Advanced English 7: Japan in the Foreign Media

Instructor: Gaye Rowley

Aims:
This advanced level course is for students who would like to understand the way Japan is reported in the foreign media and practise* responding to this reporting. English-language reporting of Japan tends to be negative and news coverage is frequently narrow and lacks depth. Foreign correspondents are capable of showing that Japan is “different,” but they are often unable to answer the question: “what is Japan like?” In this course we will examine news stories about Japan from a variety of sources, including newspapers, television documentaries, and the internet.

*British English distinguishes between “to practise” (verb) and “practice” (noun). In American English, both noun and verb are spelled “practice”.

Syllabus:
Each week, students will take turns finding an article or documentary and preparing a short vocabulary list and discussion questions in English. In class, we will read (or watch) and discuss the news item, focusing on the language itself (vocabulary, grammar), as well as its content, style, and underlying agenda.

Textbook:
There is no textbook for this class.

• An excellent English-Japanese dictionary is the Obunsha Lexis English-Japanese Dictionary, edited by (now retired) Waseda professor Hanamoto Kingo and first published in 2003. See http://www2.obunsha.co.jp/lexis/

Methods of Assessment: Students will be required to:

1. attend the course regularly and contribute actively to discussions;
2. (once or twice per semester) find an article or documentary and prepare a short vocabulary list and discussion questions in English;
3. (once or twice per semester) lead class discussion.
4. Grades will be based on all of the above. There will be no formal examinations.

Preparation:
Students should submit the news story they have chosen, complete with vocabulary list and discussion questions, two weeks before the class they are scheduled to lead. Material may be submitted either in the form of a hard copy, or by e-mail attachment. I shall make photocopies for the class and distribute them at the end of the class before the class in which your presentation is scheduled. If you would like to show a video instead of reading a newspaper or magazine article, please let me know.

• The news story, article, or essay you choose should be about Japan from a non-Japanese perspective. It should be authentic, not photocopied from a textbook.

★Good sources of articles include Time and Newsweek magazines, especially these magazines’ special issues on Asia/Japan, regularly on sale at Kinokuniya in the foreign books/magazines section; BBC news online; and English-language newspapers published in Japan, such as The Japan Times and The Daily Yomiuri. When you travel abroad, buy a local English-language newspaper (in Hong Kong, for example, look for a copy of the South China Morning Post) for a very different perspective on Japan.

Special note for job-seekers and final-year students:
If you cannot attend class for any reason, please inform me, preferably in advance, by e-mail. You may be absent in order to attend job interviews and practice teaching (教育実習), but you must inform me of your plans in advance. Two or more unexplained absences will count against your final grade.

Schedule:

Week 1

• First class, self-introductions.

Week 2

• Class led by GGR.

Week 3

• Class led by GGR.

Week 4

• Led by: students.

Week 5

• Led by: students.

Week 6

• Led by: students.

Week 7

• Led by: students.

Week 8

• Led by: students.

Week 9

• Led by: students.

Week 10

• Led by: students.

Week 11

• Led by: students.

Week 12

• Led by: students.

Week 13

• Led by: students.

Week 14

• Led by: students.