The British Council Japan would like to invite UK institutions to advertise their teacher training courses in our new pamphlet, “Study UK: Teacher Training Courses 2017/2018”, aimed at teachers of English in Japan. We are offering space for up to 16 institutions to promote their courses in the pamphlet which will be market through a dedicated digital campaign as well as in hard copy form at British Council and external study abroad events from October 2017 to September 2018. 

This publication, which is the first of its kind to be produced in Japan, provides an excellent opportunity for UK institutions to promote their Teacher Training courses to teachers throughout the country.

Benefits of participating

• Credibility among target audience
  The British Council has a long-established reputation in Japan for providing trustworthy and reliable information and support to the country’s primary, junior high and senior high schools. Given this reputation, we anticipate the pamphlet to be a well received and a widely used resource throughout Japan.
• Comprehensiveness
  The pamphlet will include detailed information on Accreditation UK and other quality assurance systems. It will also highlight the strengths of English teaching in the UK and will position the UK as a high quality provider of teacher training.
• Cost Effectiveness:
  Our digital marketing will promote your Teacher Training course(s) to a large number of potential customers via a single dedicated campaign employing a variety of digital channels. The comprehensive nature of the marketing campaign makes this a cost-effective way of reaching a wide audience.

Background

With awareness of the relatively low English language level compared to other countries, the Japanese government has implemented a number of measures to improve students’ and English teachers’ English proficiency since 2013. These include reforms of the national English curriculum at elementary and junior high schools, introduction of four skills English tests to university entrance and provision of training to all teachers in English language education in schools.

Against this backdrop, the number of teachers enrolling in training programmes abroad has been gradually increasing in recent years. Between 2013 and 2016 the number of junior high school teachers participating in teacher training outside Japan increased from 230 to 288. Meanwhile, 305 senior high school teachers participated in overseas training programmes in 2016, which was double the 2013 number. There is some funding support for individual teachers to enrol in training courses abroad; for example, the Metropolitan Foundation for Private Schools, an association of private schools in Tokyo, has annual funding for up to 200 teachers of English (up to approximately 7,000 GBP per person). With financial support such as this, and with government targets for improving teachers’ English ability in place, now is the ideal time for UK providers to promote their teacher training programmes in Japan.

This promotion therefore aims to meet the needs of English teachers by introducing various Teacher Training opportunities via a handy and informative pamphlet and widespread digital promotion.

Specific needs of teachers of English in Japan

Many teachers prefer 2 week to 1 month short courses in March, August or December, when it is easier for them to be away from school. In terms of the training content, they are interested in improving their own English language ability, knowledge and practice of English teaching methods as well as TEFL/TESOL programmes at postgraduate level. There is little interest or recognition in CELTA/DELTA. CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) is a buzzword in Japan, however a soft version of CLIL would be more suitable for Japanese audience than the hard one.

Publication Details

Eligibility

The publication aims to introduce Teacher Training courses offered by UK institutions including English language schools, further education colleges and universities. UK institutions that meet the British Council Services for International Education Marketing Criteria are eligible to participate https://education-services.britishcouncil.org/eligibility-criteria

Specifications of “Study UK: Teacher Training Courses 2017/2018”

• Publication type: A4 size PDF
• Language: Japanese
• Total pages: Approximately 14 depending on the number of participating institutions
• Target: Teachers of English at elementary, junior and senior high schools in Japan
• Shelf life: 1 year (October 2017 – September 2018)
• Contents:
  - Brief introduction to Teacher Training in the UK (prepared by British Council)
  - Accreditation UK and other accreditation schemes (prepared by British Council)
  - How to apply for courses (prepared by British Council)
  - Profiles of participating institutions (half page per profile) - options and model cases, cost and accommodation
     Each profile will consist of 300 words, one image and the institution logo. The British Council will provide a template for institutions to complete their profiles.

Marketing Plan

The digital version of the pamphlet will be promoted to the target audience through the below British Council and external media platforms:

• British Council Japan corporate website (Annual unique users: approx. 600,000 / Page views: 2,600,000)
• Direct mails to 2,742 junior high/senior high schools throughout Japan
• British Council corporate e-flyer (11,000 subscribers), and social media accounts
• Monthly e-newsletter to prospective study abroad students (2,600 subscribers)
• Japan official IELTS Facebook page (5,200 likes)
• British Council IHE e-newsletter (1,200 subscribers)
• British Council Teaching Centre monthly e-newsletter (3,100 subscribers)

In addition to the above, approximately 200 printed copies will be distributed at the below British Council and external study abroad events from October 2017 to September 2018.

• British Council Study UK Exhibitions (October 2017 and March 2018)
• In-house study abroad seminars and teacher training seminars at the British Council, Tokyo
• External study abroad events organised by schools throughout Japan
• British Council front of house display

Participation fee

*Exclusive of applicable VAT

Production schedule

• Deadline for booking space: 15 August 2017
• Deadline for text submission: 31 August 2017
• Publication: early October 2017

Applications

Applications will be accepted on a first come first served basis. To reserve a space, please complete the attached booking form and email a scanned copy to:

JP_BC-SIEM@britishcouncil.org by 15^th August 2017.