The higher education sector has been increasingly pressured to accommodate the demand of cultivating global-minded individuals. A similar phenomenon is seen in Japan. However, teaching global leadership has always been challenging in Japan due to the lack of exposure to international environments. The paper illustrates the implementation of global leadership courses at a Japanese university that attempted to address some of these issues: lack of intercultural exposure, opportunities for using English and learning global leadership in English. Some factors surrounding the current situation of global leadership education in Japan are also discussed, along with its future direction.
References
[1]
Afshan, A., Askari, I., & Manickam, L. S. S. (2015). Shyness, Self-Construal, Extraversion-introversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism: A Cross-Cultural Comparison among College Students. SAGE Open, 5, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244015587559
[2]
Bergmann, J., & Sams, A. (2012). Flip Your Classroom: Reach Every Student in Every Class Every Day. International Society for Technology in Education.
[3]
Burgess, C. (2014). To Globalise or Not to Globalise? ‘Inward-Looking Youth’ as Scapegoats for Japan’s Failure to Secure and Cultivate ‘Global Human Resources’. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 13, 487-507. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2014.966805
[4]
Chong, M. P. M., & Fu, P. (2020). Global Leadership: An Asian Perspective. Journal of Leadership Studies, 14, 58-62. https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21702
[5]
Cope, B., & Kalantzis, M. (2009). Ubiquitous Learning. University of Illinois Press.
[6]
Curdt-Christiansen, X. L., Gao, B., & Sun, B. (2021). How to Kill Two Birds with One Stone: EMI Teachers’ Needs in Higher Education in China. Applied Linguistics Review, 14, 1513-1538. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2021-0178
[7]
Dobson, H., Heppell, T., & Leal, P. (2023). Understanding Prime Ministerial Leadership in the United Kingdom and Japan in the 21st Century: Introduction to a Special Issue. Asian Journal of Comparative Politics, 8, 5-17. https://doi.org/10.1177/20578911221135298
[8]
Dong, X. (2016). Application of Flipped Classroom in College English Teaching. Creative Education, 7, 1335-1339. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2016.79138
[9]
Education First (2023). EF English Proficiency Index: Japan. https://www.ef.com/wwen/epi/regions/asia/japan/
[10]
Egitim, S. (2022). Do Japanese Students Lack Critical Thinking? Addressing the Misconception. Power and Education, 14, 304-309. https://doi.org/10.1177/17577438221107203
[11]
Ergin, M., & Shinohara, C. (2021). Neo-Ottomanism and Cool Japan in Comparative Perspective. New Perspectives on Turkey, 65, 27-48. https://doi.org/10.1017/npt.2021.17
[12]
ETS (2023). 2022 Report on Test Takers Worldwide—TOEIC (R) Listening and Reading Test. https://www.ets.org/content/dam/ets-org/pdfs/toeic/toeic-listening-reading-report-test-takers-worldwide.pdf
[13]
Futaba, Y. (2016). Inclusive Education under Collectivistic Culture. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 16, 649-652. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12325
[14]
Hammond, C. D., & Keating, A. (2018). Global Citizens or Global Workers? Comparing University Programmes for Global Citizenship Education in Japan and the UK. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 48, 915-934. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2017.1369393
[15]
Hirokawa, K., Vannieuwenhuyse, B., Dohi, I., & Miyata, Y. (2001). Comparison of French and Japanese Individuals with Reference to Hofstede’s Concepts of Individualism and Masculinity. Psychological Reports, 89, 243-251. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.2001.89.2.243
[16]
Hofstede, G. (2011). Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2, Article 8. https://doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1014
[17]
Hollenback, M. (2019). The Expected and Unexpected Failures of the Global 30 Program. Journal of Research Institute, 59, 79-98.
