The AFICIONADO OF INDIANA JAPANESE Resource Disk for Macintosh or PC can be used by any teacher of Japanese who would like to have a coordinated lesson plan which details workbook assignments and CD audio tracks for the Adventures in Japanese textbook series which is published by Cheng and Tsui. This resource CD set also includes a specific document which outlines the National Standards of Japanese Language Instruction for various learning levels. More information on this Indiana State Department of Education approved document, which I wrote for the Tippecanoe County School District of Lafayette, Indiana, is given below.

While the AFICIONADO OF INDIANA JAPANESE Resource Disk for Macintosh or PC is coordinated to Adventures in Japanese, most of the included materials are informational and educational resources which are applicable to virtually any textbook series. Regarding the documents related to the Adventures In Japanese series, each level has been prepared as a year long course of study for the 1st year, 2nd year and 3rd year books. The newest update and upgrade of the AFICIONADO OF INDIANA JAPANESE Resource Disk for Macintosh or PC, includes the 4th year Field Test Version which provides a year long lesson plan sequence and, as of January 2004, a 200 question final exam for the first semester of the 4th level course. The lesson plans for all levels are tested, and capable of being altered to any Japanese language teacher's special needs. This allows for variance in school schedules and grading periods. Great care has been taken to follow the Adventures In Japanese texts in regards to their organization and sequencing, insuring that such things as the Christmas lessons, the New Years lessons, Mother’s Day lessons and other calendar events occur at the appropriate time in the school year. The immediacy of the text information being presented during the appropriate season is highly beneficial for students. It allows the opportunity of learning and experiencing Japanese language in real time. Each level of Japanese language study from first year through third year comes with a textbook coordinated final exam of two hundred questions, for both a fall semester and a spring semester. These tests have been created in multiple choice formats that make extensive use of hiragana, katakana and kanji. Each test allows for the rearranging of questions without retyping the test by simply highlighting the entire question, and then dragging it to a new position if it is your wish to alter the question sequence. There are additional benefits regarding these testing files, not detailed here, due to the nature of the internet and accessibility of this information by students and teachers alike.

As a supplement to any Japanese language program, there are reference sources for Japanese films which can be used for historic, cultural and language study enhancement. Films give opportunities to discuss cultural values in a relatively safe format when some of the information may be socially sensitive. I find that Japanese dialogue films, even if subtitled, have some relevance to the grammar points covered in any given week of Japanese language study. The films listed are organized in a correlated language level sequence to introduce concepts or ideas over a three year span of Japanese instruction. Many of these film suggestions are supported with materials for research, projects, quiz sheets and other related documentation. In Addition to movies, films and anime, there are file folders which give information on such topics as Bunraku Puppet Theater, Foods, Japanese Ghosts, Japanese Trivia, Math / number games, Mt Fuji, Japanese music (including more than 100 mp3 audio tracks), Films, and Books, just to name a few of the cultural, societal, historical and language specific topics available which have been compiled, created or documented during more than 15 years of Japanese language instruction. One specific bonus is a picture folder with photos taken in Japan during the summer of 2001. There is a photo sequence of four photo panels showing a 360 degree view of Hiroshima as it is now, from ground zero at the T bridge. By opening each panel and scrolling to the left or right, it is possible to see the entire "ground zero" area, including the Peace Dome. In total, there are 50 topic folders included for use in any Japanese class situation regardless of the textbook series you may be using.
As mentioned, The National Standards of Japanese Language Instruction have been outlined in a document created for the Tippecanoe County Schools in 2002. These standards are coordinated by grade level, and specific tasks are target coordinated as identifiable behaviors or tasks accomplishable by students in Japanese classes. The resource for this Standards document is the result of an effort by K-16 level Japanese language educators. It is based upon the Standards for Foreign Language Learning: Preparing for the 21st Century, developed by the National Standards in Foreign Language Education Project. Close examination of the Foreign Language Education Project standards allowed the task force to determine modifications appropriate to meet the unique needs of Japanese teaching and learning environments. The resulting Japanese specific standards adopt the strengths of the standards document while incorporating changes that address issues specific to the field of Japanese language education.

The cost for all this = $75.00

The CD with all three levels has over 3500 files total, and 600MB+ of data. These files have been saved in both MacIntosh and IBM compatible formats. Version 3.5 has been updated to provide easier access to all topic folders, many of which are integrated with the lesson plans. These files go far beyond the basic lesson plan and test documents.
The Millennial Music mp3 CD, with 127 data samples of Japanese music through the past millennium, is included and related music and lyrics files are on the Resource CD.

For an order form and more specific information or questions, please e-mail me at:
peterson@wvec.k12.in.us

please include information about your school address and phone number, and information about your teaching position.

Sincerely,
Michael J. Peterson

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My thanks to the members of the Association of Indiana Teachers of Japanese who nominated me for the Indiana foreigna Language Pre-Collegiate Teacher of the Year award for the 2003-2004 school year. I could not have been more surprised to have been selected by the IFLTA portfolio committee at our recent conference. I have the greatest appreciation for all the members of that professional organization, and the National Council of Japanese Language Teachers with whom I was priveleged to serve from 1998 through 2001. Substantial thanks also goes to my family for putting up with the hours I disappear to work on Japanese related material. Moreover, had I not been blessed with a mission call to Japan in 1975, none of the friendships within AITJ or NCJLT would have ever come to pass. I have been blessed in many ways. My thanks to all of you who have come into my life, or will perhaps be part of my life in the future through the joy of Japanese.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!,
Michael J. Peterson November 2003

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The following link is dedicated to photos from my activities with the Indianapolis Opera since 1998. From my first performance in The Barber of Seville, on through about 12 other operas, these are a few of the pictures that give you some indication of my other interests besides Japanese. I was originally a choral / vocal major at Indiana University, and still coach some singers but mostly keep my self vocally limber by singing under the direction of Chorus Master John Schmidt. Some photos are from production photos by Denis Kelley - photographer.

Indianapolis Opera

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Professional Development Opportunities for Japanese Language Teachers

The following is a link to an electronic version of the handout presented at ACTFL conference 2002 in Salt Lake City on the 21-24 of November 2002. The page has been organized to allow direct access to the web links given in the handout. It is my hope to keep this page as current as possible with your help in identifying new programs, and weeding out dead links as they occur. Please notify me of any changes or additions which would be pertinent to this listing.
Thank you
Michael J. Peterson