Yuka Ando
Japanese language instruction and the question of ‘‘correctness’’
All Japanese language instructors experience the fact
that their own language use in the classrooms differs significantly from their
regular way of speaking, and attribute the differences to the fact that they use
more ‘‘correct’’ Japanese in the classrooms. The concept of ‘‘correctness’’
which is based on Standard Japanese (Hy?jungo), however, often leads
the instructor not only to overcorrect the Japanese usage of their students but
also to overlook the fact that their own usage includes forms they do not
tolerate in their students’ speech. This apparent contradiction gives us an
opportunity to reconsider the very concept of ‘‘correctness’’ instead of just
assigning high priority to correctness at the expense of ignoring normal speech
performance. By presenting a number of examples of Japanese constructions that
are treated as mistakes in the classroom but observed relatively frequently
among native speakers including myself, the notion of ‘‘correctness’’ is
critically examined with regard to its significance for Japanese language
instruction. The relationship between Hy?jungo and correctness as well
as that of the codified norms and language change are discussed, special
attention being given to the effects of the written norm on speech. On the basis
of these considerations, this article argues for an awareness change toward a
new notion of correctness with latitude. Some concrete didactic strategies are
put forth to introduce this notion into the JFL classroom.
International Journal of the Sociology of Language, Walter de Gruyter
Print ISSN: 0165-2516
Volume: 2005, 11/2005
Pages: 271 - 284
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