68a576af3cf3&utm_medium=copylink&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_490026392_en-US%3A4
ワシントン州教師会

Sign the Petition Continue the Japanese Language Program at Northshore High Schools

The AATJ Webinar titled "Confronting the Japanese Language Teacher Shortage: Government Developments Concerning Japanese Language Education in the United States 米国における日本語教育を巡る政府の動向について" on April 28 was a great success! We had over 180 participants engaged in lively discussions, with numerous questions and comments even extending beyond the scheduled hours. AATJ would like to express gratitude to Tomoko Marshall sensei from the University of Virginia & MAATJ and Taichi Kaneshiro sanjikan from the Embassy of Japan for their interesting and insightful presentations, as well as to the webinar participants for their keen interest. The recording, slides, and questions and comments from the participants are available at https://www.aatj.org/teaching-resources/current-trends-japanese-language-education-us/

On April 27, an AATJ Local Affiliates meeting was held under AATJ Vice President Mieko Avello sensei's leadership. Leaders from various local affiliates had the opportunity to exchange information and interact with each other. We would like to thank Kumi Kobayashi sensei, Vice President of the California Association of Japanese Language Teachers (CAJLT) and also serving as AATJ JNHS Co-director, for sharing the findings of the recent CAJLT survey aimed at identifying burning issues in Japanese language and culture programs in California!

The ICJLE program is now available！
ICJLE2024のプログラムが公開されました！
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1g9v47Icn1Otp6IOFUKSvxcgtEUZyjnt9p_Oeyw8BJu8/edit =420724069

Table For Twoからのお知らせです。
**「和食育オンデマンドコース for University students」2024-25年度の参加校募集案内 **

Are you looking for a unique and fun program for your students? Applications for our Wa-Shokuiku “和食育” online on-demand Japanese inspired food education course for university students have opened and we are looking for 20 teachers to collaborate with us for the 2024-25 school year! The course will be provided for free to the selected schools.



Apply by May 31st 2024:

bit.ly/WashokuikuOnDemandUniversity



Through this course, your students will learn the principles of Japanese cuisine and food culture. They will also gain the skills required to prepare healthy, nutritious foods to strengthen our bodies and minds as well as learn about food related issues around the world.

The program can be adapted according to your lesson plans. You don't need to use all of the content provided and can use any parts of the course based on your needs.



We had over 20 colleges participate during the 2023-24 school year and had great collaboration with the schools and teachers. We are looking forward to this next school year!



Website https://www.wa-shokuiku.org/ondemand-university

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/C56eqRdtNiA/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tablefor2/posts/pfbid02XXRMr6N53iymLyxa7NoBHkTT3eq2rWFrLqiYzdj4ZU5h3ggdrxJ3BY4LEZ2D1VgYl

Japanese Language and Literature, Vol. 58 No. 1 (2024) has been published!

Japanese Language and Literature (JLL) serves as the primary platform for intellectual exchange among AATJ members, offering a scholarly forum for discussions on Japanese literature, linguistics, teaching Japanese as a second or foreign language, and Japanese culture. It publishes two issues annually.
https://jll.pitt.edu/ojs/JLL

20th Annual All-USA High School Japanese Speech Contest
Sunday, May 26, 2024
For more information, visit http://www.jlsf-aurora.org/eng/

The 30th Central Association of Teachers of Japanese Conference (CATJ 30) was jointly hosted by the Department of Modern Languages at DePaul University and Purdue University’s School of Languages and Cultures. The conference featured numerous excellent presentations centered around this year's theme, “Collaboration Across Interdisciplinary Communities, Borders, and Languages.” Yoshiko Mori, AATJ President, delivered the keynote address titled “Beyond Borders: Shaping the Future of Japanese Language Education in the Era of Diversity and Collaboration,” sparking engaging discussions on the future of inclusive and collaborative pedagogy.

The 8th Annual Junior Japan Bowl, which will be broadcast live on Friday, April 26th.

Date: Friday, April 26, 2024
Session Schedule:
Level 1 (Grades 1-3): 5:30-6:30 PM Eastern Time
Level 2 (Grades 4-6): 6:45-7:45 PM Eastern Time
Level 3 (Grades 7-8): 8:00-9:00 PM Eastern Time
Format: Live-streamed digital competition on YouTube LIVE

Junior Japan Bowl 2024

** AATJ SPRING WEBINAR - APRIL 28 **
Confronting the Japanese Language Teacher Shortage: Government Developments Concerning Japanese Language Education in the United States
米国における日本語教育を巡る政府の動向について
April 28 (Sunday), 9:00-10:30 a.m. Pacific time; 12:00-1:00 p.m. Eastern time
日時：4月28日（日）9:00 -10:30 a.m. PDT; 12:00 - 1:30 p.m. EDT

Based on the "Memorandum of Cooperation in Education" signed between the U.S. and Japanese governments last May, the first U.S.-Japan High-Level Policy Dialogue on Education was held in October 2023. At this dialogue, the Embassy of Japan presented the results of a survey conducted by the Mid-Atlantic Association of Teachers of Japanese (MAATJ) and raised issues surrounding the shortage of Japanese language teachers. Included in the joint statement that was compiled was the decision to strengthen efforts to support Japanese language education in the U.S.
In this webinar, the presenters will share the latest developments and deepen the discussion with teachers on finding creative solutions to the shortage of Japanese language teachers.

