The Turkish-Japanese Foundation Culture Center
KURITA Emiko

When you hear the name Turkey, it probably conjures up images of tourist spots like Istanbul, or perhaps kebabs, or the names of football teams. In actual fact, Turkey has historically been a friend of Japan, and friendly relations have continued for many years. As a country that is so far away and yet so close to Japan, Turkey is home to more than half the total number of Japanese-language learners in the Middle East region, and each year more than 800 people take the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT). According to the Survey Report on Japanese-Language Education Abroad 2018 although the number of Japanese-language educational institutions and teachers is decreasing, the number of Japanese-language learners has increased by approximately 14%.

Japanese Language Courses at the Turkish-Japanese Foundation Culture Center

Japanese language courses at the Turkish-Japanese Foundation Culture Center (hereinafter “the Center”), to which the Japanese-Language Specialist (hereinafter “Specialist”) is dispatched, have now been running for 20 years. Currently a broad range of approximately 150 learners from high school students to members of the public and local communities are learning Japanese once a week. The Specialist has been responsible for running the courses since their establishment.

Ankara Japanese Speech Contest

It is now five years since we started using “Marugoto: Japanese Language and Culture”as the main teaching material, and recently the continuation rate for course participants has improved and the number of people completing the course has increased. This means that a challenge we need to focus on is the syllabus for Intermediate-level learners. Other than at universities, there are still few educational institutions where learners who have completed the Elementary-level classes can continue learning Japanese. My feeling is that further enhancing Intermediate and Advanced-level classes will be important for further broadening the base of Japanese-language education in Turkey.

Also, through the Japanese language courses, we have held various events to give learners opportunities to engage in exchanges with Japanese people and enjoy cultural experiences, including visitor sessions, Japanese cooking experiences and a Japanese calligraphy workshop. In Ankara where the Center is located, in comparison to Istanbul there are still few opportunities for learners to interact with real Japanese people or encounter Japanese culture and cuisine, and so these events have been very well received. More than half of all learners have been motivated to learn Japanese through pop culture influences like anime, but I feel that interest is also relatively high in traditional culture, like Japanese calligraphy and the tea ceremony.

Various Japanese-Language Education Programs

Visitor session at the Turkish-Japanese
Foundation Culture Center
(Japanese cooking experience)

The Specialist also provides support for other Japanese-language education programs, like the Japanese speech contest and JLPT. In Turkey, three Japanese speech contests are held in Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir. For the Ankara Japanese Speech Contest, the Specialist is involved in running the contest, compiling judging criteria, and also judging the contestants. In 2020, there were more applications than previous years and judging the contestants was a great challenge. The Specialist is also invited to act as a judge for the contests held in Istanbul and Izmir. While contestants are mainly university students in Ankara and Istanbul, in Izmir the concept for the contest is to honor its amateur spirit. This makes Izmir a unique contest, where people talk about their love of Japan, sometimes including performances and comedy.

Japanese-Language Education in Turkey

Since its establishment in 2016 as an organization to stand in for the teachers’ association, the Japanese Language & Culture Research and Application Center (JADKAM) has held the Symposium on Japanese Language Teaching and Application in Turkey (hereinafter “JADEUS”) in summer each year. In 2020, JADEUS was held in the town of Didim on the Aegean coast, with presentations being given on various themes, including theoretical research and practical matters. It provided a valuable opportunity to learn about the situation of Japanese-language education in Turkey, such as Japanese-language education for the elderly and practical reports in the class for developing teaching materials. I also made a presentation on the actual situation relating to test takers of the JLPT, and shared information with teachers from various educational institutions.

Another aspect of the Specialist’s job is to provide support to teachers and help in the formation of networks, by visiting various Japanese-language educational institutions around the country and observing classes. In FY2020, my visits focused largely on institutions that are not schools or universities, where courses for the general public are provided. I spoke with the teachers and we shared our awareness of daily issues and also discussed solutions. One concern that I hear often from such institutions is that there is no system in place for recognizing credits from their classes. Approximately 70% of all Japanese-language educational institutions in Turkey are higher educational institutions and institutions other than schools and universities receive a broad range of language learners, including not just members of the general public, but also secondary/high school students and university students who are unable to take Japanese classes at their own institution. By supporting these institutions, I hope to support initiatives to broaden the base of Japanese-language education in Turkey.