ETJ Workshops in Japan & JINES Newsletter

ETJ WORKSHOPS
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KOBE - Sunday March 21 (13:30-16:30)
ETJ Kobe: Phonics, Songs and More
Speaker(s): Eric Kane
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4732

CHIBA - Monday March 22 (13:30-16:30)
My Share
Speaker(s): various speakers
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4720

NAGOYA - Sunday March 28 10:00-12:30
World Englishes Education in High School
Speaker(s): Naoko Murata and Kayo Sugimoto
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4697

KAGOSHIMA - Sunday March 28 (14:00-16:30)
What is Red?
Speaker(s): David Lisgo
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4719

OMIYA - Sunday April 18 (14:00-17:00)
(1) Brain Rules; (2) Power Teaching Cross-Cultural workshop with movement, music, interactive reading, drama and more
Speaker(s): Kim Horne
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4725


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FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS
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Mar 20

NARA -- March 20 (Sat) 17:45-19:00
English Teaching in the Japanese EFL Environment: How Efficacious?
Speaker(s): Rintaro Sato, Nara University of Education
Nara JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4714

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Mar 21

KOBE, Hyogo -- March 21 (Sun) 13:30-16:30
ETJ Kobe: Phonics, Songs and More
Speaker(s): Eric Kane
Kobe ETJ
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4732

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Mar 22

CHIBA -- March 22 (Mon) 13:30-16:30
My Share
Speaker(s): various speakers
Chiba ETJ
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4720

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Mar 25

TOKYO -- March 25 (Thu) 10:30-12:30
Tips for teaching mixed-level / age / ability children's classes
Speaker(s): Yuco Kikuchi
English Teaching Workshop
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4721

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Mar 26

YOKOHAMA, Kanagawa -- March 26 (Fri) 17:30-19:30
Debunking Some Myths about Conversation Analysis
Speaker(s): Gabriele Kasper (University of Hawai'i at Manoa)
Kanagawa U.
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4716

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Mar 27

AKITA -- March 27 (Sat) 14:00-16:00
What Language Should We Be Using In Our Classrooms?
Speaker(s): Takaaki Hiratsuka
Akita JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4728

KYOTO -- March 27 (Sat) 14:30-16:30
Troubleshooting and My Share
Speaker(s): Various speakers (Call for papers due Feb 28th)
Kyoto JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4707

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Mar 28

TOKYO -- March 28 (Sun) 8:45-18:00
Career Strategies Seminar Presented by FEW Japan
Speaker(s): Several speakers
Tokyo FEW
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4724

AICHI -- March 28 (Sun) 10:00-12:30
World Englishes Education in High School
Speaker(s): Naoko Murata and Kayo Sugimoto
Aichi ETJ
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4697

HIROSHIMA -- March 28 (Sun) 10:00-17:00
Teaching Children English Mini-Conference
Speaker(s): Aleda Krause, and many others
Hiroshima JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4685

TOYOHASHI, Aichi -- March 28 (Sun) 13:30-16:00
Communication Breakdowns and Repair
Speaker(s): Douglas Jarrell and Naoko Hazumi
Toyohashi JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4695

KAGOSHIMA -- March 28 (Sun) 14:00-16:30
What is Red?
Speaker(s): David Lisgo
Kagoshima ETJ
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4719

SENDAI, Miyagi -- March 28 (Sun) 14:00-17:00
Pictures in the EFL Classroom
Speaker(s): Charles Adamson and Ken Schmidt
Sendai JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4691

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Apr 3

FUKUOKA -- April 3 (Sat) 14:00-17:00
Developing Lexical Competence: From Theory to Classroom Practice to Online Application
Speaker(s): Charles M. Browne (Meiji Gakuin University)
Fukuoka JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4729

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Apr 10

KYOTO -- April 10 (Sat) 9:00-17:00
Examiner Training - FCE and CAE - Cambridge ESOL workshop
Speaker(s): Jim George
Cambridge ESOL
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4622

