Papers by Adam Murray
東京電機大学総合文化研究, 2006
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The JALT CALL Journal, 2011
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In this paper, authors report on a successful implementation of an e-Portfolio system based on Mo... more In this paper, authors report on a successful implementation of an e-Portfolio system based on Moodle and Mahara. Here, four important aspects of our e-Portfolio implementation are explored: the class setting and teaching mechanics, student work evaluation using rubrics, the use of badges as a motivational strategy and Journal writing to promote reflective learning. By the end of the course, students have clearly improved their ICT skills, demonstrated competency in using the e-Portfolio system, and have gained awareness of their own learning.
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At our institution, students are faced with the challenging task of mastering course contents in ... more At our institution, students are faced with the challenging task of mastering course contents in an English-only classroom environment (CLIL). In this paper we describe how we successfully balanced the teaching of fundamental ICT skills with the course content of environmental issues. As some of our students lack the necessary English skills to cope with the content, English instruction is also an integral part of the course. Of particular importance to the meeting the learning objectives was the use of tasks to develop ICT skills which required the retention of information from the instructor-created reading texts.
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At our institution, students are faced with the challenging task of mastering course contents in ... more At our institution, students are faced with the challenging task of mastering course contents in an English-only classroom environment (CLIL). In this paper we describe how we successfully balanced the teaching of fundamental ICT skills with the course content of environmental issues. As some of our students lack the necessary English skills to cope with the content, English instruction is also an integral part of the course. Of particular importance to the meeting the learning objectives was the use of tasks to develop ICT skills which required the retention of information from the instructor-created reading texts.
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In this paper, authors report on a successful implementation of an e-Portfolio system based on Mo... more In this paper, authors report on a successful implementation of an e-Portfolio system based on Moodle and Mahara. Here, four important aspects of our e-Portfolio implementation are explored: the class setting and teaching mechanics, student work evaluation using rubrics, the use of badges as a motivational strategy and Journal writing to promote reflective learning. By the end of the course, students have clearly improved their ICT skills, demonstrated competency in using the e-Portfolio system, and have gained awareness of their own learning.
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Many foreign language educators who are teaching compulsory
classes are faced with unmotivated le... more Many foreign language educators who are teaching compulsory
classes are faced with unmotivated learners. One reason for this lack of motivation is the perception that foreign languages are academic subjects rather than tools for communication. One way that foreign language educators can overcome this perception while motivating and engaging their students is the use of ill-structured instruction in their classes. The purpose of this brief paper is to give an overview of well-structured and ill-structured instruction along with a discussion of the differences in presentation, constraints, time frame, solutions, feedback, and the roles of the teacher and learner between these two forms of instruction. A thorough understanding of these differences and the resulting implications need to be taken into account in order for teachers to be able to implement the most appropriate instructional activities in their classes. Examples from foreign language instruction are used to illustrate how ill-structured instruction may be used to change this perception of foreign languages while increasing levels of motivation.
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Despite most Japanese university students having access to computers and the internet, there are ... more Despite most Japanese university students having access to computers and the internet, there are anecdotal reports of these students having very low levels of computer and internet literacy. In order to gather empirical evidence to either confirm or refute these reports, a computer literacy questionnaire was administered to 103 Japanese university students at three universities in the first month of the 2011 academic year. This article reports on the respondents’ perceived levels of computer and inter- net literacy, software use, skills, and knowledge.
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This study utilized a quasi-experimental research design to determine students’ gains in reading ... more This study utilized a quasi-experimental research design to determine students’ gains in reading fluency while maintaining a reasonable level of reading comprehension when reading texts of different lengths over a period of 10 weeks. Analysis of the results revealed that Treatment Group 1 (n = 61), who used 400-word texts, improved their reading fluency by an average of 37.9 wpm (33.4%) and Treatment Group 2 (n = 53), who read 200-word texts, increased by an average of 14.9 wpm (13.3%). Further- more, Treatment Group 1 saw a gain in comprehension of an average of 11.4%, whereas Treatment Group 2 saw a gain of 11.3%, and the control group (n = 36) showed an average of 5.7 wpm (5.8%) change in reading fluency with an average drop in reading comprehension by 1.9%. The results of this study suggest that text length has an influence on L2 reading fluency for intermediate EFL students.
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Professional Development by Adam Murray
In this brief paper, teacher burnout in Japanese higher education is described. In particular, fa... more In this brief paper, teacher burnout in Japanese higher education is described. In particular, faculty burnout, work-related stressors, and career fit are described. A case of a typical full-time contract English teacher is used to illustrate burnout within the current Japanese higher education context. The paper concludes with
a number of practical suggestions for both contract teachers and university leadership.
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Educators realize that they no longer have to wait for professional development opportunities. Al... more Educators realize that they no longer have to wait for professional development opportunities. Although the idea of professional networking is not new to educators, advances in web technologies such as blogs, learning platforms, and social networks have enabled educators to form larger and more useful networks that would have been inconceivable even a decade ago. With these networks, called Professional Learning Networks, or PLNs, educators are able not only to find cutting edge information and resources but also to learn about opportunities for collaboration and professional development. This paper briefly describes PLNs and gives an overview of how educators in higher education are using Web 2.0 tools for professional development. A number of popular components that are used to construct PLNs are highlighted, along with specific examples. The paper concludes with practical suggestions and a list of resources that can be used when starting a PLN.
