ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the context that has shaped education in general and language education in particular in Japan. It outlines the methodology of the research study explored in this book, and provides a rationale for the approach used to investigate technology-mediated project-based learning in the Japanese EFL context. Since 2012, English has become more prominent as a compulsory subject in the elementary school system in Japan. Reforms have been aimed at replacing the behaviourist methods of instruction by more communicative language teaching approaches (CLT). A number of these challenges are not exclusive to Japan but have also been found in other Asian EFL classroom contexts. The emphasis on collectivism and maintaining harmony within and between group cultures may explain the values that also shape pedagogical norms within learning contexts. The research was clearly focused on English language learning in foreign language contexts but sought to initiate discussion about the re-evaluation of the subject area.
