A Critique of Natural Discourse in Intermediate Level Textbooks for Learners of Japanese as a Second or Other Language A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Japanese at the University of Canterbury by Nobuko (Noelle) Kato 2009 i Acknowledgements I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisors, Associate Professor Dr. Edwina Palmer and Dr. Rachel Payne, for their invaluable guidance and insightful suggestions as well as their time and patience in reading and checking my drafts countless times. This led me to the summit of the mountain in New Zealand which I have never climbed before. Without them, I could not have traveled this distance. I am grateful to Dr. Thomas Nelson for his encouragement of ganbar• providing me with continuous motivation, for this I ganbatte koremashita. Geraldine’s prompt assistance was precious and Takako Koizumi and Lena Bryder, my best friends, have constantly been asking about my progress from across the Pacific. Sumi Hayakawa and Tipawan Silwattananusarn have been generous and like-minded companions. I would like to thank all of you. Last but not least, I would like to express my hearty thanks to my family who have supported me in whatever I have chosen to do; and especially, my mother Toyoko, and sons, Nodoka and Norito for their continuing love and understanding. ii Table of Contents Acknowledgments i Table of Contents ii Abstract iv Part I: Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Introduction 1 1.1. Introduction 1 1.2. Hypothesis 5 1.3. Aims 6 1.4. Methodology 9 1.5. Definition of textbooks for teaching Japanese as a second or other language 10 1.6. Definition of intermediate level 11 1.7. Selection of textbooks 17 1.8. Rationale for selection of the textbooks to be analysed 18 1.9. Discourses selected for analysis 21 Part II: Review of Literature 24 Chapter 2: JSOL learners and their challenges 24 2.1. JSOL learners 24 2.2. Historic development of teaching Japanese 26 2.3. Recent trends in Japanese language education 31 2.4. Challenges to JSOL learners 34 2.4.1. Challenges of script 35 2.4.2. Challenges of vocabulary 37 2.4.3. Challenges of loanwords 40 2.4.4. Challenges of dialects 43 2.4.5. Challenges of gender-associated language 46 2.4.6. Challenges of honorific speech 51 2.4.7. Challenges of politeness 52 2.4.8. Challenges of naturalness 60 2.4.9. Challenges of paralinguistic features 64 Chapter 3: Textbooks for teaching Japanese as a second or other language 67 3.1. Overview 67 3.2. Creation of textbooks 69 3.3. Recent Trends in Japanese Language Education 74 3.3.1. Insufficient contextualisation 74 3.3.2. Negotiation of meaning/correction 76 3.3.3. Generation of alternatives to model dialogues 78 3.3.4. Deviation from authentic speech 79 3.3.5. Summary 81 3.4. Ideal textbooks 81 iii Part III: Analysis 84 Chapter 4: Analysis of model discourses 84 4.1. Analysis of discourses illustrating how to request 84 4.1.1. Non-mandatory requests 92 4.1.2. Mandatory requests 104 4.2. Analysis of discourses illustrating how to complain 108 4.2.1. Request-type complaints 110 4.2.2. Advice-type complaints 119 4.3. Analysis of discourses illustrating how to apologise 125 4.3.1. Active apology 128 4.3.2. Apology when previously unaware 143 4.3.3. Passive apology 146 Chapter 5: Discussion 156 5.1. Overview 156 5.2. Findings 156 5.2.1. Insufficient examples of discourses which include alternative social relationships 157 5.2.2. Mismatch between speech acts within dialogues and social norms 160 5.2.3. The limitation on 'real life' actual usage 162 5.2.4. Insufficient provision of alternative outcomes 167 5.2.5. Insufficient explanation of paralinguistic aspects 168 5.3. Summary 171 Part IV: Conclusion 173 Appendixes Glossary 178 List of tables 179 Bibliography 180 iv Abstract The number of learners of Japanese as a second or other language has increased rapidly worldwide over the past several decades. The objectives of their study have largely changed from pursuing purely academic research interests to acquiring the communicative skills needed for business or leisure purposes. There are five language competency skills needed to master foreign languages: reading, writing, listening, speaking and intercultural competence. Students, particularly those studying outside Japan, depend more on textbooks for learning how to speak than their peers in Japan; and speaking is studied formally through analysis of model discourses in selected textbooks. In particular, if the learner’s first language is very different from Japanese, which in fact almost all other languages are, the complexity of the spoken language, including gender difference and respect forms, presents most learners with certain challenges that require adequate explanation to be comprehended. Likewise, the larger the cultural gap between learner and target language, the greater are the challenges for acquiring intercultural competence, which