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Educators realize that they no longer have to wait for professional development opportunities. Al... more Educators realize that they no longer have to wait for professional development opportunities. Although the idea of professional networking is not new to educators, advances in web technologies such as blogs, learning platforms, and social networks have enabled educators to form larger and more useful networks that would have been inconceivable even a decade ago. With these networks, called Professional Learning Networks, or PLNs, educators are able not only to find cutting edge information and resources but also to learn about opportunities for collaboration and professional development. This paper briefly describes PLNs and gives an overview of how educators in higher education are using Web 2.0 tools for professional development. A number of popular components that are used to construct PLNs are highlighted, along with specific examples. The paper concludes with practical suggestions and a list of resources that can be used when starting a PLN
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Assessment by Adam Murray
This paper discusses fundamental issues to consider when designing and implementing a speaking te... more This paper discusses fundamental issues to consider when designing and implementing a speaking test in the context of integrated-skills language assessment, which has become increasingly necessary, as the high school course of study in Japan has been directed toward integrated teaching and learning based on the new guidelines of MEXT (the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology). The issues and problems will be considered in light of a recent concept, assessment literacy (Inbar-Lourie, 2008; Taylor, 2009) for teacher training: namely, what teachers should know about testing and assessment to make well-informed decisions in their teaching practices in order to optimize the improvement of their students. The paper indicates the necessity of raising the awareness of pre-service and in-service teachers’ assessment literacy and concludes with suggestions for further research on integrated speaking tests and further work on workshop practices.
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This paper summarizes two years of multi-faceted inquiries into the present practices and state o... more This paper summarizes two years of multi-faceted inquiries into the present practices and state of English teacher education in Japan, upon which the assessment-related knowledge and skills (assessment literacy) that should be taught to prospective and in-service teachers has been discussed and compiled in a list. Our investigations included the analyses of typical textbooks used for English teacher education, the administration of assessment workshops to gather feedback from prospective teachers, a needs survey conducted to teacher educators, and the analysis of the assessment-related items that appear in prefectural and municipal teacher exams. These accumulated data all showed a serious lack in coverage of important assessment-related concepts and statistical test-analysis skills in most teacher education courses. All the results were comprehensively examined in light of recent literature and relevant studies in the field in order to create a proposal for an ideal “assessment literacy” for future English teachers in Japan.
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This paper reports on the perspectives of textbook writers, teacher trainees and teacher trainers... more This paper reports on the perspectives of textbook writers, teacher trainees and teacher trainers on the treatment of testing concepts in teacher education programs in Japan. Ten domestically published textbooks were examined to see what testing-related concepts are dealt with in comparison to their foreign counterparts. Most major concepts such as validity and reliability are covered. However, many textbooks fail to provide adequate explanations and hands-on practice of basic statistics. In addition to the textbook analysis, two surveys were administered. One was administered to teacher trainees enrolled in an English teacher-training workshop in order to learn more about their perceptions on testing. The second survey asked teacher trainers which testing concepts are covered in their courses and how much classroom time is allocated to them. Based on the findings from the textbook analysis and the survey results, the authors make recommendations about how testing concepts should be covered in teacher- training programs and textbooks.
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Teacher efficacy, learner agency, 2020
Teachers of English (JTEs) feel about classroom-based assessment. The questionnaire (31 items) co... more Teachers of English (JTEs) feel about classroom-based assessment. The questionnaire (31 items) consists of three sections: (a) teachers’ beliefs, (b) teachers’ self-efficacy, and (c) their own teaching practice. We pilot tested this instrument with 30 JTEs in order to assess its appropriateness and to get a better understanding of the tendencies and characteristics of JTEs. We found that the belief statements are suitable, but revision along with additional statements will be needed for self- efficacy and practice for the next version of the instrument. The participants believed language tests should resemble real-life language use. Notably, they were able to make such tests and were doing so in their teaching contexts. They also felt that effective feedback and the use of clear learning targets were important.
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Jacet全国大会要綱, Sep 1, 2010
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Jacet Kanto Journal, Mar 31, 2011
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Papers by Adam Murray
classes are faced with unmotivated learners. One reason for this lack of motivation is the perception that foreign languages are academic subjects rather than tools for communication. One way that foreign language educators can overcome this perception while motivating and engaging their students is the use of ill-structured instruction in their classes. The purpose of this brief paper is to give an overview of well-structured and ill-structured instruction along with a discussion of the differences in presentation, constraints, time frame, solutions, feedback, and the roles of the teacher and learner between these two forms of instruction. A thorough understanding of these differences and the resulting implications need to be taken into account in order for teachers to be able to implement the most appropriate instructional activities in their classes. Examples from foreign language instruction are used to illustrate how ill-structured instruction may be used to change this perception of foreign languages while increasing levels of motivation.
Professional Development by Adam Murray
a number of practical suggestions for both contract teachers and university leadership.
Assessment by Adam Murray
classes are faced with unmotivated learners. One reason for this lack of motivation is the perception that foreign languages are academic subjects rather than tools for communication. One way that foreign language educators can overcome this perception while motivating and engaging their students is the use of ill-structured instruction in their classes. The purpose of this brief paper is to give an overview of well-structured and ill-structured instruction along with a discussion of the differences in presentation, constraints, time frame, solutions, feedback, and the roles of the teacher and learner between these two forms of instruction. A thorough understanding of these differences and the resulting implications need to be taken into account in order for teachers to be able to implement the most appropriate instructional activities in their classes. Examples from foreign language instruction are used to illustrate how ill-structured instruction may be used to change this perception of foreign languages while increasing levels of motivation.
a number of practical suggestions for both contract teachers and university leadership.