EDUCATION RENAISSANCE / Students enhance global views via English papers

　最近いくつか教育ルネサンスから記事を取り上げていますが，今回もそのうちの１つです。DY（12/10/11付）に，英字新聞の活用は教員にとってlaborious preparation（準備に骨が折れる）だが，生徒がその言語を使って世界情勢に関して学ぶにはもってこいの素材だと言っています。確かに，英字新聞は「常時英心」を試みるのには良い教材だと思います。EFL（English as a Foreign Language）の環境下で英語を学ぶ私たちにとって，身近な内容を英語で考える良いきっかけともなるものでしょう。

　The following article is a translation from The Yomiuri Shimbun's Educational Renaissance series. This installment--the fourth in a five-part series, which looks into unique ways of using English-language newspapers as a study resource--focuses on a Kobe high school's curriculums to enhance students' understandings of international relations through the media.
　KOBE--For students at Fukiai High School in Kobe, English-language newspapers are an important source of news from every corner of the world. By encouraging students to read international news reports, the school hopes its students will develop a more global outlook.
　During an English lesson in mid-September, second-year students at Fukiai High School, located in the city's Chuo Ward, were instructed to discuss an opinion expressed in an English-language newspaper column by a former foreign resident about Japanese people.
　After reading the column, one student summed it up in English, saying, "In Japan, only a small number of people can speak English fluently." Another student said, "Not all Japanese are friendly to foreigners."
　During the class, students looked confident when making explanations in English after quickly reading through the 530-word article in two minutes under the supervision of their teacher, Atsushi Masumi.
　The school launched its international course in 2001, and since then, has featured curriculums that nurture students' global perspectives about various subjects. Students use original textbooks based on English materials compiled and selected by their teachers.
　"The goal of our English education program is to have students learn about the world by using the language," said Yoshihide Tasaka, principal of Fukiai High School. The 60-year-old principal added, "We've always tried to use new practical teaching methods, and through these efforts, we've established ways to effectively use English newspapers."
　The 40-year-old Masumi said that newspapers "are precious materials for students studying English or international relations because you can learn genuine English expressions. It's good for students to read articles that look into ever-changing problems from various angles."
　At the high school, English newspapers are used in all English-related classes--including those for reading, discussion and short thesis writing. The articles used in class were straight news, commentaries and columns, while the topics varied from international conflicts, environmental issues and human rights, to opinions regarding Japan's ideal place as a member of the global community in the future.
　In recent lessons, Masumi used articles about foreign support for Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake and during the crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
　Yuriko Tano, 17, a second-year student of the school's international course, felt intellectually inspired by the lessons and said she "understood international problems better than when I thought about them only in Japanese."
　Another second-year student, Minami Toma, 16, said, "I've become confident when [expressing] my opinions on global issues [by reading English newspapers]."
　Designated by the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry as a high school to provide high-level English education, Fukiai High School also used English newspapers intensively in its regular course for three years until 2007. In the course, English-language newspapers are still used as a part of its original reading, writing and conversational curriculums.
　However, as a teacher Masumi mentions the laborious preparations that go into each lesson, "as it usually takes a long time [for teachers] to select an article offering different perspectives on a specific subject." Referring to his experiences observing English classes at other schools, Masumi said, "I guess that's why only a small number of schools use English newspapers on a regular basis--even in their special English courses."
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/language/T111208004107.htm