A Course in Legal English and U.S. Law for Undergraduate Japanese Law Students

Abstract

In this paper, I discuss the design of a Legal English and U.S. Law course for undergraduate Japanese law students visiting for a semester at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s English Language Academy. I review how I went about analyzing the students’ needs and wants and the factors affecting their motivation. I explain my philosophy of second language teaching, in particular, that second language teaching should contain an element of play. I describe how I sought to introduce a play element in the course through such techniques as watching law-related movies, role play activities, Kahoot quizzes, and pronunciation drills. Course design included, as well, vocabulary study, readings of authentic legal texts as well as teacher-prepared writings, guest speakers, and field trips. I report the students’ reactions to the course, as indicated in a mid-semester survey.