Fujiwara Clan in Mutsu

Fujiwara Kiyohira (?-1128), Motohira (1090?-1158?), and Hidehira (?-1187) prospered based at Hiraizumi, and enjoyed a half-independent state in Musts for three generations and for about a century.

Moroyuki's Letter to Akiie

"Do you remember Sir Yoritomo subverted Fujiwara clan in Hiraizumi? However, the clan prospered for three generations almost as an independent kingdom. Your only and the best way to survive and to live long is to establish an independent kingdom here in Mutsu, separate from the power struggle in the central. You can do it, and I can support it."

Nambu Clan

Nambu clan is one of the only two clans who survived three "generations" of Japanese shogunate; Minamoto Shogunate, Ashikaga Shogunate, and Tokugawa Shogunate. The other is Shimazu clan. It might not be a coincidence that the clans either ruled the northmost or southmost parts of Japan.

The Conversation between Moroyuki and Masanaga (2)

"So you die for Nambu clan, don't you?" asked Masanaga another question.
"Half."
"What is the other half for?"
"I love Akiie. I don't have my own son. My life after his death is out of question."
"You think he will die this time?"
"He will. His only way to survive and live long is, or was to accept my advice to establish an independent country in Mutsu, independent from the central."
"You gave him such advice? How dare could you think of such an idea?"
"Fujiwara clan did it 200 years ago."

The Conversation between Moroyuki and Masanaga (1)

"To remain faithful," replied Moroyuki.
"To the Emperor?" asked Masanaga again.
"To whom mind never."
"What?"
"It doesn't matter to whom you are faithful. It is to remain faithful that is important."
"Are you talking about ethics?"
"No. I am talking about reality. Remember, we are aliens here in Mutsu. They are all fighting each other in chaos here changing sides in their own interests. If we did the same changing sides in our interests, we would be one of them. Then, they, natives, have advantages, and we would be diminished. We should be distinguished and even marked to survive and prosper here in Mutsu. Remain faithful, even if you are surrounded by all the enemies. That would work for the long," Moroyuki spoke unusually long for him.
"Ah, now I think I understand you, my brother."
"Thank you."

The Encounter of Nambu Moroyuki and Kitabatake Akiie

Kitabatake Akiie was appointed to be a chief of the Mutsu state on August the 5th in the third year of Genko (in 1333) at the age of 16, and moved there with his expeditionary force on October the 10th in the same year. He managed to bring the region under his control by the end of the next year.
Where did Nambu Moroyuki meet Kitabatake Akiie? If the former had lived at the Hakii county in the Kai state, they should have met at the estuary of Fuji-mi River on the latter's way to Mutsu. For form's sake, the former should have visited the latter. How was Moroyuki attracted by Akiie?

The End of Nambu Clan (2)

In 1867, the last Shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, declared the transformation of the power back to the emperor. In 1868 the imperial era name was changed from Keio to Meiji. In 1869, all the domain lords nominally offered the return of their land and people to the emperor. In 1871, abolition of clans and establishment of prefectures was forced through, and the domain system was abolished. Nambu clan's ruling of their domain was effectively ended as with those of other clans as the result of Meiji Restoration. That was one of the processes of Japanese centralization. A thirdand five centuries had passed since Moroyuki's death in 1338. In other words, Nambu clan had kept Moroyuki's dream to establish an independent state in Mutsu, although

The End of Nambu Clan (1)

In 1868, Nambu clan's ruling of their domain ceased as with those of other clans as the result of Meiji Restoration. That was one of the processes of Japanese centralization. A half and five centuries had passed since Moroyuki's death in 1338.

Nambu Moroyuki or the Double

Which is better; Nambu Moroyki is riding on the horseback, or the Double is riding on the horseback? With a PC, I can write the both very easily.

