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Accepted Paper
Paper long abstract
Foreign language education at the preschool level has gained increasing international importance since the late 1990s, alongside foreign language education at the primary level (Nikolov & Mihaljević Djigunović, 2023). In Türkiye, it has likewise been introduced in parallel with European Union language policies, and interest has increased since the early 2000s. However, the current situation remains strongly centered on English, and attention to and opportunities for languages other than English cannot be said to be sufficient. This constitutes one of the major issues in language policy (Nikolov & Mihaljević Djigunović, 2023). In principle, foreign language education at the preschool level does not aim at the acquisition of advanced functional proficiency in the target language; rather, it aims to foster children’s awareness of the existence of languages and cultures different from their own and to deepen their understanding of diversity (Karakoç, 2007). Therefore, it is important to provide opportunities for exposure to a variety of languages rather than limiting instruction to a single language.
Globally, there are 7,883 learners of Japanese at the preschool level, of whom the Middle East accounts for only one learner, the lowest number (Japan Foundation, 2024). In particular, although Turkey has the highest number of Japanese language education institutions in the region (26 institutions), it is noteworthy that there are no learners in this age group. Against this background, in 2023 a “Preschool Japanese Language Education” project was launched at the COMU Kindergarten affiliated with Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University. This presentation introduces the implementation process of this project and analyzes the views of trainee teachers who were responsible for Japanese language instruction. The data were collected through individual interviews with nine trainees. The results revealed the effectiveness of play-based teaching methods, the high levels of interest and motivation among children, and improvements in the practical teaching skills of the trainees. Based on these findings, this study provides practical implications for the promotion of multilingual education.
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References
国際交流基金（2024）「2024年度海外日本語教育機関調査」2026年4月18日閲覧,
https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/japanese/survey/result/information.html.
Karakoç, C. (2007). Okul öncesi eğitimde ana sınıfları ingilizce dersi için bir öğretim programı önerisi (A proposed curriculum for English courses
in preschool kindergarten classes). Unpublished master’s thesis, İnönü University, Malatya.
Nikolov, M., & Mihaljević Djigunović, J. (2023). Studies on pre-primary learners of foreign languages, their teachers, and parents: A critical overview of publications between 2000 and 2022. Language Teaching, 56(4), 451–477. Doi:10.1017/S0261444823000095.
| Abstract in Japanese (if needed): | トルコにおける就学前日本語教育の導入と実践的検討 エスラ・クラ（チャナッカレ・オンセキズ・マルト大学） 就学前段階における外国語教育は、1990年代後半以降、初等教育段階の外国語教育とともに国際的に重要性を増やしてきた（Nikolov&Mihaljević Djigunović, 2023）。トルコにおいても、欧州連合の言語政策と並行して導入が進められ、2000年代初頭から関心が高まっている。しかしながら、現在も英語中心の傾向が強く、英語以外の言語に対する関心や教育機会は十分とは言えない。この点は言語政策上の重要な課題の一つである（Nikolov & Mihaljević Djigunović, 2023）。本来、就学前段階の外国語教育は、対象言語の高度な運用能力の習得ではなく、子どもたちが自らの言語や文化とは異なる言語や文化の存在に気づき、多様性への理解を深めることを目的としている（Karakoç, 2007）。したがって、単一言語に偏らず、多様な言語に触れる機会を提供することが重要である。 世界全体では、就学前段階における日本語学習者は7,883人であり、そのうち中東地域はわずか1人と最も少ない（国際交流基金, 2024）。とりわけ、同地域の中で日本語教育機関数が最も多いトルコ（26機関）において、当該年齢層の学習者が存在しない点は注目に値する。このような背景を踏まえ、2023年にチャナッカレ・オンセキズ・マルト大学附属のCOMU幼稚園において「就学前日本語教育」プロジェクトを開始した。 本発表では、本プロジェクトの実施過程を紹介し、日本語教育を担当した実習生の意見を分析する。データは9名への個別インタビューにより収集された。その結果、遊びを基盤とした教授法の有効性、子どもたちの高い関心と動機づけ、実習生の実践力の向上などが明らかとなり、本取り組みがトルコにおいて普及し得る可能性が示唆された。これらの知見を踏まえると、本研究は多言語教育の推進に向けた実践的示唆を提供するものである。 ________________________________________________________________ 参考文献 国際交流基金（2024）「2024年度海外日本語教育機関調査」2026年4月18日閲覧, https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/japanese/survey/result/information.html. Karakoç, C. (2007). Okul öncesi eğitimde ana sınıfları ingilizce dersi için bir öğretim programı önerisi (A proposed curriculum for English courses in preschool kindergarten classes). Unpublished master’s thesis, İnönü University, Malatya. Nikolov, M., & Mihaljević Djigunović, J. (2023). Studies on pre-primary learners of foreign languages, their teachers, and parents: A critical overview of publications between 2000 and 2022. Language Teaching, 56(4), 451–477. Doi:10.1017/S0261444823000095. |
Association of Japanese Language Education: 3/2
Session 2 Saturday 29 August, 2026, -