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A Preliminary Exploration of the Cognitive Linguistics Approach to English Article System Instruction in the Japanese EFL Classroom
FUJIWARA; Yumi A Preliminary Exploration of the Cognitive Linguistics Approach to English Article System Instruction in the Japanese EFL Classroom JAS4QoL 2024, 10(1) 1 online at: https://as4qol.org/ULalk
Categories: > Full Papers, > Volume 10, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: Cognitive Linguistics, FUJIWARA; Yumi, grammar instruction, Japanese EFL learners, the English article system
Kyoto Pharmaceutical University, 5 Nakauchi-Cho, Misasagi, Yamashina-Ku, Kyoto 607- 8414, Japan
It is frequently mentioned that using articles is a notably high barrier for Japanese EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners to overcome because the English article system (EAS) does not exist in Japanese. Therefore, Japanese EFL students often resort to rote-memorization in learning EAS. Relying on rote-memorization, as often seen in traditional learning/teaching methods, makes it more challenging to fully grasp purposes of the EAS. Multiple prior studies have attempted to elucidate the mechanism behind the acquisition of English articles, yet many aspects remain unclear. Cognitive Linguistics (CL), which grew out of work done in the 1970s, is a multidisciplinary approach to language study that came into being in the 1980s and views grammar not merely as a set of formal rules but as something closely related to meanings in written contents. A variety of research and experimental efforts have been made to apply this theory in practical teaching environments. Many of these report that applied CL has a high potential to serve as a foundation for new teaching strategies. Therefore, in learning English articles entangled with complicated rules, it is expected that the CL-based instruction makes it easier for learners to understand the meaning behind grammatical structures, contributing to better comprehension of grammatical concepts. This survey attempted to assess the current state of Japanese EFL learners’ understanding on English article usage and evaluate their feedback on this newly introduced teaching approach. The research involved 46 university students enrolled in grammar courses at a university in Japan, and the participants were categorized into two levels of proficiency based on CEFR level. First, their understanding of articles was examined with a gap-filling test and then the CL-based teaching method was incorporated as part of a class activity. A questionnaire was also administered at different stages of the experiment to investigate first whether the differences in proficiency were connected to the comprehension of articles, then which aspects of articles were hard to understood, whether there were differences in trends based on proficiency, and what they thought of this teaching method. The results showed the group with higher proficiency understood articles better, and the participants seemed to have more difficulty selecting the right article based on the noun phrase type, which varies with the degree of proficiency. Additionally, post-experiment questionnaire results showed that many of them found this teaching method more beneficial and effective than the traditional one.
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Recent Developments and the Incidences of Cancers in Japan: Focal Emphasis on Breast Cancer and the Use of Food Ingredients and Plant-Part Extracts for Prevention
FOONG; Anthony FW Recent Developments and the Incidences of Cancers in Japan: Focal Emphasis on Breast Cancer and the Use of Food Ingredients and Plant-Part Extracts for Prevention JAS4QoL 2023, 9(1) 5 online at: https://as4qol.org/zEfqQ
Categories: > Mini Reviews, > Volume 9, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: FOONG; Anthony FW, Mini Review, Quality of Life
R&D Department, Imex Japan Co. Ltd., Kyoto, 3F Imex Japan Bldg, 22 Simomidori-cho, Shichiku, Kita-Ku, Kyoto 603-8425, Japan
According to recent analysis in Japan (2020), the mortality rate of males is higher than that of females: i.e. 368 (males) vs 248 (females) per 100,000 population. With regards to the affected sites, the mortality trend traces a similar pattern of males > females in the following order (with approximately 2-fold higher rate in males): oral cavity, larynx, esophagus, stomach, liver, pharynx, lung, and bladder. However, mortalities attributable to thyroid cancer appear to be higher in females. Regarding the site-related mortalities, males tend to be more susceptible to succumbing to following cancers, in decreasing order: colon/rectum, lung, stomach, colon, pancreas, and liver; while susceptibility of females traced the following pattern, in decreasing order: colon, lungs, pancreas, breasts, and stomach.
