A Swedish Perspective on Japanese as a Third Language. The Effects of English as Second Language

Abstract

Higher Japanese language studies in Sweden are exclusively taught through English textbooks. Previous research within the field of third language (L3) acquisition has studied the effects of mediating languages on L3, but not on Japanese specifically. This paper intended to investigate the effects of mediating English as a second language (ESL) on Japanese language acquisition among Swedish language students. To gather the research data, glossary learning tests in Swedish and English were created. There were 12 participants in total, 7 participants in the Swedish group (SG) and 5 in the English group (EG). The results show a mean value of the test scores at 18,43 for SG and 17,2 for EG. The overall test scoring between the two groups did not greatly differ but the reported experiences show that more participants in EG perceived the test as cumbersome and difficult than the most participants in SG. However, the small sample size and uneven distribution of participants between the two groups make the results statistically insignificant. The current study is perceived as a pilot study and can hopefully guide future researchers within the field to investigate the matter further.