is closely interrelated with the production of ‘natural speech’. It is, therefore, crucial for learners from other cultures who have little opportunity to speak in Japanese to learn from a textbook of good quality which provides appropriate explanation of the social and cultural context of the model dialogues they employ as exemplars. The present study aims to analyse and evaluate the appropriateness of model dialogues contained in intermediate level textbooks for learners of Japanese as a second or other language. The findings suggest that none of the selected textbooks included satisfactory v explanation about the model discourses, so there seems to be much room for improvement in this regard. It is anticipated that the results of this study will contribute to the design concept of foreign language textbooks in future. 1 Part I: Introduction Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1. Introduction For almost all foreign language learners, the aim of learning another language is to acquire knowledge about the target language, to be able to communicate with people, to read literature, and to understand the culture of the target language. One of the basic aims of foreign language teaching and learning is to increase empathy for other cultures, because language lies at the root of culture and society. There is no question that the successful integration of culture with language teaching and learning can contribute to humanistic awareness, which needs sociolinguistic knowledge of the target culture. Hence, language ability and cultural sensitivity play a major role in developing the communication skills of learners. Japanese is spoken by some 127 million people, most of whom live in Japan, and around another three million people study Japanese as a second or other language (JSOL).1 Those who want to continue Japanese language study after completing a basic course can expect that in intermediate level study they will be trained to be capable of broadly comprehending sentences and discourses of a fairly high level (Noda 1986: 60). It is assumed they will be able to choose an appropriate phrase from a variety of options according to the setting. In other words, they are required to exercise their ability to create expressions in accordance with various circumstances, such as the age, gender, 1 The Japan Foundation website, http://www.jpf.go.jp/j/japanese/survey/result/dl/2006-1.pdf (Accessed on 10 August, 2008). 2 social rank, occupation of the other party, topic, place (school, office etc.), situation (class, meeting, etc.), setting (public or private), and so forth. For JSOL learners, recognising the cultural differences between Japanese and their own cultures is important. Maynard states that one must pay attention to the way cultural relativity is likely to influence the ways language is used for communication. Language usage is revealed in socially defined interactions, and linguistic relativity must be interpreted not only in cognitive but also in social terms (Maynard 1997: 3). In particular, the Japanese language is famous for its complex honorific expressions, 2 and for its circumlocution in communication, because Japanese people think that an indirect way of speech creates an impression of greater politeness towards the interlocutor. The concept of honorifics stems from politeness, and they are employed in order to establish or maintain an appropriate distance between the speaker and the interlocutor (Mizutani 2008: 19). JSOL learners who come from other cultural backgrounds tend to find it difficult to comprehend some aspects of Japanese culture. It is also often perceived that what is taken as a matter of course in one culture is not taken similarly in another culture. Clarifying and understanding the differences between learners’ own cultures and the culture of the target language form an important part of the language learning process for foreign learners. 2 Research about images of the Japanese language was conducted in 1997 and 1998 by the National Language Research Institute (Kokuritsu Kokugo Kenky•jo) with around 1,000 people in each of 28 countries/regions. According to this, Japanese was perceived as a very difficult language in general. Eighty per cent of Europeans, 73 per cent of Australians, and 67 per cent of Americans marked it as difficult. So did 36 per cent of Chinese, 32 per cent of Koreans, and 30 per cent of Taiwanese. The percentages for East Asians are much lower than the rest (Mizutani et al. 2005: 485-486). 3 Unlike beginners, who have a very superficial knowledge of Japanese, intermediate level learners are in need of not only a variety of expressions but also of the skill to command the right expression on the right occasion. For example, when one wants the salt at the dinner table, the selection of appropriate expressions is in accordance with competency in the language and understanding of the setting.