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Books by Neil Johnson

Landscapes and Narratives of PhD by Publication, 2022

This book includes theoretical, conceptual, empirical, and reflective discussions on issues and e... more This book includes theoretical, conceptual, empirical, and reflective discussions on issues and experiences pertaining to PhD by Publication for both the prospective and retrospective route. It features formal work alongside reflections on stakeholders’ experiences and addresses formal primary research and research syntheses which survey the landscapes of PhD by Publication regarding its policies, thesis and student experience.
The book provides personal, context-specific and in-depth insider’s perspectives towards PhD by Publication and offers a holistic understanding of micro- and macro-level issues by offering research and personal insights.

Papers by Neil Johnson

English for Specific Purposes, 2016

Abstract Grammatical voice is an important element of computer science discourse as an effective ... more Abstract Grammatical voice is an important element of computer science discourse as an effective rhetorical means of establishing disciplinary membership and describing the procedures and processes in the research methodologies of a rapidly expanding, cosmopolitan discipline. This particular relationship between verbs and their arguments has proved especially challenging for Asian students as a result of not only L2 structural complexity but also L1 conceptual interference. The question of whether to include voice in an ESP program in Japanese tertiary contexts may be further complicated by both lack of available classroom time and falling English proficiency levels of incoming students. In this paper, we describe a pilot project aimed at teaching grammatical voice to computer science students in a Japanese university setting. The instruction comprised a three-week concept-based unit based upon a sociocultural understanding of language development and included a grammaticality judgment task as part of a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design. The findings confirm the difficulty of teaching the various facets of voice to learners with low English proficiency, yet some significant gains were also made. Close analysis of the data suggests that coordinated instruction in the metaphorical underpinnings of different aspects of grammatical voice may better inform the teaching of voice in the English for Computer Science writing syllabus.

Grammatical voice is an important element of computer science discourse as an effective rhetorica... more Grammatical voice is an important element of computer science discourse as an effective
rhetorical means of establishing disciplinary membership and describing the procedures
and processes in the research methodologies of a rapidly expanding, cosmopolitan discipline.
This particular relationship between verbs and their arguments has proved especially
challenging for Asian students as a result of not only L2 structural complexity but
also L1 conceptual interference. The question of whether to include voice in an ESP program
in Japanese tertiary contexts may be further complicated by both lack of available
classroom time and falling English proficiency levels of incoming students. In this paper,
we describe a pilot project aimed at teaching grammatical voice to computer science
students in a Japanese university setting. The instruction comprised a three-week conceptbased
unit based upon a sociocultural understanding of language development and
included a grammaticality judgment task as part of a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental
design. The findings confirm the difficulty of teaching the various facets of voice to learners
with low English proficiency, yet some significant gains were also made. Close analysis ofthe data suggests that coordinated instruction in the metaphorical underpinnings of different aspects of grammatical voice may better inform the teaching of voice in the English for Computer Science writing syllabus.

Pedagogies: An International Journal, 2014

ABSTRACT

Non-canonical (NC) grammar from a corpus of 14 Best Paper award winners in software and hardware ... more Non-canonical (NC) grammar from a corpus of 14 Best Paper award winners in software and hardware engineering research published since 2006 in IEEE Transactions is presented and analyzed. Two independent raters, using a standard comprehensive grammar of English as a benchmark, identified the NC usage. Most (co)-authors in the corpus report themselves to be non-native speakers of English (NNSEs), but three of the 14 papers have a self described
native speaker of English as a co-author. The majority of the NC usage falls into patterns which match those reported in spoken English communication among NNSEs. The appearance of simplified grammar (e.g. dropping of articles, lack of concord in number
marking between subject and predicate) in published research that has attained Best Paper status in engineering’s most prestigious journals may indicate that the gate-keeper role in
engineering now reflects the predominance of non-native speakers in the field. Emailed and personal exchanges with editors and reviewers, and data about the international nature of the engineering industry, are presented to throw light on this phenomenon. The paper closes with advice, based on the corpus analysis and findings, for engineering researchers concerning manuscript preparation, as well as advice on pedagogy for teachers of engineering communication.

