Parental language attitudes and beliefs underlying children’s extra-curricular English learning in Japan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56498/522023508Keywords:
language attitudes, extra-curricular English learning, Japanese parents, language beliefs, linguistic parentocracyAbstract
The growing emphasis on English in the education system in Japan has made English lessons one of the most popular extra-curricular activities for children. This qualitative study looks at how Japanese parents respond to language-in-education policy by examining their attitudes toward English and beliefs about extra-curricular English learning. Fifteen parents provided current and retrospective accounts of their children’s extra-curricular English learning in semi-structured individual interviews. Interview transcripts were coded and analyzed based on the constructive grounded theory approach. The results showed that most parents had a positive attitude towards English, but it was their language beliefs that determined their choices regarding extra-curricular English learning. The belief that “‘earlier is better’”motivated some parents to send their children for lessons at age five or younger. In contrast, parents who believed in the importance of child agency in learning enrolled their children for lessons at older ages or not at all. Extra-curricular lessons did not necessarily benefit the learning of English later in school. Hiatuses and discontinuity in learning, limited instruction time, instruction type, a lack of parental involvement, and children’s lack of interest or readiness affected the effectivenessof extra-curricular English learning. These findings show how Japanese parents’ language beliefs drive their children’s extra-curricular English learning, but such investments may not necessarily produce the results they desire.
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