KITAKYUSHU, Fukuoka -- April 10 (Sat) 18:30-20:00
Implementing Differing SLA Theories into Teaching
Speaker(s): Matthew J. Jenkins
Kitakyushu JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4675

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Apr 11

KYOTO -- April 11 (Sun) 9:00-12:30
Examiner Training - CPE - Cambridge ESOL
Speaker(s): Jim George
Cambridge ESOL
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4623

TOYOHASHI, Aichi -- April 11 (Sun) 13:30-16:00
Developing Personalized Portfolio Rubrics for the EFL Classroom
Speaker(s): Steve Quasha
Toyohashi JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4730

MATSUYAMA, Ehime -- April 11 (Sun) 14:15-16:20
Writing and Publishing Language Learning Materials
Speaker(s): Yusaku Mori, Author of test preparation guides, columnist for Asahi Weekly
Matsuyama JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4710

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Apr 17

NAGASAKI -- April 17 (Sat) 14:00-16:00
Jokes and Cartoons in the EFL Classroom.
Speaker(s): Richard Hodson, University of Nagasaki, Siebold
Nagasaki JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4717

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Apr 18

YOKOHAMA, Kanagawa -- April 18 (Sun) 12:00-17:00
Classrom Cohesion
Speaker(s): Steve Paydon and Yukari Saiki
Yokohama JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4733

MAEBASHI, Gunma -- April 18 (Sun) 14:00-16:30
Classrooms are Alive with the Sound of Music
Speaker(s): Stacey Vye
Gunma JALT
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4715

OMIYA, Saitama -- April 18 (Sun) 14:00-17:00
(1) Brain Rules; (2) Power Teaching Cross-Cultural workshop with movement, music, interactive reading, drama and more
Speaker(s): Kim Horne
Saitama ETJ
http://www.eltcalendar.com/events/details/4725

Editors Notes To all network members (and potential new members) welcome to the Jines newsletter. Japan's Independent Network of English Schools is a free network dedicated to, and controlled by the independent language schools themselves, to provide an online database of quality owned and operated English language schools throughout Japan. The purpose of Jines is to provide a gateway for Japanese students to locate a suitable school in their local area. It also provides a forum for school owners to share ideas on improving English language services in Japan. As such Jines is not just another ESL Teachers forum. Jines has been created for the independent English language school to exchange ideas relevant to them. But more importantly it has been established to showcase the schools unique services to the Japanese student and in the two months since its inception a number of current members have received new students by listing their school on Jines. In addition to this, the Jines blog has already raised some interesting topics in which all school owners would be interested to read. So in the future this newsletter and the blog will continue to raise discussions and ideas which hopefully will provide some answers to issues relating directly to the independent school owner. Also contained in this newsletter will be an information column regarding alternative study options, under the “Jines Jump Start� topic section. This will provide information and ideas on courses to help improve your skills and your business. So to everyone who has an independent English language school in Japan we hope you find this newsletter and the information contained within informative and useful. Jines is here to provide a network where we can all work together on improving our school, for our students and ultimately our business. We look forward to seeing you all on board.

Jines Jump Start Have you considered doing some additional study to help your school? It’s a busy time of year. Spring time brings with it new ideas for recruiting students, students coming and going as they start new jobs or schools, and of course we always have the general running of the school to think about. But in doing all of this it doesn’t hurt to consider looking at doing some more study to make you a better teacher. Or, perhaps giving the opportunity to a teacher that comes in and helps you out with a busy class schedule. Of course there are many obstacles in doing this and if you live in a regional centre in Japan there may not even be a university or other education provider in which you can enroll to sharpen up your skills, let alone one that provides the course in English. So lets not forget that with the Internet there are now many online courses to choose from. Jines has a number of agreements with universities around the world, which provide online education courses. And we are not just talking TESOL study. Take the University of Newcastle in Australia for example. They provide an on-line undergraduate program in Education Using Technology through their Faculty of Education and Arts. Education Using Technology will allow students to develop a broad understanding of three key areas in relation to educational technology: research, policy and practice. At the completion of the subject students will be able to: * Demonstrate an awareness of the historical context of educational technology and its impact on education; * Demonstrate an understanding of the research literature and scholarly writing that underpins the use of educational technology in teaching and learning; * Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of various educational technologies and their use in educational settings. So why not have a look around and find something that interests you and which can ultimately make your school the one which stands above all the others. Happy studying.

