Expanding Japanese-Language Education in Laos

National University of Laos
KOMATSUBARA Naho

Laos is located inland in Southeast Asia and borders Thailand, Myanmar, China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. It has a land area that's a little bit larger than Japan's main island of Honshu, but only has a population of approximately seven million people. Perhaps it is because of that, even in the capital city of Vientiane, the town is quiet and time leisurely flows through the town. The people who live here are calm, and it's common to see cars giving way to each other.

The number of Japanese-language learners in Laos is still small when compared to other Southeast Asian countries, but in recent years, the number has been on the rise. According to the Survey on Japanese-Language Education Abroad by the Japan Foundation, the number of Japanese-language learners in Laos increased from 1,046 in 2015 to 1,995 in 2018. In this report, I will introduce the Japanese-language educational institutions that I support.

1. National University of Laos

The National University of Laos was the first public educational institution in Laos to introduce Japanese-language education. In FY2020–2021, there were 74 students enrolled, which is about twice as many as usual, so we introduced a two-class system for the first time for the first-year students. Additionally, the new curriculum that was created in 2019 will be applied from September 2020, thereby improving the quality of Japanese-language education. At the 18th Laos Japanese Speech Contest held in March 2021, students from the National university of Laos won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the three-minute speech division, and the students here are steadily improving their abilities. Even if the number of students increases, the number of full-time teachers will not increase, so each teacher is in charge of many lessons, but they are busy, fulfilling days.

The picture of winners of the three-minute speech division at the 18th Lao Japanese Speech Contest
Winners of the three-minute speech division at the 18th Lao Japanese Speech Contest

2. Savannakhet University

Savannakhet University opened its Japanese-language department in 2017. It is the second university/college in Laos where students can study Japanese as a major, and the first students are scheduled to graduate from the program in 2021.
The number of students also increases as the class advances through the university, and young Japanese-language teachers play a central role in nurturing them. I visit Savannakhet University about three time a year to give advice on curriculum syllabuses and classes and to hold study sessions. On the first day that I visited Savannakhet University, the temperature was about a very warm 40℃. The classrooms have electric fans, and we had fun learning the Japanese language without giving in to the heat. For the first graduates of the Japanese-language department, I am looking forward to seeing what kind of path they will take in using the Japanese language that they have learned and what they will do in the future.

The picture of class at Savannakhet University
Class at Savannakhet University

3. Japanese-Language Education in Secondary Educational Institutions

In Laos, the Japanese language was introduced to secondary educational institutions from 2015, and currently students can study the Japanese language at four secondary educational institutions in the capital of Vientiane. In FY2020–2021, the classes at these institutions have advanced to M5 (5th year secondary education student), which is the same as high school in Japan. The number of Japanese-language learners will continue to increase as the classes advance, and, as Japanese-language education spreads to secondary educational institutions in local cities, there will be an increase in the number of lower secondary school students and upper secondary school students who are learning the Japanese language. In order to lay the foundation for this, we are providing support, such as with creating upper secondary school textbooks and with teacher training.

In this way, Japanese-language education is spreading at both the higher and secondary education levels in Laos. I want to support the development of Japanese-language education at Laos's pace, little by little, while still retaining the goodness of the current calm and laid-back Laos.

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