The International Journal of Learning: Annual Review, 2012

The affordances provided by technology for increasing efficacy of foreign language education hav... more The affordances provided by technology for increasing efficacy of foreign language education have been a major research area within applied linguistics over the past thirty years or so (see Hubbard, 2006 for an overview). In a Japanese context, there are culturally based issues with foreign language education at the tertiary level, such as large class sizes and low student motivation, that present educators with specific challenges where technology may provide effective mediational means to improve practice and learner outcomes. In this article, we describe an eight-week teaching intervention that was designed, through digital and web technologies readily available to teachers, to improve the communication skills of Japanese university students of English. The strategic interaction framework, developed by DiPietro (1987), was enhanced by use of digital video and a freely available wiki site. Performances were digitally video recorded and uploaded to a private wiki and participants used this to evaluate, transcribe and self-correct their performances. The instructor then used the video and text to focus post-performance group debriefing sessions. The results suggest that a wiki, digital video, and strategic interaction-based experiential learning cycles can be effectively integrated to mediate Japanese university EFL students' oral communication development. Technical and pedagogical recommendations are offered.

The potential of web-based 2.0 technology for teaching and assessing intercultural pragmatics has... more The potential of web-based 2.0 technology for teaching and assessing intercultural pragmatics has become an area of focus for language educators (Cohen, 2008; Belz, 2005, 2006). Research has highlighted that second and foreign language learners show significant differences from native speakers in language use, in particular, with the execution and comprehension of certain speech acts (Bardovi-Harlig & Mahan-Taylor, 2003). Without effective instruction, differences in pragmatics are evident in the English of learners regardless of their first language background or language proficiency. In EFL contexts, such as Japan, where learners have limited exposure to native speaker norms, teaching and learning pragmatic competence can be particularly challenging. The authors describe an ongoing curriculum development project in a Japanese university context, where the goal is to design and implement an effective approach to teaching interlanguage pragmatics. Digitally enhanced Strategic Intera...

This paper summarizes a 4-part forum describing ongoing efforts to transform Freshman English, a ... more This paper summarizes a 4-part forum describing ongoing efforts to transform Freshman English, a key course in the 1st-year English program at a private university in Japan. Recognizing rapid, consequential changes in the global view of English and the nature of communication, faculty and staff determined to thoroughly reimagine an English program that would authentically address fundamental concerns of our historical moment. This evolving, decidedly hybrid approach is founded on philosophical principles derived from sociocultural theory, social semiotics, multiliteracies, and the New Literacy Studies. The first contribution underscores the need to move away from a skills-based, communicative approach to language teaching. The second outlines the theoretical framework shaping the new curriculum development process. The third provides an example task sequence within a process-oriented syllabus, illustrating how this theoretical position has been implemented. The fourth addresses asse...

Freshman English (FE) is a key course in the English Language Institute (ELI) program at Kanda Un... more Freshman English (FE) is a key course in the English Language Institute (ELI) program at Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS). However, due to important changes in the global view of English and understanding of the nature of communication itself, faculty and staff in the ELI worked in collaboration to thoroughly reimagine and redesign the FE syllabus as part of wider program reform. In this paper, we describe the rationale for changing the program at KUIS and shifting our thinking away from the dominant communicative language teaching approach. The evolving, decidedly hybrid framework that we have used to redesign the FE course, is founded on philosophical principles derived from sociocultural theory, social semiotics, and multiliteracies. The process-based approach that promotes learner awareness and an individualized, retrospective syllabus, is also explained.

Language Teacher, Nov 1, 2001

Melta 1999 Proceedings from the Fifth Melta Biennial International Conference, 1999

Tesol 2002 Proceedings of the 22nd Thailand Tesol International Conference, 2002

Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications

The affordances provided by technology for increasing efficacy of foreign language education have... more The affordances provided by technology for increasing efficacy of foreign language education have been a major research area within applied linguistics over the past thirty years or so (see Levy & Stockwell, 2006, for an overview). In a Japanese context, there are culturally-based issues with foreign language education at the tertiary level, such as large class sizes and low student motivation, that present educators with specific challenges where technology may provide effective mediational means to improve practice and learner outcomes. In this chapter, the authors describe an eight-week teaching intervention that was designed, through digital and web technologies readily available to teachers, to improve the communication skills of Japanese university students of English. The strategic interaction framework, developed by Di Pietro (1987), was enhanced by use of digital video and a freely available wiki site. Performances were digitally video recorded and uploaded to a private wik...

