Biographical note
Robert is a PhD student in Applied Linguistics, and works as an assistant professor in the English Communication Department of Tokyo Kasei University. He has been working the field of language education since 2008, and produces the TEFLology podcast in his spare time.
Project title
'Resisting native-speakerism in Japanese higher education: Towards a more equitable model of course development and design.'
Research outline
There are many controversial issues surrounding language education in Japanese higher education, many of which involve complaints that teachers are discriminated against on the basis of their perceived speakerhood. This project is a study of one teaching department in a Japanese university which seems to offer a more fair and equitable alternative to most others. The purpose of this study is to find out how this has been achieved, and what can be learned from this for future course planning and implementation.
Supervisory Team
- Adrian Holliday (first supervisor)
- Alexandra Polyzou (second supervisor)
- Shane Blackman (chair)