View | DownloadEnhancing Subjective Wellbeing for the Elderly via Shared Territorial Bonding-Type Resident Activity: Meaningful Creation of Intergeneration Exchange Activity Derived from 10,000 Elderly of More than Age Sixty-Five
MATSUMOTO; Kenya, SOYANO; Ayako, HIRAIDE; Atsushi Enhancing Subjective Wellbeing for the Elderly via Shared Territorial Bonding-Type Resident Activity: Meaningful Creation of Intergeneration Exchange Activity Derived from 10,000 Elderly of More than Age Sixty-Five JAS4QoL 2023, 9(1) 4 online at: https://as4qol.org/c6oCO
Categories: > Full Papers, > Volume 9, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: Full Paper, HIRAIDE; Atsushi, MATSUMOTO; Kenya, Quality of Life, SOYANO; Ayako
MATSUMOTO; Kenya1*, SOYANO; Ayako1, HIRAIDE; Atsushi2
1*Faculty of Nursing School of Medicine, Nara Medical University (j-okuda@naramed-u.ac.jp)
2Faculty of Nursing, Mejiro University
This paper presents the results of a preliminary study clarifying the relationship-building process involving patients admitted to Medical Treatment and Supervision Act (MTSA) ward and nurses. We conducted semi-structured interviews with two nurses who had experience working in MTSA wards to gain insight as to how they perceived patients when building relationships with them and changes in feelings toward the patients as treatment progressed. The content was analyzed with reference to the modified grounded theory approach. Results show that the nurses sought to have an understanding of patients1. The core of their actions was the belief that negative impressions can be overcome to motivate oneself. By applying their personal beliefs, the nurses deepened their understanding of patients. In the process of understanding, the nurses conducted consistent engagement with the patient while feeling that the patient’s psychological and physical aspects were improving, which was conflicting with understanding the wavering of the patient’s mental state and involvement according to that mental state and involvement that allows the patient to take proactive actions (i.e., involvement with patients). Repetitions of this process are thought to foster relationship-building between patients and nurses. Given that the relationship buildinThis study endeavored to clarify the effects on subjective wellbeing of the elderly and resident activities in municipalities. We investigated the impact of resident activities in each municipality on the subjective wellbeing of the elderly and to examine intergenerational exchange activities (IGEAs) that connected the young and elderly. Participants (male: 5000; female: 5000) of age 65 years and over residing all over the nation were subjects of the study. The study was conducted through an anonymous self-administered web survey on the internet. With subjective wellbeing expressed as the dependent variable, and various independent variables, including statistical data from municipalities, basic demographic attributes (gender, age, cohabitation family structure, place of residence, etc.), and participation in resident activities. Multiple regression analysis and structural equation modeling were employed for analysis purposes. The results showed that individual attributes such as annual income and age had a negative impact. Higher age and higher annual income were associated with reduced subjective wellbeing. In addition, all resident activities appeared to have favorable effects, indicating that engaging in any IGEA enhanced subjective wellbeing. The financial status of the municipalities where participants resided did not have a significant impact on subjective wellbeing when population density was excluded from the analysis. Furthermore, a model based on family composition and gender was established. Based on results of the present investigation, young and elderly participants involving shared territorial bonding-type resident activities yielded a meaningful mix of the young and the elderly. Through the present study - where Japan now is undergoing depopulation and cascading into a gray society - not only thinking of the unilateral tendency of the young supporting the elderly, but the coupling of increased connections between the elderly and the young nurture an aspect of fusing the weak and the strong from both age groups in IGEAs over time, and brings along activated interactive participations, where each side stand to learn and earn things ‘new’. Our study highlights the positive effects of community involvement on the wellbeing of the elderly and underscores the potential benefits of promoting IGEAs that capitalize on the distinct features of individual communities.g between forensic psychiatry patients and nurses is reported to reduce recidivism, the results of this study could be used to prevent patients from recidivating and to promote social rehabilitation. However, this is a preliminary study, so there is a need to collect more data based on the results and clarify the process of relationship-building between patients and nurses.
