Lessons Learned from the Recollection of Past Teacher Characteristics in Japan

This paper explores how Japanese university freshmen recalled their secondary school English teachers. The hope of the research is that descriptions of the “best” and “worst” teachers’ character traits and actions might prove useful to current and aspiring Japanese EFL instructors. Written narratives (n = 84) describing participants’ relationships with English were coded for every mention of teachers, and the data was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative methods. Questionnaire data was also collected from a separate group of participants (n = 86) to assess what descriptive words best applied to their best and worst past teachers. The results showed that more than half of the students included teachers in their writings about their relationship with the English language, and that positive teacher influences were associated with higher academic performance after a year of university courses. The narratives also revealed the markedness of fluent speech, the importance of rapport and humor, and that lasting memories were also formed outside the classroom. The questionnaire results suggested that the best teachers were associated with quality teaching, friendliness, fairness, and being interesting, whereas the worst teachers were perceived as defiant and challenging, but still interested in teaching English