An analysis of the English communication needs of people involved in tourism at Japanese rural destinations

Abstract

In Japan, the number of international tourists has been growing sharply in the last decade and the needs for English communication skills to interact with such tourists are increasing. Visitors now explore not only well-known tourist spots but also rural areas where overseas travelers have rarely visited until now. Those people in such areas are now required to communicate with tourists who may not speak any Japanese. Investigating the English communication needs for such tourism situations would be beneficial for developing training programs. Hence, a survey was conducted at two local destinations in Kanagawa Prefecture. Respondents were asked their English proficiency and then to describe difficult situations that they have experienced with international visitors. The initial analysis of the 138 data obtained shows that only one fourth of the respondents were able to speak at most, basic conversational Eng-lish. Respondents also worried about not being able to make themselves understood to the visitors. In this paper, the current survey is analyzed, and some of the problems are identified. The linguistic issues in rural destinations and pedagogical implications are also discussed.