[18]
Hsieh, J. S. C., Wu, W. V., & Marek, M. W. (2017). Using the Flipped Classroom to Enhance EFL Learning. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 30, 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2015.1111910
[19]
Hung, H. T. (2017). The Integration of a Student Response System in Flipped Classrooms. Language Learning & Technology, 21, 16-27. http://llt.msu.edu/issues/february2017/hung.pdf
[20]
IMD (2023). World Competitiveness Ranking. https://www.imd.org/centers/wcc/world-competitiveness-center/rankings/world-competitiveness-ranking/
[21]
Kirschner, P. A., & Hendrick, C. (2020). How Learning Happens: Seminal Works in Educational Psychology and What They Mean in Practice. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429061523
[22]
Kruse, K. (2013). What is Leadership? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2013/04/09/what-is-leadership/?sh=671faf415b90
[23]
Kubota, R. (1998). Ideologies of English in Japan. World Englishes, 17, 295-306. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-971x.00105
[24]
Li, S., He, J., Tao, Y., & Liu, X. (2022). The Effects of Flipped Classroom Approach in EFL Teaching: Can We Strategically Use the Flipped Method to Acquire Communicative Competence? Language Teaching Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688221081575
[25]
Lo, C. K., & Hew, K. F. (2017). A Critical Review of Flipped Classroom Challenges in K-12 Education: Possible Solutions and Recommendations for Future Research. Research and Practice in Technology Enhanced Learning, 12, Article No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41039-016-0044-2
[26]
Luo, L. (2024). Analysis of Japanese Cultural Patterns—Based on Hofstede’s Value Dimensions and Minkov’s Cultural Dimensions. International Journal of Education and Humanities, 14, 367-374. https://doi.org/10.54097/atw22v23
[27]
Makita, T. (2022). Restoring Japan’s Economic Competitiveness: Regeneration and Adaptation to Globalization and Digitalization is Essential. JRI Research Journal, 5, 1-17. https://www.jri.co.jp/en/MediaLibrary/file/english/periodical/jrirj/2022/10/makita.pdf
[28]
McKinley, J., Rose, H., & Curdt-Christiansen, X. L. (2023). EMI in Chinese Higher Education: The Muddy Water of ‘Englishisation’. Applied Linguistics Review, 14, 1475-1481. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0015
[29]
MEXT (2023a). Support for Internationalization of Universities. https://www.mext.go.jp/en/policy/education/highered/title02/detail02/1373875.htm
[30]
MEXT (2023b). Project for Promotion of Global Human Resource Development. https://www.mext.go.jp/en/policy/education/highered/title02/detail02/sdetail02/1373895.htm
[31]
Miyamoto, J., Shimizu, A., Hayashi, J., & Cheah, I. (2023). Revisiting “Cool Japan” in Country-of-Origin Research: A Commentary and Future Research Directions. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 35, 2251-2265. https://doi.org/10.1108/apjml-07-2022-0596
[32]
Ogihara, Y. (2016). The Change in Self-Esteem among Middle School Students in Japan, 1989-2002. Psychology, 7, 1343-1351. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2016.711136
[33]
Ogihara, Y. (2017). Temporal Changes in Individualism and Their Ramification in Japan: Rising Individualism and Conflicts with Persisting Collectivism. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, Article 695. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00695
[34]
Ogihara, Y., Uchida, Y., & Kusumi, T. (2014). How Do Japanese Perceive Individualism? Examination of the Meaning of Individualism in Japan. Psychologia, 57, 213-223. https://doi.org/10.2117/psysoc.2014.213
[35]
Ogihara, Y., Uchida, Y., & Kusumi, T. (2016). Losing Confidence over Time: Temporal Changes in Self-Esteem Among Older Children and Early Adolescents in Japan, 1999-2006. SAGE Open, 6, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016666606
[36]
Okada, R. (2016). Conflict between Critical Thinking and Cultural Values: Difficulty Asking Questions and Expressing Opinions in Japan. Asian Education Studies, 2, 91-98. https://doi.org/10.20849/aes.v2i1.122
[37]
Oshio, A., Okada, R., Mogaki, M., Namikawa, T., & Wakita, T. (2014). Age and Survey-Year Effects on Self-Esteem in Japan. The Japanese Journal of Educational Psychology, 62, 273-282. https://doi.org/10.5926/jjep.62.273
