Professor Junko Majima
Professor Emerita, The University of Osaka
Executive Director, Japanese-Language Institute, Kansai,
The Japan Foundation
The Current State and Future Direction of Japanese Language Education Policy in Japan in the Age of Generative AI
Due to the declining birthrate and ageing population, Japan is trying to accept more foreign workers and residents. As a result, the government has taken the initiative to make major changes in the field of Japanese language education.
In 2024, epoch-making laws were put into effect. The first national qualification system for “registered Japanese language teachers” was established, and the “Japanese language teacher exam” was implemented for this purpose. The “accredited Japanese language education institution” system was also put into effect, which was a move towards new Japanese language schools.
Prior to this, the “Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education” guidelines were issued regarding the content and policies of Japanese language education. What does this mean?
In recent years, not only has rapid progress been made in ICT, but we also hear the term “generative AI” almost every day. In Japanese-language education, too, we see and hear some people who are unsteady on their feet, but I would like to take a moment to think about this calmly.
Professor Jun Tani
Professor, Cognitive Neurorobotics Research Unit,
Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology
Exploring Artificial and Human Minds through Synthetic Neurorobotics Studies
For the past 35 years, my research has been driven by a desire to understand the development of the human mind through an interdisciplinary lens—integrating psychology, phenomenology, neuroscience, statistical physics, information science, and AI robotics [1]. Central to this endeavour are several key questions: How can a concept space with compositional structure emerge through the interactive learning of both actional and linguistic experiences, especially under the constraint of the poverty of stimulus? How can we account for both higher-order (meta-level) cognitive mechanisms and lower-level sensorimotor processing under a unified framework, such as the free energy principle? How might the notion of circular causality in embodied cognition be reconciled with models of rational cognition?
And finally, can the subjective experience of phenomenological consciousness be explained objectively through scientific approaches?
In this talk, I will demonstrate how these questions can be explored—at least to some extent—through synthetic neurorobotics studies. By analysing emergent phenomena observed in neurorobotic experiments and correlating them with findings from other empirical domains, I will argue that neurorobotics offers a powerful framework for addressing fundamental questions about mind, embodiment, and consciousness.
[1] Tani, J. (2016). Exploring Robotic Minds: Actions, Symbols, and Consciousness as Self-Organizing Dynamic Phenomena. New York: Oxford University Press
Associate Professor Loretta Kim
Associate Professor, Head, School of Modern Languages and Cultures, Faculty of Arts,
The University of Hong Kong
Opening Minds through Emphasizing Authenticity: Teaching the Use of Japanese Proper Nouns in Northeast Asian History
Although many students in Hong Kong and other parts of China are interested in Japanese culture and society, they express reluctance to learn about the history of Japan and Northeast Asia using languages other than Chinese. Even in courses using English as the medium of instruction, students often express their difficulties or even unwillingness to learn Japanese proper nouns, such as the names of people and places in Japanese. This lecture explains some of the reasons for these students’ struggles and what the speaker has learned about how to help them overcome their concerns about facing these challenges so that they can understand and appreciate the significance of diversity in the history of Northeast Asia.
※Please note that the content of this keynote speech has been updated. We appreciate your understanding.
Professor Hitoshi Kato
Professor Emeritus, The University of Osaka
Specially Appointed Professor, Center for Japanese Language and Culture,
The University of Osaka
Rethinking Japanese Studies in the Age of Generative AI from the Perspective of International Students’ Education
In Japan, research related to the country has traditionally been highly specialised within the fields of humanities and social sciences. In recent years, there has been a movement to establish interdisciplinary academic fields, such as ‘International Japanese Studies’ and ‘Global Japanese Studies.’ However, in the context of international students’ education, in which I have been involved for over 30 years, ‘Japanese Studies’ has been strongly recognised for a long time as a distinct subfield of the humanities, due to the necessity of exploring and teaching the nature of Japan. With the growing utilisation of generative AI, including advancements in translation technology and the digitisation of historical materials, the educational and research environment is undergoing significant transformation. In light of these developments, I would like to discuss the future of ‘Japanese Studies,’ using my area of expertise—research on Buddhist thought—as a concrete example while paying attention to its educational aspects.