Keywords: forensic psychiatry patient, patient-nurse relationship, relationship-building process, Medical Treatment and Supervision Act
A Preliminary Study of the Process of Relationship-Building Between Patients Hospitalized in Medical Treatment and Supervision Act Wards and Nurses in Japan
OKUDA; Jun, KAZAMA; Mari A Preliminary Study of the Process of Relationship-Building Between Patients Hospitalized in Medical Treatment and Supervision Act Wards and Nurses in Japan JAS4QoL 2023, 9(1) 3 online at: https://as4qol.org/II8NK
Categories: > Full Papers, > Volume 9, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: forensic psychiatry patient, KAZAMA; Mari, Medical Treatment and Supervision Act, OKUDA; Jun, patient-nurse relationship, Quality of Life, relationship-building process, Wisdom Note
1*Faculty of Nursing School of Medicine, Nara Medical University (j-okuda@naramed-u.ac.jp)
2Faculty of Nursing, Mejiro University
This paper presents the results of a preliminary study clarifying the relationship-building process involving patients admitted to Medical Treatment and Supervision Act (MTSA) ward and nurses. We conducted semi-structured interviews with two nurses who had experience working in MTSA wards to gain insight as to how they perceived patients when building relationships with them and changes in feelings toward the patients as treatment progressed. The content was analyzed with reference to the modified grounded theory approach. Results show that the nurses sought to have an understanding of patients1. The core of their actions was the belief that negative impressions can be overcome to motivate oneself. By applying their personal beliefs, the nurses deepened their understanding of patients. In the process of understanding, the nurses conducted consistent engagement with the patient while feeling that the patient’s psychological and physical aspects were improving, which was conflicting with understanding the wavering of the patient’s mental state and involvement according to that mental state and involvement that allows the patient to take proactive actions (i.e., involvement with patients). Repetitions of this process are thought to foster relationship-building between patients and nurses. Given that the relationship building between forensic psychiatry patients and nurses is reported to reduce recidivism, the results of this study could be used to prevent patients from recidivating and to promote social rehabilitation. However, this is a preliminary study, so there is a need to collect more data based on the results and clarify the process of relationship-building between patients and nurses.
Keywords: forensic psychiatry patient, patient-nurse relationship, relationship-building process, Medical Treatment and Supervision Act
A New Drug Design: Substances Excreted from The Body Serve as Deterrents Against Insect Bites
SATO, Erina; FOONG, Anthony FW A New Drug Design: Substances Excreted from The Body Serve as Deterrents Against Insect Bites JAS4QoL 2023, 9(1) 2 online at: https://as4qol.org/tlN6K
Categories: > Volume 9, > Wisdom Notes, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: AA mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti, dengue fever, drug design, FOONG; Anthony FW, Quality of Life, SATO; Erina, Wisdom Note
SATO; Erina * , FOONG; Anthony FW
R&D for Product Development, Imex Japan Co. Ltd., 3F Imex Japan Building, 22 Shimomidori-cho, Shichihku, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8425, Japan 78imexfw@gmail.com
Many succumb to dengue, malaria, Zika, and yellow fever in tropical Asia and Africa. Dengue per se may cause hemorrhagic fever in 100-400 million people a year, although 80% of cases are mild or asymptomatic (according to World Health Organization). Of the carriers for these diseases, mosquitoes – Aedes aegypti (AA) species – is among the most rampant, common, and difficult to handle, because it is adapting, mutating, and evolving to become more resistant to the hitherto effective pyrethroid-based chemicals such as permethrin. As a result, many people have become infected with above-mentioned diseases, thereby severely lowering quality-of-life (QoL) of the affected. Recent surveys by a Japanese research team (KASAI Shinji et al.) in certain parts of Asia and Ghana have demonstrated growing region-dependent resistance to insecticides of some mosquito strains (recent 1000-fold vs previous 100-fold resistance): viz., insecticide levels that would normally kill 100% of mosquitoes in a sample will now kill ca. 7% of the insects. AA mosquitoes are the most troublesome species as these are the most common carriers for above-mentioned diseases.
