Navigating English Policy and Practice in Japan's Primary Schools

Reviews / Votes

This volume offers a nuanced and insightful examination of the ideologies, structures, and actors shaping the language policy landscape. It breaks new ground as one of the few monographs to investigate the implementation of English education policy at the elementary school level in Japan. For those interested in similar themes, it will prove to be an invaluable resource. * Gregory Paul Glasgow, Kanda University of International Studies, Japan * Peter Ferguson's book is a pioneering study of an important subject that has been too long neglected. Ferguson analyses and assesses the education policy-making process, the elementary school English curriculum, the textbook production process, and how localities, schools, and teachers have attempted to cope with the requirement to teach English in elementary schools. Readers will gain many insights from his research. * Peter Cave, University of Manchester, UK * Employing multiple case study methods, Ferguson colorfully illustrates and critically examines how social structure, power and ideologies shape policy implementation, focusing on English education in Japanese elementary schools. Presented with conceptual clarity and accessible language, the study offers valuable global insights and profound implications for understanding educational reforms. * Yuko Goto Butler, University of Pennsylvania, USA *