[38]
Phan, L. H. (2013). Issues Surrounding English, the Internationalisation of Higher Education and National Cultural Identity in Asia: A Focus on Japan. Critical Studies in Education, 54, 160-175. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2013.781047
[39]
Phan, L. H. (2016). English and Identity: A Reflection and Implications for Future Research. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication, 26, 348-355. https://doi.org/10.1075/japc.26.2.10pha
[40]
Pritchard, R. M. O., & Maki, H. (2006). The Changing Self-Perceptions of Japanese University Students of English. Journal of Studies in International Education, 10, 141-156. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315305283928
[41]
Rivers, D. J. (2021). Japanese National Identity and the Positioning of English as Opportunity or Obstruction. Contemporary Japan, 33, 41-56. https://doi.org/10.1080/18692729.2020.1792188
[42]
Rivers, D. J., & Ross, A. S. (2013). Idealized English Teachers: The Implicit Influence of Race in Japan. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 12, 321-339. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2013.835575
[43]
Rose, H., & McKinley, J. (2018). Japan’s English-Medium Instruction Initiatives and the Globalization of Higher Education. Higher Education, 75, 111-129. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-017-0125-1
[44]
Sakamoto, F., & Roger, P. (2022). Global Competence and Foreign Language Education in Japan. Journal of Studies in International Education, 27, 719-740. https://doi.org/10.1177/10283153221076905
[45]
Salomone, R. (2022). The Rise of English: Global Politics and the Power of Language. Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190625610.001.0001
[46]
Sandlin, M. R., Odom, S. F., Lindner, J. R., & Dooley, K. E. (2012). Developing a Global Leadership Perspective through the Use of Student-Created Reusable Learning Objects. Journal of Leadership Studies, 6, 79-84. https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21232
[47]
Sasaki, M. (2004). Globalization and National Identity in Japan. International Journal of Japanese Sociology, 13, 69-87. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6781.2004.00054.x
[48]
Soruç, A., Yuksel, D., Horzum, B., McKinley, J., & Rose, H. (2024). Linguistic and Non-Linguistic Factors Impacting EMI Academic Success: A Longitudinal Study. Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-024-01195-0
[49]
Statista (2023). The Most Spoken Languages Worldwide in 2023 [Infographic]. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/266808/the-most-spoken-languages-worldwide/
[50]
Tamaki, T. (2019). Repackaging National Identity: Cool Japan and the Resilience of Japanese Identity Narratives. Asian Journal of Political Science, 27, 108-126. https://doi.org/10.1080/02185377.2019.1594323
[51]
Tanaka-Ellis, N., & Sekiguchi, S. (2019). Making Global Knowledge Accessible to EFL Speakers of an Undergraduate Leadership Program through a Flipped and Ubiquitous Learning Environment. Technology in Language Teaching & Learning, 1, 3-20. https://doi.org/10.29140/tltl.v1n1.141
[52]
Uemura, R. (2011). Relative Rank-Order of Salient Identities of the Japanese. International Journal of Japanese Sociology, 20, 73-88. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6781.2011.01152.x
[53]
World Economic Forum (2020). Global Competitivenss Report Special Edition 2020: How Countries Are Performing on the Road to Recovery. https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-global-competitiveness-report-2020/
[54]
Yamawaki, N. (2012). Within-Culture Variations of Collectivism in Japan. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 43, 1191-1204. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022111428171
[55]
Yonezawa, A. (2020). Challenges of the Japanese Higher Education Amidst Population Decline and Globalization. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 18, 43-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2019.1690085
[56]
Yukl, G., & Gardner, W. L. (2020). Leadership in Organizations (9th ed.). Pearson Education.