View | DownloadHidden Curriculum in the Pharmacy Education: A Comparison of the Six-Year Curriculum With the Former Four-Year Curriculum
KOBAYASHI, Aya; KOBAYASHI, Yasuna Hidden Curriculum in the Pharmacy Education: A Comparison of the Six-Year Curriculum With the Former Four-Year Curriculum JAS4QoL 2023, 9(1) 1 online at: https://as4qol.org/Pprb9
Categories: > Full Papers, > Volume 9, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: Full Paper, hidden curriculum, interview, KOBAYASHI; Aya, KOBAYASHI; Yasuna, pharmacist, pharmacy education, questionnaire
KOBAYASHI; Aya, KOBAYASHI; Yasuna
Department of Pharmacy Education, Showa University School of Pharmacy, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 142-8555, Japan (ayakoba408@pharm.showa-u.ac.jp)
This study investigated the “hidden curriculum” that exists side-by-side with the formal pharmacy education in the daily life of pharmacy students. Specifically, it focuses on whether pharmacy students acquire through extracurricular activities and during daily school life while attending the pharmacy schools constitute helpful learning that assists them in becoming pharmacists who make positive contributions to society and healthcare. We have also sought to determine which specific extracurricular activities and habits, etc., served to bolster their self-awareness as pharmacists. We conducted questionnaires and interviews and investigated the characteristic “hidden curriculum” these individuals experienced as students at pharmacy schools. Information gathered from a questionnaire revealed that the number of positive responses to the question: “In regard to extracurricular activities experienced in the time you were at a pharmacy school, did what you had learned help you as a pharmacist?” was 63.3% in the former four-year (4Yr) and 71.3% in the six-year (6Yr) cohorts. Based on information compiled from individual interviews, reasons why “extracurricular activities” were helpful as pharmacists were assigned to the categories of “identity,” “professionalism,” “peer effects,” “recognition of others.” It became clear that their extracurricular activities were of great importance to their work and attitudes as pharmacists, as they grew in self-responsibility and self-awareness as pharmacy professionals. The reason for this outcome is that the daily exposure to those experiences while in pharmacy school molded them into pharmacists without them being consciously aware of it. The study results make clear that extracurricular activities during student life were helpful as pharmacists. We conclude that the “hidden curriculum” played key role in the process of building self-awareness and a sense of responsibility required for pharmacists.
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Wonders from Nature in The Tropical Southeast Archipelago: Health from Jungles and Bushes
FOONG; Anthony FW Wonders from Nature in The Tropical Southeast Archipelago: Health from Jungles and Bushes JAS4QoL 2022, 8(1) 3 online at: https://as4qol.org/p6097
Categories: > Mini Reviews, > Volume 8, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: FOONG; Anthony FW, fragrant screwpine, Garcinia mangostana, Mini Review, pandan, Pandanus amaryllisfolius Roxb. Mangosteen, pecah beling, Strobilanthes crispus, vanilla grass, “blackface general”
1 Imex Japan Co. Ltd. 3F, Imex Japan Bldg, 22 Shimomidori-cho, Shichiku, Kita-Ku, Kyoto 603-8425 JAPAN (78imexfw@gmail.com)
There are thousands of plant species in the tropics: many, though, cannot survive in the temperatures and environments either too far north or south or on soils unfriendly to the typical tropical species. From these tropical plant species can be derived ingredients and extracts that provide holistic cures and heal many diseases that modern medicines often cannot treat.