Content-Based Instruction and English Classes in Sumiyoshi Senior High School

Introduction
Content-based instruction (CBI) is a teaching method which helps students to acquire foreign language skills by learning about something rather than learning about the language itself. CBI is a useful tool for motivating students and actively engaging them in the learning process. Some types of English classes at Sumiyoshi High School have naturally, been based on the CBI method, while some others are tacitly inclined to this style of teaching with potential possibility of their refinement by the intentional introduction of the method.
Kant put it this way: “It is extremely advantageous to be able to bring a number of investigations under the formula of a single problem. For in this manner, we not only facilitate our own labor, inasmuch as we define it clearly to ourselves, but also render it easier for others to decide whether we have done justice to our understanding.” (Kant, p.12)
Here we are going to bring various types of English classes in our school under the formula of a single perspective, Content-Based Instruction, so that we can see them clearly and facilitate our own teaching, as well as provide other high school English teachers opportunities to critically judge our teaching.
I. Sumiyoshi High School: natural Content-Based Instruction
1. Content-Based Instruction and Reading
The Open University, a distant-learning university in the UK, provides us with an idea about reading: “An essential part of active reading is responding to what you are reading....” Good readers read stories and/or essays critically. In other words, they constantly ask questions while they read.
One aspect of English reading classes is to raise good readers. Good readers would be able to ask questions on their own. Objectively, how can instructors help intermediate students develop their ability to read critically, to read asking good questions?
As English language teachers ask appropriate questions of their students, the students develop their ability to ask good questions themselves. Then, what are good questions?
Good questions are those to connect ‘bottom-up’ and ‘top-down’ reading. Bottom-up reading itself does not necessarily lead to the understanding of the contents, as it just gives us grammatical information. Top-down reading does not necessarily lead to the understanding of the contents either, but it only gives us back-ground information. We need to read critically to understand the contents, which links the two. Thus we can link the grammatical information and the background information to the understanding of the reading contents. In classes, English teachers should ask engaging questions that encourage students to think critically, thus helping students to do so more independently.
In this way, teachers and students work together to link all the information to the understanding of the reading contents. English teaching in Japan has had a significant accumulation of bottom-up reading, that is, the long history of the grammar-translation method. However, the amount of background information English teachers can provide has increased significantly, thanks to the proliferation of the Internet. These days, many English textbooks have a certain amount of comprehension questions. In addition, implementing an appropriate schedule and procedure to introduce the appropriate questions will bring about significant progress.
2. Content-Based Instruction and Super Science High School English Classes
Sumiyoshi High School has a subject named “Super Science High School English” (SSH English) in its Science Course for the first graders. The significance of its existence and the direction of its development can be understood and contemplated under the idea of Content and Language Integrate Learning (CLIL).
“MEXT designates high schools that emphasize science, technology and math education as ‘Super Science High Schools’ (SSHs). SSHs are undertaking research and development of innovative curriculums with emphasis on science, technology and mathematics study and effective ways of collaborating with universities and research institutes.”
SSHs are supposed to develop their students’ language skills, which are necessary to foster international communication ability by organizing science and mathematics classes, lectures, and presentation exercises, etc. in English. Our SSH English class is one such “etc.”
In SSH English, "First Steps to SciTech English Intermediate" is used as a textbook, and the authors, Miyama et al., state in their “Preface”, "In the field of the leading-edge science and technology, virtually almost all the information is communicated in English. Engineers, therefore, are supposed to acquire 'international communication skills' in their specialized field. This book is devised to help students acquire the skills to communicate in various specialized fields of leading-edge science and technology, through various tasks." This implies that the textbook is designed along with CLIL.
Although the relation between CLIL and Content-Based Instruction is yet to be explored, CLIL is designed to have students learn not only language skills but also the contents which are explained in English, and is reported by the BBC to be “an increasingly popular way of putting content and language learning together”.
In Europe, “this is the platform for an innovative methodological approach of far broader scope than language teaching. Accordingly, its advocates stress how it seeks to develop proficiency in both the non-language subject and the language in which this is taught, attaching the same importance to each.” (urydice, p.7) The question is how to avoid falling between two stools, and “teachers should devote special thought not just to how languages should be taught, but to the educational process in general.” (p.7)
“Special thought” should be devoted to SSH English, not only by English teachers, but also by the teachers of science and mathematics, as to how “the educational process in general” as well as “how languages should be taught.” Effectively researching these ideas might bring efficiency into students' learning various types of subjects within a limited time frame.
“CLIL enables languages to be taught on a relatively intensive basis without claiming an excessive share of the school timetable.” (ibid., p.8) This allows the science, mathematics, and English faculty to examine which themes should be taught in SSH English classes. Publishing a Japanese-English academic term list in the subjects might be a step toward this objective.