Education News On Japan All shuttered Geos schools to reopen for lessons in May 29 Apr G.communication Co., which has taken over collapsed English conversation school operator Geos Corp., plans to resume lessons at all Geos schools by the end of May, the company president said. This means lessons will resume soon at 18 of the 230 Geos schools that were closed for falling behind in their rent payments and for other reasons as of Wednesday. (Yomiuri) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/T100429003668.htm Working women in Japan face day care deficit 28 Apr As a producer for CNN International, I've been lucky enough to travel the world to cover important, yet adrenaline-filled events. I've been around exploding IEDs, mobs demanding political equity and witnessed the global meltdown of the world's second largest economy. Yet putting my baby into day care in Tokyo was the toughest competition I ever went through in my life. Child care facilities for small infants are called hoikuens (Nurturing Garden) in Japan. They are the MUST item for any working mother in Japan where hiring nannies is a near-impossibility. (CNN) http://business.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/28/working-women-in-japan-face-day-care-deficit/ Public schools switch to semesters 26 Apr An increasing number of public primary and middle schools are shifting to a semester system to secure more class hours ahead of the education ministry's new curriculum guidelines, which are scheduled to be fully implemented next spring. Using semesters means one less opening ceremony and one less closing ceremony than in the conventional trimester system, which translates into an extra 10 to 15 class hours. Teachers also have more time to spend with their students, since they need to prepare report cards only twice instead of three times. (Yomiuri) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20100426TDY03T03.htm English schools need to hit the books / Geos bankruptcy typifies an industry faced with changing market, bad economy Apr 23 With stiffer competition for fewer students amid a lingering recession, the nation's language schools need to develop new and profitable business strategies if they hope to improve their situations, a fact only further highlighted by Geos Corp.'s announcement Wednesday that it had filed for bankruptcy. "The current economic slump has led to a decline in the number of students, which meant we had to cut our advertising budget. As a result, the number of new students drastically decreased," Geos executive Hitomi Suhara told reporters Wednesday in Tokyo. In the 1990s, Geos had increased its number of campuses to more than 400 in an attempt to compete with its largest competitor, Nova Corp. (Yomiuri) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/T100422004781.htm Defining 'native English' Apr 22 Regarding the April 15 article "Why do English teachers have to be native speakers?": This headline is a bit misleading, I think. Both India and the Philippines are considered native speaker countries by English academics. English is one of the two official languages of the Philippines, and the efforts of writers like Carlos Bulosan have long placed Philippine writers alongside other native English speakers in the canon (broadly) of English literature. Likewise, English is one of the two official languages of India proper. (Japan Times) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/rc20100422a6.html

Joining Jines It's free for independent school owners to list their schools in the Jines Directory. Follow the link below to register and enter your school details into the database. At any time you will be able to modify or delete your entry. Join / Login here! Jines charges no service fee for the schools to join, nor does it charge the Japanese student to access the information contained within this website. The purpose of Jines is to provide a gateway for Japanese students to locate a suitable school in addition to providing a forum for school owners to share ideas on improving English language services in Japan. For more information, contact: Peter Carter Japan's Independent Network of English Schools http://jines.jp/ 3-22 Kanda-cho Higashi Osaka-shi Osaka 579-8058 JAPAN Tel: +81 72 981 8806