AI robots to start teaching English in Japan by 2019

admin 2018年12月17日

Vocabulary:

proficiency /pruh-FISH-uhn-see/

[noun] the condition or fact of producing the results you want without waste
They will check his English proficiency first before he gets accepted to school.

ministry/ /MIN-uh-stree/

[noun] a government department led by a minister
The ministry of Education has a proposed budget of 20 billion yen for classroom improvement.

aspire /uh-SPAHYUHR/

[verb] to want something very much or hope to achieve something or be successful
I aspire to become one of the greatest poets of all time.

curriculum /kuh-RIK-yuh-luhm/

[noun] all the courses given in a school, college, etc.
There will be a change in the school curriculum starting next month.

mandatory /MAN-duh-tawr-ee/

[adjective] made necessary, usually by law or by some other rule
It is mandatory for the employees to undergo training before they get promoted.

500 Japanese classrooms will be needing help from English-speaking AI (Artificial Intelligence) robots starting 2019. Japan aims to improve its English proficiency among students and teachers. The education ministry headed the pilot project that costs 250 million yen. The project aspires to improve Japanese students’ oral and written skills in English.

The officer in charge of international education said that AI robots are just one example of the trial projects and they are planning other measures too such as having online lessons with native speakers and using tablet apps. In two years, a change in the national curriculum will require children as early as 10 years old to learn English. Moreover, it is currently mandatory for Japanese students aged between 12 and 15 to take English classes.

True or False:

400 Japanese classrooms will be needing help from AI robots next month.
A pilot project that costs around 250 thousand yen will be headed by the education ministry.
There will be a change in the national curriculum in one year.
National curriculum change will require children as early as 5 years old to learn english.
It is mandatory for Japanese students to take English classes.

Discussion Questions:

What are your thoughts about English speaking AI robots?
Do you think it’s good to use English speaking AI robots to teach children? Why or why not?
What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of these English speaking AI robots??
Do you think learning English is important? Why or why not?
Do you think many Japanese are good at speaking in English? Explain your answer.

Express Your Opinion:

“The most technologically efficient machine that man has ever invented is the book.” – Northrop Frye
“It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” – Albert Einstein
“Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Gandhi