Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

English Private Tutoring and Washback in Japan

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
International Perspectives on English Private Tutoring

Part of the book series: International Perspectives on English Language Teaching ((INPELT))

Abstract

English private tutoring (EPT) in Japan is well established and comes in a variety of forms, notably those found at juku (cram schools) and yobikō (preparatory schools). Although EPT serves a variety of functions in Japanese society, one of its key roles is to help high-school students prepare for high-stakes university entrance exams. In this chapter, I provide an overview of the entrance exam system to higher education institutions in Japan and a historical introduction to juku and yobikō for English exam preparation. I then focus on the pivotal role that today’s EPT plays in mediating washback, that is, the effect of tests on teaching and learning. Based on my own and others’ empirical research with students and teachers in Japan, I will illustrate how EPT amplifies teaching and learning of specific aspects of English assessed in university entrance exams and how this narrowing of the curriculum impacts mainstream education. Finally, I will consider the future role of EPT in Japan and conclude by calling for further research in both Japan and the global context.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Allen, D. (2016). Japanese cram schools and entrance exam washback. Asian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 3(1), 54–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Allen, D. (2017). Investigating Japanese university students’ English language proficiency: Predicting factors and pre-tertiary washback. IELTS Partnership Research Papers, 2. IELTS Partners. https://www.ielts.org/teaching-and-research/research-reports

  • Allen, D. (2020). Proposing change in university entrance examinations: A tale of two metaphors. Shiken, 24(2), 23–38.

    Google Scholar 

  • Allen, D. & Nagatomo, D. H. (2019). Investigating the consequential validity of TEAP: Washback to high school learners of English. Eiken Research Report. Eiken Foundation of Japan. https://www.eiken.or.jp/center_for_research/pdf/bulletin/vol99/vol_99_21.pdf

  • Allen, D., & Tahara, T. (2021). A review of washback research in Japan. JLTA Journal, 24, 3–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Amano, I. (1990). Education and Examination in Modern Japan (W. K. Cummings, & F. Cummings, Trans.). University of Tokyo Press. (Original work published 1983).

    Google Scholar 

  • Bray, M. (1999). The shadow education system: Private tutoring and its implications for planners. UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP). https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000118486

  • Cheng, L., Sun, Y., & Ma, J. (2015). Review of washback research literature within Kane’s argument-based validation framework. Language Teaching, 48(4), 436–470.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawson, W. (2010). Private tutoring and mass schooling in East Asia: Reflections of inequality in Japan, South Korea, and Cambodia. Asia Pacific Education Review, 11, 14–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Erikawa, H. (2011). Juken eigo to nihonjin: Nyūshi mondai to sankōsho karamiru eigo gakushūshi [A historical study of English learning and reference books for entrance examinations in Japan].

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, A. (2007). IELTS washback in context: Preparation for academic writing in higher education (studies in language testing 25). Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, A. (2014). The test of English for academic purposes (TEAP) impact study: Report 1—Preliminary questionnaires to Japanese high school students and teachers. Eiken Foundation of Japan. https://www.eiken.or.jp/teap/group/pdf/teap_washback_study.pdf

  • Hughes, A. (2003). Testing for language teachers. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kowata, T. (2015). Daigaku nyūshi ni okeru jiyū sakubun mondai no gakushū to shidō e no hakyū kōka [Washback effects of university entrance examination writing tasks on learning and teaching]. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.

    Google Scholar 

  • MEXT. (2018). Gaikoku-go-hen eigo-hen: Kōtōgakkō gakushū shidō yōryō (Heisei 30-nen kokuji) kaisetsu [Foreign languages (English): Explanation of high school curriculum guidelines (2018 Notification)]. https://www.mext.go.jp/content/1407073_09_1_2.pdf

  • MEXT. (2020). Daigaku nyūshi no arikata ni kansuru kentō kaigi (dai 19-kai) haifu shiryō, sankō shiryō, daigaku nyūgaku-sha senbatsu kanren kiso shiryōshū (sono 3) [Review meeting on the ideal way of university entrance examinations (19th) Handouts, reference materials. Basic materials related to university entrance examinations (Part 3)]. https://www.mext.go.jp/content/20201210-mxt_daigakuc02-000011390_7.pdf

  • Nagatomo, D. H., & Allen, D. (2019). Investing in their futures: Highly-motivated students’ perceptions of TEAP and university entrance exams. The Language Teacher, 45(5), 3–7. https://jalt-publications.org/sites/default/files/pdf-article/43.5-tlt-art1.pdf

  • Roesgaard, M. H. (2006). Japanese education and the cram school business: Functions, challenges and perspectives of the juku. NIAS Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rohlen, T. P. (1983). Japan’s high schools. University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubinger, R. (1982). Private academies of the Tokugawa period. Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sasaki, M. (2008). The 150-year history of English language assessment in Japanese education. Language Testing, 25(1), 63–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shintani, R. (2013). Juku as supplementary language education in Japan. Waseda Global Forum, 10, 347–374.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, D. L., & Baker, D. P. (1992). Shadow education and allocation in formal schooling: Transition to university in Japan. American Journal of Sociology, 97(6), 1639–1657.

    Google Scholar 

  • Takagi, A. (2010). A Critical Analysis of English Language Entrance Examinations at Japanese Universities. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. University of Exeter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Takeo, A. (2021). How a Japanese cram school adapts to the introduction of new university entrance examinations. Unpublished undergraduate thesis. Ochanomizu University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Watanabe, Y. (1996). Does grammar translation come from the entrance examination? Preliminary findings from classroom-based research. Language Testing, 13(3), 318–333.

    Google Scholar 

  • Watanabe, Y. (1997). The washback effects of the Japanese university entrance examinations of English-classroom-based research. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Lancaster University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yamato, Y., & Zhang, W. (2017). Changing schooling, changing shadow: Shapes and functions of juku in Japan. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 37(3), 329–343.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yasukochi, T. (2018). Zenkaisetsu: Eigo kakumei 2020 [English revolution 2020: A complete commentary]. Bungei shunjū.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yung, K. W. H., & Bray, M. (2017). Shadow education: Features, expansion and implications. In T. K. C. Tse & M. Lee (Eds.), Making sense of education in post-handover Hong Kong: Achievements and challenges (pp. 95–111). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ochanomizu University, Tokyo, Japan

    David Allen

Authors
  1. David Allen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to David Allen .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Curriculum and Instruction, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Kevin Wai Ho Yung

  2. Graduate School of Education, Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan

    Anas Hajar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Allen, D. (2023). English Private Tutoring and Washback in Japan. In: Yung, K.W.H., Hajar, A. (eds) International Perspectives on English Private Tutoring. International Perspectives on English Language Teaching. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26817-5_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26817-5_3

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-26816-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-26817-5

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation