UTokyo English Academia Learning English for Teaching in English

About “UTokyo English Academia”

Today, the use of English is common in academic settings, such as laboratories, academic conferences, and classes.

While English fluency is a necessity in international academic communities, English communication may seem daunting for many graduate students and novice researchers whose first language(s) is not English. Even if your first language is English, you might be facing trouble in teaching students coming from various countries.

English Academia was provided as a free e-learning service for students and researchers by the Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo. (Period: February 10th, 2017–February 28th, 2021)

Our program helps busy students and researchers study at their own pace by using smartphones and PCs to gain the skills necessary for research life.

Learn basic knowledge necessary for academic communication in laboratories, academic conferences, and classes.
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Learn practical and advanced English expressions necessary for presentations, debates, e-mailing, phone calls, and succeeding in job interviews.
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Learn the background, benefits,
and issues related to the need to
teach academic subjects in English.
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Learn about the global use of English today as a lingua franca and the relevance of this for EMI.
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Learning Objectives

This course focuses on English for academic communication necessary for your research, involving ways on how to interact with others in seminars and academic conferences and how to deliver classes in English. The program will lead you in accomplishing the following objectives.

English Academia 1 & 2

･Recognize the significance of academic communication in English in one's research life.

･Acquire English expressions applicable to various situations in one's research life.
English Academia 3

･Demonstrate a clear understanding of the global growth in EMI provision, the implementation of EMI in your context, and challenges faced by stakeholders.

・Propose possible solutions to challenges regarding the implementation of EMI in your context.
English Academia 4

･Be able to explain the historical development, geographical spread, and diversity of the English language.

･Be able to explain how the concept of “Global Englishes” can be applied in English medium instruction (EMI: teaching academic subjects in English).

Features of UTokyo English Academia

You probably recognize the necessity of English for your research, but do you have difficulty in finding time to learn English? English Academia is an online course exactly for a graduate student like you who is busy with studies and research.: You can access the website with smartphones or PCs in your spare time and easily learn useful knowledge for academic communication and teaching in English through learning modules mixed with movies, quizzes, and conversations among characters.
English Academia 1 & 2 use a variety of situations to deepen your learning through imagining your own research life.

User Reviews

“Learning English through English Academia was not limited to memorization of English phrases, but included how to become a specialist, namely a faculty member, so this program was interesting in a different way compared with other materials for learning English.”Graduate student at UTokyo

“The program was more enjoyable than I had expected. Learning English through this online course was not the kind of preparation for an entrance examination, and the contents were casual. It was like a game with quizzes.”Graduate student at UTokyo

“The videos were like sit-coms, and it was easy for me to imagine specific situations. It was nice that all the characters appearing in the videos had unique personalities.”Graduate student at UTokyo

About Us

English Academia was provided by PAGE（Professional and Global Educators’ Community）, Division for Quality Enhancement of Higher Education, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo. [Period: Feb 10, 2017 – Feb 28, 2021]

*Positions listed are correct as of their enrollment in the project.

Director

･Toru Fujimoto
Lecturer, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo

Staff

･Akio Oshiro
Staff of PAGE, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Sakurako Kotobuki
Staff of PAGE, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Sawako Nii
Staff of PAGE, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Mayuko Tsukakoshi
Staff of PAGE, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo

Contributors

･Jun Nakahara (the first director)
Associate Professor, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Akiko Nakazawa
Assistant Professor, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Yan Jiang
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Hiroko Ichikawa
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Shin Kinoshita
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Sho Shimoyamada
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Eriko Yamabe
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Tomoki Tanaka
Project Researcher, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Manabu Ishihara
Project Specialist, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Diego Tavares Vasques
Project Lecturer, Center for Global Communication Strategies, the University of Tokyo: ･Yasuko Watanabe
Project Academic Support Staff, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo: ･Kaori Suzuki
Project Academic Support Staff, Center for Research and Development of Higher Education, the University of Tokyo

Production Cooperation

English Academia is perfect for…