New Form of National Language Policy? The Case of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) in Japan

Otomo, Ruriko

doi:10.1007/s40299-016-0306-1

Cited by 8 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…These studies by Otomo (2016) and Nunoo (2012) both discuss Japanese language education policy for EPA trainees, similar to the current study, but do so from the perspective of policy paper level. Nevertheless, Nunoo's argument is indicative as it leads to further discussion regarding if the EPA scheme can serve as a test case of future immigration policy in Japan.…”

Section: Studies On the Epasupporting

confidence: 56%

“…Some studies (such as the current study) have also investigated the EPA scheme from the perspective of immigration policy in the field of LPP. For example, Otomo (2016) analysed EPA policy documents and revealed the trivial treatment and examples of ambiguous language in the documents. She calls for greater importance to be placed on the LPP perspective when considering the EPA scheme as, despite their significance, language issues are likely to be overlooked due to being embedded in emerging forms of immigration policies.…”

Section: Studies On the Epamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Japanese co-workers’ view of their communication with EPA foreign nurse trainees

Kusunoki¹

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Japanese language education for non-native speakers of Japanese (NNSJs) has attracted much attention with the growth in the number of NNSJs living in Japan. The employment of nurse trainees from Southeast Asian countries under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), which commenced in 2008, has elicited a strong reaction from the public and media due to three significant points:1) it provides a path to permanent residency for these foreign workers;2) the Japanese government officially supports Japanese language training for foreign workers; and 3) the foreign workers enter medical fields that require a high level of Japanese proficiency.However, nearly a decade after the commencement of the scheme, the trainees' national nursing exam pass rate remains below15% and there are even some trainees who pass the exam but do not stay in Japan.This study investigates Japanese co-workers' view of their communication with EPA nurse trainees from the perspective of language policy and planning (LPP). I examine the government's resources regarding the EPA scheme to highlight the issues and reveal the government's view of the scheme. I conducted a survey targeting the Japanese co-workers of trainees at three host hospitals to reveal the scheme's implementation from the perspective of individual stakeholders. Questionnaires completed by 34 Japanese co-workers and follow-up interviews with 7 co-workers capture their evaluation and perception of the trainees, their communication with the trainees, and their views on issues surrounding the scheme. This study takes the Japanese co-workers as its focus since they communicate with the trainees most often at work, and so are likely to influence and be influenced by the trainees' work training and Japanese language learning. This study among the first to discuss Japanese language education policy for EPA nurse trainees from the viewpoint of Japanese coworkers.The results indicate that although the scheme's general objectives are simple and clear, their interpretation varies among the four Japanese ministries that are involved in the scheme's operation.I demonstrate that the government and each ministry have different objectives and intentions as they operate at different levels of the language policy and they have different needs and agendas according to their positions and roles within the scheme. In addition, the survey results reveal that the Japanese co-workers treat trainees as guests rather than colleagues, which is an example of Japanese native-speakerist practice. Japanese co-workers evaluate the trainees' Japanese proficiency relatively positively and the trainees as effective workers only because the trainees work as nurse's ii aides under the scheme. The trainees' low exam pass rate and the number of returnees do not meet the Japanese government's expectations which are stated in the scheme's general objectives.

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Section: Studies On the Epasupporting

confidence: 56%

Section: Studies On the Epamentioning

confidence: 99%

Japanese co-workers’ view of their communication with EPA foreign nurse trainees

Kusunoki¹

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“…Examining the current policy discussions from the point of view of applied linguists, Hashimoto (2018), Nunoo (2016), and Otomo (2016) all point out the lack of attention to, and understanding of, the multifaceted nature of Japanese language learning and teaching on the part of policymakers. There are differences among language necessary for managing everyday life in Japan, language necessary for engaging in professional activities, and language necessary for passing high‐stake exams designed for different purposes.…”

Section: Linguistic Penalty or Appreciation Of Skilled Human Resources?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…After working in Japan for 3 years, they become eligible to take the national certification exam, but the exam, only offered in Japanese, has been considered a major hurdle for these foreign workers because it tends to evaluate skills and knowledge highly embedded in local language and culture (Lan, 2016, 2018; Shinohara, 2016). A growing number of studies (Hashimoto, 2018; Kusunoki, 2018; Nunoo, 2016; Otomo, 2016) have critically examined the language ideologies and policies behind the scheme of the EPA program through the analysis of government documents, media discourse, and results of questionnaires and interviews with various stakeholders. However, few studies have investigated actual workplace activities in which these foreign care workers have taken part.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During the 20th century, Japan established itself as ‘a model case of successful language modernization’ (Heinrich, 2012), but it now faces a critical juncture for reevaluating its language policies to meet the 21st‐century demands of its changing demographics (Gottlieb, 2018; Hashimoto, 2018; Otomo, 2016). The rapid aging of its population and chronic labor shortages have led the nation to consider the increased reliance on skilled foreign workers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Text, talk, and body in shift handover interaction: Language and multimodal repertoires for geriatric care work

Mori

Shima

2020

Journal of Sociolinguistics

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Japan's rapidly aging population and chronic labor shortages have led the country to consider increased reliance on foreign workers. The government promotes the cultivation of nihongo jinzai ‘Japanese language human resources’ (MOFA, 2013), that is, highly skilled foreign workers proficient in the de facto national language, but in reality, such ideal individuals are scarce. Workplaces thus must explore ways to accommodate workers with limited Japanese competence. By introducing a sequential and multimodal analysis of shift handover interaction between Japanese and foreign care workers at a geriatric facility, the current article critically evaluates the monolingual, logocentric ideology reflected in the ongoing national debate as well as in the institutional convention of information sharing. The examination of the ways in which these workers deploy multimodal semiotic resources for the fulfillment of their duty points to the need for reevaluation of conventional practices in favor of increased affordance of spatial repertoire.

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Language Training as a Site of Language Policy Creation, Interpretation and Appropriation

Otomo

2023

Language Policy

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New Form of National Language Policy? The Case of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) in Japan

Cited by 8 publications

References 10 publications

Japanese co-workers’ view of their communication with EPA foreign nurse trainees

Japanese co-workers’ view of their communication with EPA foreign nurse trainees

Text, talk, and body in shift handover interaction: Language and multimodal repertoires for geriatric care work

Language Training as a Site of Language Policy Creation, Interpretation and Appropriation

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