International Journal of Strategic Information Technology and Applications, 2013

In this paper I focus on data taken from two different graduate seminars at the University of Ari... more In this paper I focus on data taken from two different graduate seminars at the University of Arizona in which the classroom activities and curriculum have been meaningfully supported by the use of a computer-mediated learning environment. I analyze transcripts from postings made throughout both of the courses and relate this data to dynamic systems theory. I argue that the data supports the suggestion that computer-network based tools offer a useful communicative space for establishing and fostering interdependence and collaboration amongst students. In doing so the computer network also offers the possibility of capturing aspects of learning as a dynamic open system, the central idea in dynamic systems theory (also known as complexity or chaos theory) as discussed by Gleick (1988) and Larsen-Freeman (1997, 2002). This framework provides potentially useful ways of understanding the complex and non-linear aspects of learning as interactive social processes and practices.

CALICO Journal, 2012

This paper details the use of a free and access-controlled wiki as the learning management system... more This paper details the use of a free and access-controlled wiki as the learning management system for a four-week teaching module designed to improve the oral communication skills of Japanese university EFL students. Students engaged in repeated experiential learning cycles of planning, doing, observing, and evaluating their performance of a role in a strategic interaction scenario. Each performance was digitally video recorded and uploaded to the wiki. Students then used the wiki to evaluate their video performance, transcribe and self-correct their utterances, and reflect on changes in subsequent performances. The instructor used the wiki's video and text to give students online feedback and focus post-performance group debriefing sessions. Comparisons of performance transcripts revealed syntactic, pragmatic, lexical and fluency improvement from learning cycle 1 to learning cycle 2, and observations, surveys, and interviews provide evidence for the students' ease of use of the wiki and video cameras, enjoyment of the instructional activities, and improved independence and confidence. The results suggest that a wiki, digital video, and strategic interaction-based experiential learning cycles can be effectively integrated to mediate Japanese university EFL students' oral communication development. Technical and pedagogical recommendations are elucidated. Teaching materials can be downloaded from http://langcom.u-shizuoka-ken.ac.jp/si.

Pedagogies: An International Journal, 2014

Creativity and creators themselves have ever been heralded as the pride and hope of us all, daeda... more Creativity and creators themselves have ever been heralded as the pride and hope of us all, daedalean deliverers of the masses from doldrums, dysfunction, disease, and all manner of other ills. However, the celebrated creator, for her mysterious “gifts”, has likewise been popularly regarded as an inscrutable other, a possessor of alchemistic powers that the rest of us cannot have, but whose benefits we nonetheless need. This is the pervasive myth of the creative genius, from which everyday assumptions about the extraordinary capacity for creativity derive. “Who is the artist?” we are given to ask, and “What is art?” The philosophical confusion and frustration that such questions may provoke, as Nelson Goodman (1978, p. 57) explains, are unnecessary, though, insofar as these are, actually, the wrong questions to pose when investigating the nature of creativity. Instead of “What is art?”, Goodman writes, we would more usefully enquire, “When is art?” Underpinning this themed issue of Pedagogies, entitled “Multimodality, creativity and language and literacy education”, is the supposition that art, as a blanket term for all realizations of human creativity, is an unexceptional, in fact requisite, component of living, communicating and learning. Creativity, on this view, is not a special quality possessed by artists and designers, but rather a productive event, a pregnant moment. Art, we suggest, comes about, when it does, in and through socially situated, integrative, transformative processes of meaning making, which are potentially available to all. Even more to the particular point of this special issue, and to which we believe the included articles attest, learning itself is a necessarily creative, artistic act, which also comes about, when it does, through inherently social, integrative and transformative processes of meaning making. And learning to communicate, which is our special concern here, needs a nuanced understanding and practical experience and awareness of the multimodal dimensions of real creative expression, i.e. of how diverse modes of representation and communication (written texts, spoken language, gesture, still and moving images, music, etc.) may be integrated in everyday interactions, texts and communicative events and, crucially, to what actual transformative, creative effects. Of course, the vital interconnection of communicative and creative capacities has long been recognized and theorized. In Jakobsen’s (1960) description of the main communicative functions of language, for a prominent example, the poetic and phatic functions – comprising two of six main functions – each account for how creative, playful aspects of language in use are key contributors to successful interaction and communication. For his part too, Vygotsky (1978, 2004) positions imagination and semiotic innovation at the

