Sessions

World Englishes and Japanese Students’ Beliefs

This presentation will report findings from data of 473 Japanese university students regarding their knowledge of, and attitude towards, varieties of English. The current study follows precursor research which indicated that Japanese tertiary students are increasingly open towards forms of English not considered to be part of the “inner circle” (Kachru, 1985). Results indicated that students place a high value on the potential to obtain cultural knowledge and understanding as part of their English curriculum.