Japanese Speaking Personnel Proficiency Deficiencies: A Case Study of Japanese Education in Thailand

Abstract

During the past 10 years, Japanese language learning has become popular in Thailand, which can be seen in the rise of private Japanese language teaching institutes as well as the number of Japanese related programs provided in many universities around the country. However, in spite of the incremental increase in number of learners, most Japanese entrepreneurs consider it to be critically difficult to find qualified Japanese speaking personnel in Thailand. The main purpose of this article is to explore the reasons for this problem and find a proper solution by studying the expectations of Japan studies stakeholders towards the qualification of Thai graduates in Japan Studies as well as Japanese Studies curriculum. A questionnaire has been distributed to two different groups: those who graduated in a field related to Japan studies, and Japanese employers who live in Thailand, followed by interviews with key informants. The findings show that there is a gap between the expectation of the students and the entrepreneurs towards the qualification of Thai graduates in Japanese Studies, in other words, among the Thai and the Japanese. Most Thai students consider the proficiency in Japanese language to be the most important ability required, while Japanese entrepreneurs consider those who have the abilities of comprehension, good perspective and use of Japanese in business as most important. Moreover, the research found that both students and entrepreneurs want the curriculum to be more practical and applicable to careers.