What can a combined Transitive and Appraisal analysis of Japanese government materials reveal about underlying attitudes towards Assistant Language Teachers?

Abstract

English education in Japanese schools is often delivered in a team-teaching approach with one Japanese teacher and one non-Japanese Assistant Language Teacher (ALT), many of which are recruited through the Japanese Exchange and Teaching (JET) programme. Whether implicitly or explicitly, there are different roles and expectations assigned to each of these jobs from the students, schools, and wider policy makers within the Japanese Department of Education (MEXT). This combined Transitive and Appraisal analysis of the text of two training videos targeted at new JET teachers entering Japan reveals a lot of positive language being employed however there are some more concerning trends that appear as well, including an expectation for the JET teacher to always follow the lead of their Japanese partner teacher, an emphasis on the presence of the JET teacher over any actual action, and subjects them to some negative presumptions. Academics frequently call greater cooperation in how language teaching is delivered, therefore understanding the root of problem as reflected in the discourse used can be a useful first step towards achieving a more effective relationship for all parties involved.