3. Content-Based Instruction and Speaking
---From Pronunciation to Verbal Expression---
Sumiyoshi high school has Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) class for the first graders. Students study phonics, recitation, and debate in the class. Phonics enables the students to pronounce English words better by giving them the literacy to more accurately pronounce words from their spellings. This is achieved through the use of phonetic symbols. The understanding of phonemes is the subject of phonemics. Phonemics is in turn, a field of phonetics, which includes pronunciation of sentences as well as words and phrases.
In practical phonetics, students are to learn sentence stress, pause, tone, and stress-timed rhythm, often in unmarked or neutral sentences. The grammatical rules of phonetics, for the unmarked or neutral sentences, are often overruled by attitudinal factors. The attitudinal factors are generated by the contents of the text. Recitation of speeches gives the students a good chance to master the attitudinally effected pronunciation of texts, and thus improving their verbal ability.
Sumiyoshi High School has a history of teaching phonics, in CALL Class. In class, paper-based teaching materials are handed out, to be used in conjunction with interactive activities and computer exercises using innovative software. Having all the teaching materials combined and published in the form of a textbook makes the first step toward a more sophisticated procedure of teaching English pronunciation. This will surely lead to the research and development of pronunciation teaching techniques that enable verbal expression.
II. Further Intentional Application of Content-Based Instruction
1. Content-Based Instruction and Writing
We have presentation-oriented English classes: Paragraph Writing, English Expression, and the like. The question is whether they are, or can be, content-based. To have content-based presentation-oriented English classes, we should attempt to conjugate these 2 learning processes.
Sumiyoshi High School's International Course has Paragraph Writing (PW) classes in the first grade and English Expression (EE) classes in the second grade. In the Paragraph Writing classes, students practice effective paragraph writing. In English Expression classes, they further build on their writing skills by participating in debates of various resolutions. The classes are, therefore, basically based on tasks, while many writing classes in high schools have been based on either grammar or functions, and have aimed at sentence writing. For example, in Polestar, a writing textbook for Science Course students, Part I (from Lesson1 to 8) is based partly on functions and partly on grammar, and Part II (from Lesson 9 to 15) is based on situations, and only Part III (from Lesson 16 to 20) aims to introduce how to write a paragraph.
In PW classes, the task assigned to students is to write paragraphs. Writing a paragraph requires a far flung schema, further than just writing a sentence or two. The paragraph-writing task is continued even in the first quarter of EE classes, while debating is introduced as a further developed task in the latter three quarters.
PW and EE in Sumiyoshi High School are essentially based on contents. In the textbook in PW class, Ready to Write, authors state in its Introduction: “By providing them with a wide variety of stimulating writing topics and exercises that go beyond sentence manipulation drills, students are encouraged to bring their own ideas and talent to the writing process.” (p. iv)
The textbook is used even in the first quarter of EE class. In the latter 3 quarters of the class, we use another textbook, Discover Debate. Its statement to the teacher says: “It is about how we think about, how we talk about, and what we want to do about global issues, human rights, or the environment.” Although the textbook is basically focused on debating skills, learning to debate itself is a content-based learning process.
The Task-Based sphere and the Content-Based sphere of the PW and EE classes do not contradict each other. As Tutunis argues; "a Task-based approach to writing would facilitate the achievement of our goal for the first year. … During the second year (freshman year), .a content-based approach to writing would be beneficial for the students," a Task-Based approach is a good introduction to a Content-Based writing.
The development of PW and EE as Content-based writing classes will depend both on deliberate choice of its contents, and on their contemplated arrangement and introduction.
2. Content-Based Instruction and Study Tour Abroad
Sumiyoshi High School is organizing three types of study tours abroad: Study Tour Abroad to Taiwan (STA Taiwan), Study Tour Abroad to Korea) (STA Korea), and Study Tour Abroad to Australia (STA Australia). The first is obligatory, and the other two are voluntary. Sumiyoshi also organizes an intensive English training camp, a three-day, overnight, domestic excursion, which is obligatory for all first-year International Course students. What can we find when we see the STAs and English Camp from the perspective of Content-Based Instruction?
　　Asano Kyozo suggests Content-Based Instruction is applicable to STAs: “an overseas volunteer activity can be considered … from the perspective of content-based instruction.” (Asano, p.109) He organized a study tour to Australia for college students, and had his students participate in volunteer activities.
In their first week, the students co-worked with Greening Australia, and carried out a tree-planting campaign. The Campaign staff explained their activities with many technical terms such as propagation，mulching，pruning，afforestation, etc. However difficult and strange as these words sounded to the students, activities performed later gave insight into their meanings. This experience itself is a good example of how the contents of certain social context give clarity to English vocabulary.
In their second week, the students performed care-giving services at Centacare. There they experienced two types of authentic communications. The first was experienced in their preparation process. As they were supposed to perform a certain kind of “infection control” and they all realized the importance of their performance, they listened to the lecture more earnestly and read the manual more seriously than they usually do in college. It is not the authenticity of the text but that of the social context that affected their attitude towards the lecture and the text.
