What's On

Do you think your Japanese level is getting rusty? Why not study Japanese online to brush up your Japanese level?

This course is for non-native-speaker-level Japanese teachers who currently teach Japanese in secondary and/or primary schools. You can improve not only your Japanese level but also your teaching skills. Moreover you can build a network among other Japanese teachers. Trainee teachers are also welcome to join. For more information, see below.

Schedule:

This course consists of Online Sessions and a Final Day event. The online sessions will be run in two different groups, followed by the Final Day event, which will be held for both groups together.

Please select the group with dates that are suitable for you:

Online sessions

Group 1: Monday Group (online):

• 18:00-19:30 (90 min x 3 lessons)
• 30th June, 7th, 14th July

Group 2: Mon/Wed Group (online):

• 13:10-13:55 (45 min x 6 lessons)
• 30th June, 2nd, 7th, 9th, 14th 16th July

Final Day: Saturday 19th July at London Venue, 11:00-15:00 (TBC)

• Workshops in person and lunch reception.
• More detailed information will be given later.

N.B. The course will take place online, but on the final day of the course we would like to hold a special face-to-face session, with special speakers as detailed below, and there will be a Commendation Ceremony. The Japan Foundation, London will provide lunch and cover your travel expense partly.

* All participants are asked to pay up to £10 of their travel expenses out of their own pocket (no reimbursement). The rest of their travel expenses will be reimbursed by The Japan Foundation, London for amounts up to £100.00. If you need to travel the day before and stay overnight the night before the Final Day event, please consult us in advance.

Eligibility (any one or more of the following):

• Non-native-speaker-level Japanese teachers who teach at secondary and/or primat schools, including teaching extra-curricular activities such as school clubs.
• PGCE students who are aiming to become Japanese teachers.
• SCITT trainees/candidates 

Suitable Japanese Level: JLPT N3 or CEFR B1 (if you cannot assess your own level, please contact us)

Course fee: Free (including all handouts)

Registration Deadline: Tuesday 24th June 2025

Languages used: English/Japanese (All handouts will be given during the lesson.)

This course may count as 9.5 hours of CPD (TBC)

Course Content:

• Week 1 (online): Introduction, Review of GCSE higher specification
• Week 2 (online): Review of Grammar and Kanji
• Week 3 (online): Review of Grammar and Kanji
• Final Day (face-to-face) : Workshop

Course Objectives:

To be able to teach GCSE higher tier confidently

About the Speakers at the Final Day Event

Ms Fiona Pryce at Pearson Edexcel

Fiona Pryce is a Senior Qualification Manager at Pearson Edexcel, with a portfolio of 16 GCSE and 15 A Level language qualifications. Fiona has extensive experience as an MFL teacher, teaching Spanish and German up to KS5 and French up to KS3. As a HOD she supported students taking additional language qualifications, including Japanese GCSE. She also ran a primary MFL business for 6 years. Fiona joined Pearson in 2022 and led on the development of the GCSE 2024 Spanish Edexcel and AQA course resources.

Ms Anne Rajakumar

Anne Rajakumar has been teaching Japanese for over thirty years, in both Australia and the UK. She is the author of the successful Australian primary-level workbooks, Yonde Kaite, and has a website and Youtube channel which hosts a wealth of material to support the GCSE , A-Level and International Baccalaureate Japanese programmes. Until giving up classroom teaching in 2020, Anne was the Head of Japanese at Hockerill Anglo-European College and since then she has focussed on teaching online. For the past fifteen years making online resources to support 'Flipped Learning' in the classroom has been a major focus of her work, and she has integrated the use of online resources into her teaching (Flipped Learning) to great effect.

To register, please click here:

https://forms.office.com/r/NW1CEFY3ma

Further Enquiries: Ms Hiroko Tanaka:

Hiroko_Tanaka001@jpf.go.jp

The Japan Foundation offices in Europe will jointly an online teachers' seminar on the topic, ‘Hikidasu Nihongo - Activate Your Japanese!’ on 12th July 2025 (Saturday).

The details of the seminar, such as the theme, date and time, are as follows. Please find the event details below written in Japanese.

*Please note that information is only available in Japanese, as the seminar will be conducted in Japanese. Thank you for your understanding.

 Theme: Zenbu Misemasu! "Hikidasu Nihongo Activate Your Japanese!"

 Date/Time: 12th July 2025 (Saturday),  10:00 to 12:00 (CEST Central European Summertime), 9:00 to 11:00 (WEST Western European Summer Time)

Application Deadline: 8th July 2025 (Tuesday) 23:59

Online Form

 Enquiries:

 The Japan Foundation, Cologne:  kurse@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / German)

 The Japan Foundation, London enquiries: events.japanese@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / English)

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The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is a test for non-native speakers of Japanese which evaluates and certifies their Japanese-Language proficiency. The test takes place twice a year (July and December) in Japan and various locations around the world. Currently, it is the largest Japanese language test in the world, with more than 1.48 million people worldwide having registered for the JLPT in 2023.

The next July JLPT will take place on Sunday, 6^th July 2025. Registration will start at each test centre from early/ mid-March. 

Please check this page for any updates on UK test centres for the July 2025 JLPT. For application opening dates and registration details, please refer to each university’s website using the links below:

- Japan Research Centre, SOAS University of London SOAS Applications have now closed

- University of Leicester Applications at University of Leicester have now closed

- King's Language Centre, King's College London (!New!) Applications at King's College London have now closed

Please note that the JLPT is very popular and registration at each test centre will close when the test centre has reached its maximum capacity.

For more information about the test, please visit JLPT website. 

- Let’s Try Sample Questions!

The Japan Foundation, London is working with The National Modern Languages SCITT to help aspiring Japanese teachers obtain the skills and qualifications needed to teach Japanese in England.

School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) is a school-based teacher training course where trainees work in placement schools whole pursuing a teaching qualification.

The NML SCITT has introduced a new pathway for training Japanese language teachers as part of its programme, and The Japan Foundation, London is offering financial support to assist trainees. Please note that there are entry/eligibility requirements. Find out more on NML's website.

The National Modern Languages SCITT (The NML SCITT) is unique, being the only national single-subject provider to specialise solely in the teaching of modern languages. The NML SCITT programme is a great opportunity for those who are looking to gain QTS together with the recognised standard qualification of Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). Subject to financial, degree classification and residential qualification, participants accepted on the programme may receive a substantial bursary while training.

Please note that trainees are required to have some knowledge of French, German or Spanish as a foreign language they can potentially teach, with Japanese as an additional language. This means that trainees will be able to teach two languages. NML can provide opportunities to develop this second modern foreign language, so please contact them if you have any questions.

• Length of course: 1 year
• Course start date: August
• Qualifications awarded: PGCE (Post Graduate Certificate in Education), Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), 60 credits towards a Master’s degree.
• Training locations: NML North East London, Oundle and South East London hubs.
• Fees: please see the NML SCITT website
• Bursary if eligible

Find out more, including how to apply, on the NML SCITT website.

If you have any specific questions about the course, please contact NML SCITT directly.