Event: SAC tour at Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages

Join us before JALT 2014 Conference for a tour of the recently renewed SAC (VISTA ACT & VISTA SILC) of Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages. The tour will be followed by an opportunity for discussion of SALL-related issues between participants. Feel free to raise any topic that you’d like to discuss –  setting up a center, student involvement/training, learning advising, or any other matters affecting your work! Tea and cookies will be provided. Stop by before hopping on the train to Tsukuba! Both members and non-members are welcome! Registration starts next semester.
 
Date: Saturday, November 22, 2014
Time: 10-12 am 
Fee: Free
Venue: Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages (KIFL)  (Building 3 &Room number 3-201)
Transportation: 3 minute walk from Kanda Station (JR:west exit/Ginza Line). Kanda Station is one stop from Tokyo station and Akihabara station (Kanda station is on the way to Akihabara station where you get on Tsukuba Express to go to JALT) (map)

 

Final Call For Papers DRAL2/ILA Bangkok, June 2014

A quick reminder to JASAL members that submission for the Independent Learning Association conference (ILA 2014) are due on 31st January.

Anyone who has attended previous ILA conferences in Japan, Hong Kong and New Zealand will know that they are excellent opportunities to share ideas with others involved in independent learning, and there are always lots of self-access themed presentations, unlike traditional teaching conferences.

Conference website: http://sola.kmutt.ac.th/dral2014

The conference will be held from June 12th -14th , 2014 at School of Liberal Arts<http://arts.kmutt.ac.th/sola/>, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT)<http://www.kmutt.ac.th/eindex.html>, Bangkok 10140, Thailand

Submission of abstracts:
For papers – 150-200 words.
For poster presentations and a forum for novice researchers – 100-150 words.

Training workshop on Learning Advising

 
＜Training workshop in Tokyo＞ 
For those who are interested in Learning Advising, Satoko Kato and Hisako Yamashita, learning advisors at Kanda Institute of Foreign Languages will be conducting a 3-day training workshop on March 11-13 in Tokyo. The training workshop is a special course provided by the MA TESOL Program at Graduate School of Kanda University of International Studies.
Anyone interested in language advising, coaching, or one-to-one dialogue with English language learners to foster self-directed learning is welcome.The workshop will be conducted in Japanese, and your active participation is appreciated.
For details, please see the link below.
 
　
＜トレーニング講座開催＞「学習アドバイジング」の基本知識と基本スキル：対話をとおした自律性の促進 
学習アドバイジングにご興味のある方に向けて、3月11日～13日に実績と研究をもとに、語学学習にコーチングを取り入れた独自の学習アドバイジング・アプローチをご紹介いたします。3日間をかけて、学習アドバイジングの意義や効果を実感していただくと共に、すぐに現場で使える知識やスキルの習得を目指します。学習アドバイジング、コーチングなどにご興味のある方、学習者の「やる気」をサポートすることにご関心のある方のご参加、お待ちしております。ワークショップは日本語で行なわれます。
詳細は、以下のリンクにてご案内しています。
 

SAC visit at SPACe, Soka University

JASAL is happy to announce that it will run a Self-Access Centre visit, hosted by Soka University, on Friday 22nd November at 3pm. Our thanks go to Danny Sasaki and Yukiko Ishikawa who are hosting this event.

Soka University in Tokyo have recently opened a new state-of-the-art facility, SPACe, and are offering a tour and a chance for JASAL members to discuss self-access issues in an informal setting on Friday 22nd November, from 3pm, the day before the JALT Learner Development SIG conference in Tokyo. Soka University is a short bus ride from Hachioji station, which is 40 minutes from Shinjuku station on the Chuo line. More details about SPACe can be found on its website:

http://space.soka.ac.jp/

 

PUBLISHED! Student Conference Reports from SISAC Conference

JASAL is very happy to announce the publication of the Student Conference Reports from the Student Involvement in Self-Access Centers Conference, held in Nagoya in February 2013.

You can download your copy here:

SISAC Conference Reports

There are 5 reports from students who attended and presented at the conference, along with some contributions from the editor, Vick Ssali, and the organisers. Please feel free to share the Reports with any interested parties.

JASAL and the conference organisers Umida Ashurova & Robert Croker, and editor Vick Ssali, would like to thank all the students for all their hard work in writing their papers.

We hope to be able to announce another student conference soon!

Symposium on Self-Access Learning, October 19

There will be  a free symposium on “Directions in self-access learning” at Kanda University of International Studies in Chiba on Saturday October 19th. The abstracts are now up on the website.

There will be presentations, SALC tours, and opportunities to meet colleagues from other institutions.
Some of the JASAL members will be presenting at the symposium.
Hope to see many of you there! and the next weekend (Sunday, October 27) at JASAL Forum@JALTKobe.

 

Announcing the JASAL Forum at JALT2013, Kobe

The annual JASAL Forum at JALT2013 has now been confirmed, and we have a great line up for you this year

When? Sunday, 27th October, 5:35pm – 7:05pm

Title: Self-access and the lifelong voyage of learning

On the lifelong voyage of learning, the self-access centre is a port where learners can refuel with ideas, restock with learning materials, share stories of their adventures, and chart out new directions for the future. In three presentations and a poster session, contributors will discuss a variety of current issues in self-access related to learner cognition, advising, assessment, space design and curriculum integration.

Information about presenters and abstracts can be found on the 2013 Forum page.

We will provide time for discussion after the presentations, and look forward to seeing many of you there.

JALT Weekend SAC Visit!

JALT Weekend SAC Visit at Konan Women’s University, Kobe

Friday October 25, 2013, 2:40 – 4:10
 
Join us for a tour of e-space, a self-access centre opened in 2011 by the Department of English Language and Culture. Following the tour there will be a brief presentation followed by a Q&A session. 
 
We’ll meet at 2:00 outside the Okamoto Starbucks (between JR Settsu-Motoyama and Hankyu Okamoto stations). At 2:15, we’ll walk over to the school bus station in time to board the 2:30 bus.
 
Organized by the Department of English Language and Culture, Konan Women’s University and the Japan Association of Self-Access Learning.
 
Please confirm your attendance with Dirk MacKenzie (dirk@konan-wu.ac.jp) by Wednesday, October 23.