An anecdote: I was in Japan recently for a couple of weeks around the middle of April, and was invited to give an address on the legacy of Robert Gagne at Nippon Fukushi University. While the English skills of the faculty were good, they were much better at reading Japanese than listening to me lecture in English, so I prepared my address as a reading, had it translated into Japanese, and constructed a TBL exercise with a RAT over the reading and a Critical thinking exercise for the for the groups. I formed teams of convenience (people sitting close to each other). They were very surprised that I wasn't going to lecture, but they did the reading, took the RAT using IFAT cards, and did the critical thinking exercise - it was amazing how they all got involved, and I had a wonderful time answering questions at the end. It was my impression that instructional design and faculty development is gaining momentum in Japan. I was hosted by Kumamoto University which has one of the first on-line degree programs Instructional Design, graduating its first class in April 2008. I love TBL as a strategy for involving the audience in learning. Walt Wager Interim Assistant Dean and Director, School of Teacher Education 205c Stone Building, FSU Tallahassee, FL 32306 [log in to unmask] 850-997-8765 phone 850-321-8816 cell ________________________________ From: Team Learning Discussion List on behalf of Dee Fink Sent: Tue 7/29/2008 12:48 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Good News from Japan! Christine and others, That is "Woohoo!" news (or as we say in Oklahoma: "Hot Digitee"! ;-)). Another idea on future TBL conferences: Maybe we should consider holding one in Japan!! Dee At 09:26 PM 7/28/2008, Christine Kuramoto wrote: Hello All, I just returned from the 40th annual Japan Society of Medical Educators. The good news is that there was a forum on TBL and I found out that a Japanese Edition of "Team-Based Learning for Health Professions Education" is almost finished being translated into Japanese. Woohooo! Dr. Levine's visit to Japan in the spring had a huge impact on the people who took her workshop! I think you can look forward to an influx of Japanese educators at future TBL conferences! :-) Cheers, Christine -- ******* Christine Kuramoto, Assistant Professor: Medical English Kyushu University, Department of Medical Education Faculty of Medical Sciences 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8582 Japan Phone: (+81)92-642-6186 Fax: (+81)92-642-6188 E-mail: [log in to unmask] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * L. Dee Fink Phone: 405-364-6464 234 Foreman Ave Email: [log in to unmask] Norman, OK 73069 FAX: 405-364-6464 Website: www.finkconsulting.info <http://www.finkconsulting.info/> **National Project Director, Teaching & Curriculum Assessment Project **Senior Associate, Dee Fink & Associates Consulting Services **Author of: Creating Significant Learning Experiences (Jossey-Bass, 2003) **Former President of the POD Network [Professional and Organizational Development] in Higher Education (2004-2005)