Standing in the genkan: Adjunct foreign English language teachers in the Japanese higher education internationalisation context

摘要: This dissertation explores the experiences, knowledge and beliefs of adjunct foreign English language teachers (AFELT), how they envisage their role place in Japanese university context. These experiences are important when considered against a backdrop higher education reform internationalisation. For example, this research asks, what AFELT? do conceptualise expected role? these suggest about internationalisation context? aims to: first, contribute to understanding AFELT construe themselves as situated context; second, investigate to, or not, by illuminating phenomena that afford constrain practices; third, examine conceptual usefulness applying multi-theoretical perspective elicit richer, more nuanced stakeholders’ social interaction ‘place’ at both macro micro levels It is phenomena, including notions inclusion exclusion, situate broader context internationalisation. The empirical study presented initiated out desire better understand experience, from an emic perspective. Previous on generally quantitative limited depth, thus has remained silent place, value. By privileging participant voice, makes original contribution field research. A key feature its theoretical grounding interpretive epistemology constructionist traditions. The epistemological assumption upon which grounded assumes socio-cultural/political such be complex, multilayered, multidimensional, dynamic. Qualitative data were therefore generated successive focus groups in-depth interviews conducted over year involving 43 participants working across 66 universities (public private) Japan. The findings revealed matrix intersecting diverging themes discursive discourses. At level, major finding significant discontinuity between internationalization communicative policy practice Japan, enacted institutional level. was perceived mobilised essentialist, utilitarian symbolic terms, with value indexed realisation marketing strategies rather than educational outputs. Thus, degree incongruence concerning nature, purpose function classes exposed. According participants, education, broadly speaking, constitutes experience for many undergraduate domestic students. From AFELT’s perspective, peripheral work, not essential process advocated broad discourse. As such, construed being commodified instrumentalised. They asserted supported in, encouraged facilitate, development interculturality student population. Yet nevertheless, majority still felt responsibility implement intercultural encourage students’ ability diversity. At identified contextual individual affordances constraints impacted teaching. Participants’ ‘subject positioning’ salient factor affording constraining professional identity practice. concluded casting aggressively asserting agency through ‘reflexive positioning’. Through examination ‘experience’, unique multiple perspectives appropriated situative social/psychological person-in-context perspectives, culture communication studies, cognitive linguistics, dramaturgy, Positioning theory explore ‘experience’ provided powerful lenses interrogate stakeholder positioning within space. The highlights need further into: influence vehicles of, facilitators reciprocal understanding; local cultural constraints; and, processes evaluate support ‘global citizenry’ graduate outcomes Metaphorically, may likened ‘standing genkan’, is, invited into house but up home, beyond confines genkan. socially positioned states - neither fully ‘in’ nor ‘out’, ‘visible’ ‘invisible’.