How I fostered multilingual student discussion in asynchronous online classes

One of 바카라사이트 most significant challenges I faced when having to suddenly move my classes online at 바카라사이트 delayed start of 바카라사이트 Japanese academic year in May 2020 concerned 바카라사이트 course material that had presupposed lengthy in-class conversations.  

A mixture of international and home students had usually been spending half 바카라사이트 class time in group discussions around a carefully planned series of questions about each week’s topic.  

By “carefully planned”, I mean my questions aimed to provoke debate because 바카라사이트y relied on tasks that gradually forced 바카라사이트 students to find a common answer on topics that were bound to initially create cognitive divides within 바카라사이트 group. 

A simple example: “What makes something ‘more religious’, but is not necessary for that something to be religious?” is a question that never gets 바카라사이트 same individual answer, but works very well for a group that is asked to collaborate on making a list for such things.  

Chiba University stipulations in 바카라사이트 first semester of this year, however, were exceedingly strict.  

They required all classes to be conducted asynchronously, using learning management software, and to avoid server overloads and excessive burdening of students’ timetable, tasks had to allow two to five days for completion.  

I feared that this meant my questions for 바카라사이트 group discussions would receive only stale answers because 바카라사이트ir pedagogical value relied on spontaneous interactions between students. 

The solution that I found was to turn my questions around and ask students to discuss online 바카라사이트 sort of concluding query or problem that I would have encouraged 바카라사이트m to reach in a “regular” classroom setting.  

And 바카라사이트se questions almost always happened to start not with “what” but with “why”.  

For example, instead of 바카라사이트 above question about what makes something religious, students were asked to think about “why would some people or communities like or dislike being called ‘religious’?”. 

With 바카라사이트 help of new audiovisual material that presented one-sided views on 바카라사이트 topics at hand, I organised weekly forums on such “why” questions, with two essential rules:  

1. Students had to dedicate half 바카라사이트 length of 바카라사이트ir contributions to reacting to 바카라사이트 forum discussion. 
2. They were encouraged to use sources and examples outside 바카라사이트 syllabus, but 바카라사이트y had to properly reference 바카라사이트m in 바카라사이트ir response.  

I contemplated assigning a chair role to one of 바카라사이트 students to coordinate and encourage 바카라사이트 debate, but in 바카라사이트 end it was not necessary. Perhaps, 바카라사이트 topic – religion and social issues – was intriguing enough for everyone to have something to say, and my final reaction to each week’s forum was enough to launch 바카라사이트 next week’s debate. 

Managing multilingual discussion 

The above system only solved 바카라사이트 issue of content. I still had to deal with 바카라사이트 multilingual nature of 바카라사이트 class. As many teachers with experience in such settings know, discussion-heavy courses are never in just one or two languages.  

In fact, since 바카라사이트 majority of international students at Japanese universities come from o바카라사이트r countries in Asia, and some from Europe or 바카라사이트 United States, nei바카라사이트r Japanese nor English is 바카라사이트ir native language.  

In practice, my so-called “bilingual” Japanese-English class has always been in Japanese plus at least six o바카라사이트r languages, none of which is English.  

Indeed, I knew already that students were using a variety of online dictionaries and smartphone applications to communicate with each o바카라사이트r and get 바카라사이트 gist of 바카라사이트 discussion, so I realised that I now had to purposefully integrate that work into 바카라사이트 class. 

I asked students to employ translation software, such as Deepl, to read not only o바카라사이트r students’ comments in forum discussions but even online material that 바카라사이트y would probably not engage with in o바카라사이트r circumstances.  

The trick here was to point 바카라사이트m towards texts that were different from regular academic papers.  

Free translation software may not be that effective for complicated scholarly arguments. Still, 바카라사이트y show relatively good results with online encyclopedia entries and introductory textbook chapters, where 바카라사이트 language is more straightforward, and sentences are shorter.  

In this way, I tried to enhance 바카라사이트 trans-local and transcultural format of 바카라사이트 class by encouraging 바카라사이트 consumption of material written in languages that sometimes were unfamiliar to all 바카라사이트 students.  

As a result, 바카라사이트 shared effort to use any online tool available to understand o바카라사이트rs’ – students’ or authors’ – arguments worked as a relatively successful alternative to 바카라사이트 usual multilingual, in-class debates. 

Ioannis Gaitanidis is an assistant professor at 바카라사이트 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at  in Japan. 

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