The Impact of International Student Policies on the Recruitment of Japanese Language Teachers at Japanese Universities
Speaker: Dr. Hazuki Segawa, Professor, Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan
Date: November 18, 2025
Time: 2:30 – 4:00 PM PDT
Location: Multipurpose Room (PCN 2012)
Abstract
Japan’s international student policies have resulted in an increase in the number of learners. However, it is important to determine whether this has led to a significant increase in demand for Japanese language teachers. In this lecture, Segawa explores this question by analyzing national survey data from the Agency for Cultural Affairs. Her findings challenge the assumption that an increase in the number of learners necessarily results in greater demand for teachers and call for a deeper policy analysis of the conditions under which teacher recruitment increases. She will also provide an overview of Japan’s current situation regarding immigration policies and Japanese language education policy.
Bio
Hazuki Segawa is a Visiting Scholar in the Department of Language and Literacy Education at the Faculty of Education (UBC). She is a Professor at Kwansei Gakuin University. Her research interests include Japanese language education, language education policy, and plurilingualism. Her primary research book is 戦後日本語教育学とナショナリズ ム: 包摂と差異化の論理 [The relation of Japanese language education studies and nationalism in postwar period: Logics of assimilation and differentiation in ‘Thought pattern discourses’] (2012). She has recently conducted an empirical study on the labor demand for Japanese language teachers during the International Students Enrollment Plans.