Landscapes and Narratives of PhD by Publication, 2022

English for Specific Purposes, 2016

Pedagogies: An International Journal, 2014

ABSTRACT

The International Journal of Learning: Annual Review, 2012

Language Teacher, Nov 1, 2001

Melta 1999 Proceedings from the Fifth Melta Biennial International Conference, 1999

Tesol 2002 Proceedings of the 22nd Thailand Tesol International Conference, 2002

Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications

International Journal of Strategic Information Technology and Applications, 2013

CALICO Journal, 2012

Pedagogies: An International Journal, 2014

Globalization has had an impact on many different aspects of higher education in Japan. In partic... more Globalization has had an impact on many different aspects of higher education in Japan. In particular it has led to an increase in the number of universities that are choosing to promote an international experience as a way of fostering intercultural awareness. This has created issues for many English language programs as research has suggested that the dominant skills-based, communicative approach to teaching English may not be effective for developing the kinds of literacies that allow students to succeed while studying overseas (Kramsch, 2006; 2014). In this paper, we focus on one unit of a course. This unit is built around the use of narrative texts and demonstrates how a program can meaningfully connect reading and writing to help students both understand academically challenging cultural content and to promote textual and linguistic awareness. We argue that this ‘linking of literacies’ (Hirvela, 2004) is necessary if we want students to develop the kinds of reflexive dispositi...

This four-part forum will describe an ongoing effort to transform the first- and second-year Engl... more This four-part forum will describe an ongoing effort to transform the first- and second-year English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum at a private university in Japan. Largely informed by Communicative Language Teaching and Task-Based pedagogies, like many established university EFL curricula the world over, the institution’s previous approach had become entrenched and uncritically accepted as an appropriate means of developing capacities for English communication. In 2011, however, recognizing rapid, consequential changes in the global view of English and the nature of communication at large, teaching and administrative staff at this institution determined to thoroughly reimagine a program for English learning and teaching that would authentically address issues of “translingual competence” (Byrnes, 2006; Kramsch, 2006), “global cultural flows” (Appadurai, 1996) and other concerns of our historical moment. This evolving, decidedly hybrid approach is founded on philosophical principles derived from sociocultural theory, social semiotics, multiliteracies, the New Literacy Studies, and integrational linguistics.

The first presentation explains the theoretical framework and its practical entailments. The second offers a detailed look at the curriculum renewal process and the continuing research informing it. The third presents concrete applications of digital technologies within a ‘process-oriented syllabus’. The final presentation takes comprehensive account of assessment issues and related institutional needs and constraints. Ample discussion time will follow. Participants will come away with a nuanced sense of the most vital considerations in developing English language curricula appropriate for our changing times.

Abstract: It is reasonable to assume that currently a majority of scientists and engineers are ... more Abstract: It is reasonable to assume that currently a majority of scientists and engineers are non-native speakers of English, since approximately half of all scientists and engineers within the United States itself use English as a second, or even third language (National Science Foundation, 2003). Yet English remains the de-facto language of research in this field, leading to ongoing concerns about disadvantage in participation for non-native speakers of English who are, or who are seeking to become, active researchers (Benesch, 2003). Questions arise about who is setting the linguistic standard for acceptability in publication, and to whom this standard belongs? In this project, analysis of award-winning computer science research articles, written by authors from various cultural and linguistic backgrounds, was conducted using qualitative discourse analysis and text-mining tools. A striking feature of the discourse was non-standard or variational English usage, raising questions for educators involved in the teaching of English for Specific Purposes (ESP). For example, is this variational language use simply bad writing and evidence of declining standards in computer science research publication? Or could it be evidence of an important shift in the discourse community of computer science and engineering? What are the implications for educators involved in teaching English for Computer Science in an Asian context? In this presentation, data from the corpus will be presented and implications for the ESP field will be discussed. I will argue that variational language use does not interfere with the communication of the research content, and that English is being successfully employed as a tool for communication across a changing discourse community. A further implication may be for a pedagogical focus on writing as communication without an undue prescriptive concern with language forms that may be very difficult to master. This awareness may be beneficial to instructors and learners in foreign language ESP contexts.