The second was experienced with the clients during their care-giving services. The students worked independently and confidently with their clients, as volunteers, and not as passive learners who participate in an English class taught by a teacher. That facilitated their communication with their clients. This experience is a good example of content-based learning where communications can be promoted by a certain social context.
This is the aim of Sumiyoshi High School’s intensive English training camp. The skills that were acquired during the year in CALL class are then practically implemented by planning various camp activities (games, campfires, sing-a-longs, scavenger hunts, etc.) with native English Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs). Students are generally divided into groups of eight per one ALT. As activities change, so does the ALT allowing the students to interact with various personalities from various countries. Students are strongly encouraged to speak in English as much as possible while the ALTs foster a friendly environment in which to do so.
During the second day of camp, students participate in an English debate competition. Students come to the camp prepared with the basic debating skills necessary to think quickly and critically. Students argue opposing view points of various topics, and although they are given time to prepare, are asked to refute their opponents on the spot. Students then naturally implement recently acquired language skills and immerse themselves in the spirit of competition. Thus we can observe highly motivated students actively engaging in their own learning experience.
3. Cooperation with other Studying Subjects
In Adjunct Language Instruction, one of the contemporary models of Content-Based Instruction, “students are enrolled in two linked courses, one a content course and one a language course, with both courses sharing the same content base and complementing each other in terms of mutually coordinated assignments. Such a program require a large amount of coordination to ensure that the two curricula are interlocking and this may require modifications to both courses.” (Richard et al., p.216/217)
As Richard et al. suggests, we can coordinate all subjects of Sumiyoshi Senior High School so as to have Adjunct-Language-Instruction-like effects. We might be able to start from making a Japanese-English academic term list. Coordination with other subjects also leads us to another idea: to connect the development of English related subjects and Sumiyoshi SHS.
4. English Classes and UNESCO Associated School
As one of the associated schools of UNESCO, Sumiyoshi Senior High School is supposed to conduct pilot projects on four main themes such as: 1. World concerns and the role of the United Nations system; 2. Human rights, democracy and tolerance; 3. lntercultural learning; and 4. Environmental concern.
English classes can make a contribution to one or more of the four main themes. For example, English reading classes can enhance students’ understanding of the world and can help foster tolerance and intercultural exchange. In English expression classes, students can write about and debate topics based on human rights and environmental issues. I believe that the method called Content-Based Instruction is the most effective way to make this contribution.
Each text has its contents, and belongs to a wider or more universal context. Understanding the text or its contents has been said to require both bottom-up reading and top-down reading. The latter reading implies that knowledge about the context is important to understanding the text itself. In addition, each context has been designated a theme. Having more knowledge of various themes is believed to help improve top-down reading. This may be true, but learners need a certain amount of ‘know-how’ to connect the knowledge of certain themes to the understanding of the contexts.
Talking about content-based English classes reminds us that many English classes are still based on grammar and idioms. Knowledge of grammar and idioms is certainly one of the best tools to do bottom-up reading. Here, again, learners need a certain amount of ‘know-how’ to connect grammar and idioms to the understanding of the contents of a text.
Conclusion
How can learners connect contents with a theme? How can they connect contents with grammar and idioms? How can we as teachers design our teaching procedures to help them develop such abilities? Employing Content-Based Instruction does not necessarily mean that we don't have to research and develop our teaching techniques and procedures any more. In fact, exploring various methods of teaching should inspire us to think more critically ourselves and seek out new ways to meet our students’ academic needs. As we evolve as teachers, we enable our students to become well-rounded adults. We, therefore, not only help them excel in their language studies, but also better prepare them to navigate our ever changing world.
Refferences
Asano Kyozo, 'Content-Based Instruction no shiten kara kangaeru borantia katsudo mokuteki no tanki kaigai eigo kenshu', “Nanzan Junior College Bulletin” No. 34, p109-122, 2008, http://www.nanzan-tandai.ac.jp/kiyou/No.34/07-Asano-Keizo.pdf
Martin Barlin, “Content-based Instruction in an EAP Program”, http://nels.nii.ac.jp/els/110002963277.pdf;jsessionid=E83207F064B8B79C12E1D0E9AC314ECD?id=ART0003320649&type=pdf&lang=jp&host=cinii&order_no=&ppv_type=0&lang_sw=&no=1217299217&cp=
BBC, http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/podcasts/innovations-teaching-3
Eurydice, “ Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) at School in Europe”, 2006, on the Internet, http://www.eurydice.org
The Ministry of Education, Technology and Science, http://www.mext.go.jp/english/org/science/54.htm
Immanuel Kant, "Critique of Pure Reason", 2003, Dover Publications, New York,
The Open University,　http://www.open.ac.uk/skillsforstudy/reading-critically.php
Jack c. Richard and Theodore s. Rodgers, "Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching" (2nd ed.), 2001, Cambridge University Press, New York
Birsen Tan Tutunis, “Content Based Academic Writing”, http://iteslj.org/Articles/Tutunis-ContentBased.html