The English-language learning programs in Japan’s public schools have long been criticized for being too focused on rote learning. But Mio Horio, a 32-year
The English-language learning programs in Japan’s public schools have long been criticized for being too focused on rote learning.
But Mio Horio, a 32-year-old English teacher from mountainous Shiga Prefecture, is challenging the nation’s system and nudging her students to think outside the box.
Horio’s teenage students interact with young people worldwide via Skype and are encouraged to learn about the world on their own.
Horio’s aim is to help her students boost their communication skills and raise their global awareness, both of which she sees as critical in international settings.
Her efforts have been recognized by the international education community, and in December, Horio was placed on a short list of 50 candidates for the Global Teacher Prize, known in the industry as the Nobel Prize for education.
Horio is the second Japanese teacher to be nominated for the prize in its four-year history. The winner is selected from over 30,000 candidates from 173 countries.
“People believe that teaching about global issues is impossible in rural areas, and they imagine a globally oriented approach to education as something taking place in big cities like Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto,” she told The Japan Times in a recent interview via Skype. “But you can find globally minded students in this kind of rural area.”
Horio teaches a class of 40 students at her alma mater, Shiga Prefectural Maibara Senior High School, which offers a course focused on English. Her first group of students graduated last year.
Horio majored in English and speech communication at Kobe City University of Foreign Studies in Hyogo Prefecture. Although she never studied abroad, she believes that teaching English and educating Japan’s youth about global challenges is vital to strengthen Japan’s foreign relations.
“Japan has long been among the world’s leading (economies)… and now that Tokyo has been selected to host the Olympics in 2020, we will see the number of foreign visitors coming to Japan grow,” she said.
