1. Next Meeting-October 19 or 26 2019. The date will be updated shortly.
2. January 11th, 2020, JACET ESP Kanto Meeting and Shin Nen Kai.

It is with great pleasure that I make the announcement of our July meeting on July 20 (Saturday), 2019. We have invited Professor Hiroyuko Obari from Aoyama-Gakuen University to give a presentation on his research of integration of CALL in his teaching of worldviews to Japanese university students. I would like to apologize for sending the announcement late but sincerely hope that you would let your colleagues and friends know of this event and invite them to join us. Professor Obari is a famous and versatile researcher in the fields of CALL and EFL education in Japan. I am sure his talk will provide attendees with insightful views on education and pedagogy on both cognitive and practical levels.

The details of the talk are as follows:

JACET ESP SIG Kanto (July Meeting)
Date:　Jul 20, 2019 (Sat)　15:00 ～17:00
Venue: Room 15501 (5th Floor), Gaucher Building No. 15, Aoyama-Gakuen University
Please find the link for the location:
http://www.aoyamagakuin.jp/access/accessmap.html

Program
l  15:00~16:00Utilization of AI and ICT in Teaching Worldviews for Effective 21st Century LearningProfessor Hiroyuki Obari, Aoyama-Gakuen University

Abstract:
A constructivist approach to flipped learning inspires students to activate their brains to create new knowledge and to reflect more deeply and consistently on their learning activities where twenty-first century skills with the 8Cs of effective communication are emphasized in the learning process. One of the critical 8Cs is to learn how to coexist with AI. In the present study, two case studies were carried out for the purpose of enabling students to experience weak AI using smart speakers in the L2 learning process. The focus was on evaluating the use of AI speakers such as Google home mini and Amazon echo dot to determine their effectiveness in improving the English skills of native Japanese undergraduate students. The technologies used included Google Home mini, ATR CALL Brix, Facebook, Line, and online materials related to worldview studies. The first empirical study was conducted with a goal of examining the overall effectiveness of the program in improving the TOEIC test scores of a target group of Japanese students. The investigation was carried out from September 2018 to January 2019, targeting 24 third-year undergraduates who were divided into eight groups, four using Google home mini and four using Amazon echo dot.  The participants were required to study their favourite English language programs for four months using AI speakers and to conduct a diary study, sometimes while shooting their studies with a smartphone. Finally, at the end of the training program, students of all eight groups delivered presentations about their research activities using AI speakers with flipped lessons, as well as provided feedback on the study, including its limitations. TOEIC pre- and post-training results (n=24) indicated the training program had assisted the students in improving their overall English proficiency with the help of the AI speakers during the four-month training period, especially their listening comprehension. Additionally, a post-course survey revealed a majority of the participants responded favourably toward the use of AI speakers as a part of their daily life in studying English, and 88% felt its effectiveness had revolutionized their way of learning English. In this presentation, the future use of AI in 21st century learning will be discussed through the results of the target case study.

Keywords: AI, EFL, 21st century skills, Google home mini, Echo dot, TOEIC

Bio:
Hiroyuki Obari is a professor in the College of Economics at Aoyama Gakuin University. He obtained his M.A. in TESOL from Columbia University and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Tsukuba. He was a visiting academic at the University of Oxford (2007, 2008, 2018, 2019). His research interests include CALL and Educational Technologies
raweb1.jm.aoyama.ac.jp/aguhp/KgApp?kyoinId=ymksgyymggy

l  16:00~16:20 Visiting the CALL facilities of Aoyama-Gakuen University

l  16:20~17:00 Business Meeting:
SIG officers meetings. Other members are also welcome.