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Churg-Strauss Syndrome or Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis (EGPA): A Case Study of Using Steroid Combined with Functional Food for Treatment
NAKYAMA; Tomoharu, FOONG; Anthony FW Churg-Strauss Syndrome or Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis (EGPA): A Case Study of Using Steroid Combined with Functional Food for Treatment JAS4QoL 2022, 8(1) 2 online at: https://as4qol.org/uDcpC
Categories: > Case Reports, > Volume 8, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: Case Report, Churg-Strauss Syndrome, EGPA, Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis, FOONG; Anthony FW, Functional Foods, NAKYAMA; Tomoharu, Steroids
NAKAYAMA; Tomoharu 1 , FOONG; Anthony FW 2
1 Nakayama Clinic, 8-251-1, Kita-Itami, Itami City, Hyogo Prefecture 664-0831 JAPAN; (drnakayama888@nike.eonet.ne.jp)
2 Imex Japan Co. Ltd. 3F, Imex Japan Bldg, 22 Shimomidori-cho, Shichiku, Kita-Ku, Kyoto 603-8425 JAPAN
A female patient, who complained of weight loss, suffered from pain with occasional numbness and tingling sensations in joints/muscles of her upper/lower extremities, and her abdominal regions, and suffered from general weakness with fatigue on a daily basis. Clinic visits revealed that she had Churg-Strauss syndrome1* or eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA)*. Early clinical data showed high C-reactive protein (CRP: 5.1mg/dL) levels and eosinophil counts (9.2%), which improved to within normal ranges (CRP: <0.2 mg/dL; eosinophil counts: 3-5%) with 5-yr steroid treatment (prednisolone: 35 mg daily). However, EGPA-related signs and symptoms, AMY (amylase), and other blood and metabolic indexes registered unfavorable readings despite persistent steroid treatment. Her physical and biochemical conditions improved in a time-dependent fashion after combining steroid administration with complementary intake of functional food 3eMulti, which contained natural ingredients (such as docosahexaenoic acid, pecah beling leaf, pandan leaf, mangosteen peel extracts, nattokinase, lycopene, and beehive propolis) with multivariant purposes such as potent antioxidation, favorable blood vascular and cell-function properties. After 9-months of daily intake of the aforementioned functional food in addition to continuous steroid treatment, she recovered completely from the physical and biochemical deficits. To date, she has been enjoying good quality of life (QoL), with above-mentioned combination treatment continuing without any adverse effects. When medications alone are insufficient to treat an idiopathological disease, a combination of medication and functional food intake (particularly with effect-complementary ingredients) may improve the patient’s condition so they may be able to accommodate or normalize the pathological condition. This may lead to a more wholesome, in terms of QoL, living conditions for patients suffering from intractable disease.
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It is Not Easy to Find a Clean and Functional Public Toilet in Many Countries: Lessons to Learn from Japan
SATO, N.; ISHII, E. It is Not Easy to Find a Clean and Functional Public Toilet in Many Countries: Lessons to Learn from Japan JAS4QoL 2022, 8(1) 1 online at: https://as4qol.org/xAJT1
Categories: > Volume 8, > Wisdom Notes, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: History, ISHII; Erina, Public Toilets; Japan, SATO; Noriko, Social Infrastructure, Wisdom Note
Imex Japan Co. Ltd., 3F Imex Japan Building, 22 Shimomidori-cho, Shichiku, KitaKu, Kyoto 603-8425, JAPAN
Traveling in Europe, the United States, and most countries in Asia, it is always a painful and embarrassing moment when nature calls. For people living in Japan especially, the situation maybe unbearable when a language barrier arises as well. All these come back to the one and one only question: Why are public toilets or washrooms not readily available outside Japan? The answer to this question goes back to the 19th century when a well-meaning reformer, Augustus Gardner spoke out in 1862: “Any man, and far more, any woman may walk from one end of this city to the other, in the most dire torture, without finding the relief to the necessities of the body, without such indecent exposure of the person as would render the individual liable to arrest and fine by the civic authorities.”
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Be a Good and Reliable Co-Driver
SATO, N. Be a Good and Reliable Co-Driver JAS4QoL 2021, 7(1) 2 online at: https://as4qol.org/jwsWt
Categories: > Volume 7, > Wisdom Notes, Journal Articles, Volumes
Tags: Co-driving, Driving, Etiquette, SATO; Noriko, Wisdom Note
Chief Executive Officer, Imex Japan Co Ltd, 22-8 Shimomidori-cho, Shinchiku, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8425, Japan
For drivers to enjoy driving a vehicle, whether they are maneuvering forward or negotiating a curve, he/she should be free to steer, slow down, accelerate, and brake without the distraction of uneccessary noises or disturbances around them. At the same time, a person driving a car is often accompanied by companions, friends, or family members. In such situations, there is usually a so-called “co-driver” in the seat next to them.
All in all, co-drivers will greatly help facilitate the driver’s task by adhering to the following guidelines.
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