From student exchange to co-education : Reflections on the International Symposium “Current status and Issues of Japanese Language Education in Asia”

A diverse body of international students, mainly exchange students, has come to Wakayama University, and efforts are underway to meet the various needs of these students in learning Japanese. However, the Covid-19 pandemic has created unanticipated challenges for Japanese language education. These circumstances require more than ever a robust exchange of information and cooperation among partner universities. In order to share information and discussion on issues related to Japanese language education among the Asian universities from which many of Wakayama University's international students come, an international symposium entitled “Japanese Language Education in Asia --Current Situation and Issues--” was held. Panelists from four Asian universities in China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Uzbekistan as well as Wakayama University delivered reports and engaged in a discussion of issues. On the day of the symposium, a total of 196 people from 17 countries around the world participated with many contributing comments to the discussion. n this paper, while looking back on the purpose and contents of the symposium, we will consider the current state of Japanese language education (with an emphasis on Asia), further cooperation in the future, and new possibilities such as COIL.