要旨：昨年５月に日米両政府間で署名された「教育における協力覚書」を踏まえ、昨年10月に第１回日米教育ハイレベル政策対話が開催された。この中で中部大西洋岸日本語教師会（MAATJ）が実施した調査結果を示しつつ日本語教師不足を巡る課題を提起した。その後、共同文書がまとめられ、米国での日本語教育の支援策について取り組みを強化することとした。本講演で一連の動向について共有し、日本語教師不足の解決策について先生方と議論を深めたい。

Speakers:
Taichi Kaneshiro, Education Counsellor at the Embassy of Japan in Washington, DC / 金城太一参事官、在アメリカ合衆国日本国大使館 /
Tomoko Marshall, Distinguished Lecturer at the University of Virginia and Past President of MAATJ / マーシャルともこ、バージニア大学、MAATJ2022-2023年度会長
Facilitator:
Yoshiko Saito-Abbott, AATJ Professional Development Director / 齋藤-アボット佳子, カリフォルニア州立大学モントレイベイ校

登録が必要となります。登録はこちらから:

csumb.zoom.us

The United States-Japan Joint Leaders' Statement, "Global Partners for the Future," released on April 10, 2024, highlights support for Japanese language education in the United States.

“We acknowledge the importance of language study, particularly in person, to develop long-term ties and announce a new Memorandum of Cooperation to increase opportunities for the number of exchange visitors from Japan to share their specialized knowledge of Japanese language and culture in the United States, as well as welcome efforts to expand the Japanese Language Education Assistant Program (J-LEAP).”

United States-Japan Joint Leaders’ Statement | The White House Global Partners for the Future Over the course of the last three years, the U.S.-Japan Alliance has reached unprecedented heights. We arrived at this historic moment because our nations, individually and together, took courageous steps to strengthen our collective capacity in ways that would have se...

4月11日（現地時間10日）、米国ワシントンD.C.において、相航一在米国日本国大使館特命全権公使と、リー・A・サターフィールド国務次官補（教育文化担当）（Ms. Lee A. Satterfield, Assistant Secretary of State for Education and Cultural Affairs）との間で、「日本外務省・文部科学省及びアメリカ合衆国国務省の間の日本専門家のための教育・文化交流機会創出のための協力覚書」への署名を行いました。

日本専門家のための教育文化交流機会創出のための協力覚書 外務省ホームページは「JavaScript」が使われております。「JavaScript」をONにしてご利用ください。

On April 11 (April 10 local time), in Washington, D.C., Mr. AI Koichi, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Embassy of Japan in the United States of America, and Ms. Lee A. Satterfield, Assistant Secretary of State for Education and Cultural Affairs, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, on the one side and the Department of State of the United States of America, on the other side, for the creation of educational and cultural exchange opportunities for Japanese specialists.

Memorandum of Cooperation Upon Creation of an Educational and Cultural Exchange Opportunity For Japanese Specialists Press Releases Memorandum of Cooperation Upon Creation of an Educational and Cultural Exchange Opportunity For Japanese Specialists Tweet April 11, 2024 Japanese On April 11 (April 10 local time), in Washington, D.C., Mr. AI Koichi, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Embassy of Japan....

The Joint National Committee for Languages has just announced the re-launch of the America’s Languages Caucus , featuring Representative Jen Kiggans (R-VA-2) as the new House Co-Chair. She joins Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-20) in this crucial leadership role to support multilingualism across the United States. Representative Kiggans brings a unique perspective as a former JET participant!

JNCL-NCLIS Celebrates Re-Launch of America's Languages Caucus and New Bipartisan Co-Chairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWASHINGTON, D.C, April 11th, 2024 – The Joint National Committee for Languages is pleased to announce the re-launch of the America’s Languages Caucus with the addition of new House Co-Chair, Representative Jen Kiggans (R-VA-2). Congresswoman Kiggans joins Congressman Jimmy P...

Mrs. Yuko Kishida, the First Lady of Japan, hosted a luncheon meeting on April 9th at the residence of the Japanese Ambassador in the DC Metropolitan area. The gathering brought together Japanese language educators from various sectors, including representatives from hoshuuko, secondary schools, immersion programs, higher education institutions, teacher associations, community schools, and Japan culture organizations. Many attendees were members of AATJ.
During the meeting, participants engaged in candid discussions on topics such as current trends in Japanese language learning in the U.S., student motivation, and challenges in sustaining Japanese language studies. Mrs. Kishida expressed her enthusiastic support for Japanese language education in the U.S., stating, "I express my sincere respect for your daily efforts in Japanese language education, and I hope that as many people as possible will gain a deeper understanding of Japan through language learning and education."
https://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/na/na1/us/pageit_000001_00493.html

**ICJLE Registration Information**
8月1日から3日まで、日本語教育国際研究大会がウィスコンシン州マディソンで開催されます。2024年大会のテーマは「日本語教育の多様性と専門性を考える」です。早期割引は4月30日までですので、是非お早めにご登録ください。
The International Conference on Japanese Language Education (ICJLE) will be held in Madison, Wisconsin, from August 1st to 3rd. The theme of this year is "Exploring Issues of Diversity and Expertise in Japanese Language Education." Early bird registration will end on April 30th, so please register if you haven't done so yet.

International Conference on Japanese Language Education (ICJLE)