Faith and Pedagogy: Five Voices from Japan

Authors

Paul Wicking, Meijo University

Keywords

Christianity and ELT, EFL, faith, interview research, pedagogy

Abstract

Despite a recent increase in research into the relationship between faith and practice in ELT, the ways in which actual Christian teachers make meaning of their faith through pedagogy remains largely unexplored. There is little empirical data about the ways in which witnessing and evangelism are (or are not) conducted through English classes. The present study is an analysis of interview data collected from five evangelical Christian teachers living and working in Japan. The participants vary considerably in age and teaching context, yet all share a strong religious faith and a desire to express it through their profession. Each participant was interviewed twice, for approximately one hour each time. The interviews were then fully transcribed and analyzed. The study found that these teachers did not make meaning of their faith and pedagogy in a way that necessitates overt evangelism in the classroom. Rather, they prefer to express their beliefs through personal virtues of love and respect, holding to a high standard of professionalism, and encouraging exploration of deeper life issues in class.

Recommended Citation

Wicking, Paul (2014) "Faith and Pedagogy: Five Voices from Japan," International Journal of Christianity and English Language Teaching: Vol. 1, Article 5.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.biola.edu/ijc-elt/vol1/iss1/5