EXTENSIVE READING IN JAPANESE Claire Hitosugi Department of

EXTENSIVE READING IN JAPANESE Claire Hitosugi Department of East Asian Languages and Literature Richard R. Day Department of Second Language Studies University of Hawaii

ORGANIZATION OF PRESENTATION Setting up an ER library Ø Target Number of Books Ø Grading Ø Classroom Activities Ø Results Ø

The Library ØPlan Ahead ØStart Early ØGet Financial Support ØBuy, Beg, Borrow and Steal As Many Books As Possible

The Library ØSet up a cataloging system ØFigure out a storage or delivery system ØKeep getting a wide variety of books (and video tapes)

The Library Ø Purchased books from local Japanese book stores Ø Purchased a book cart, color labels, index cards, etc. Ø Obtained funding from UH Ø Categorized books into six levels and labeled them

Ø Created library cards, envelope slips, reaction reports Ø Made a master list of books Ø Created student folders (chart for timed repeated readings, weekly reading log, book summary)

READING TARGET & GRADING Ø Set a target number of books to be read. Ø Determine how much of the grade the extensive reading component will be. Ø Set up a procedure for tracking students’ reading.

Ø Set a target number of books for the ten week period: 40 Ø Assigned 10% to ER Ø 40 books = 10% Ø 30 to 39 books = 7. 5% Ø 20 to 29 books = 5% Ø Fewer than 19 books = 2. 5% Ø Extra credit up to 5%; 1% for additional four books

Classroom Activities We used a small portion of class time, approximately 30 minutes once a week, to create a positive classroom environment that supported and encouraged the students’ outside reading and promoted their learning of Japanese.

Classroom Activities Ø Timed Repeated Reading Ø Once Upon a Time Ø Role Plays

RESULTS Number of books read Number of students (N=14) 53 40 -42 30 -39 20 -29 16 -19 1 3 4 4 2

RESULTS Total number of Average books read number per student (N=14) 435 31

Means of Reading Test Pre-ER A B C Total 2. 61 2. 43 3. 50 8. 54 A B C Total 2. 81 2. 42 4. 38 9. 62 Post-ER (Highest possible score for each section: A=5, B=5, C=10)

Mean Average Gains on the Test of Reading Ability A 0. 20 B -0. 01 C 0. 88 Total 1. 08

Results of the 22 -Item Affective Questionnaire Pre-ER Post-ER Overall Gain 51. 57 50. 00 1. 57 (Note: The lower the number, the higher the positive affect. )

Students’ Reactions Ø Overall students enjoyed ER, but ER appealed more to some. A student perceived by instructor as marginal blossomed after introduction of ER. A mature student with business background did not like ER much. It could be due to the nature of books we used rather than ER itself. Ø In an unexpected developed, a student reported that she read books with her grandmother, and developed a better relationship.

Teacher’s Reflection Ø ER definitely enriched students’ language learning experience and reinforced learning. Ø Using videos with books worked well. Ø Management of library and books is challenging; tracking missing books is another task itself. Ø We need more books to implement ER more broadly. Ø Administrative support, funding, and collaboration are desired for future ER projects.

Extensive Reading In Japanese Thank you for coming to our session!