We’ve been talking about the Japanese book market on the blog lately. Check out our post on entering the market here. Today we’re highlighting some opportunities in Japan for ELT publishers. Interested in learning more about the Japanese book market? Download our report, Selling Canadian Books Into Japan.
The annual turnover of the English teaching industry in Japan runs into billions of dollars, and therein lies the challenge for Canadian publishers. The sums of money involved in the overall industry have attracted a wide range of participants, including traditional publishers, private language schools that develop their own teaching materials, examination and testing companies and IT companies offering e-learning systems.
The School System in Japan
Elementary schools (six grade years, ages 6–12): Since 2004, various programs have been set up to introduce English study into elementary schools. There are periodic proposals to beef up the requirements for this age group. There is currently no national curriculum, and few elementary schools have teachers on staff who are qualified to teach English. Consequently, most English taught at this level is outsourced to private firms that tend to develop their own materials.
Junior high schools (three grade years, ages 12–15): English is mandatory at junior high school, and these schools do have their own English teachers. English teaching material is procured at the educational board level (i.e., on a region-by-region basis) for publicly funded schools.
High schools (three grade years, ages 15–18): English is mandatory in the first year of high school and many students continue the subject throughout their time at high school. English teaching material is procured at the educational board level for publicly funded schools and on a school-by-school basis for private schools. (There is a much higher percentage of private schools at the high school level than at the earlier school levels.)
University: Individual universities determine which teaching materials to use. Successful foreign publishers of university-level English courses have full-time sales staff based in Japan.
At the school level, the most commonly taken English proficiency exam is the Eiken test (Eiken is a Japanese-developed examination that is not taken outside of Japan). Few publicly funded schools in Japan provide computers or tablets for children for use in their normal studies. For English language and other subjects, at schools and at universities, the bulk of the material is still printed and digital content is not widely bought. There are signs of change, though, with some coursework at universities being online.
Other Educational Institutes
Cram schools (juku): Many Japanese school children, particularly those in junior high and high schools, attend out-of-school classes at privately run juku. Most juku are large chains with the resources to prepare or commission their own study materials.
Private language schools: At one end of the scale are small schools run out of a teacher’s home that provide English lessons for neighbourhood children (parents often enroll pre-school age children into English classes). At the other end are national chains of English-language schools that cater to the needs of business professionals.
Most Japanese companies prefer the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) qualification in assessing applicants’ English ability; hence, exam preparation materials for people in the workforce tend to focus on TOEIC.
Apps
There are many Japanese app developers providing ELT content for a wide age range. A good example of non-Japanese originated content being used in apps for the Japanese market is a series of Oxford Bookworms readers, released by Eigotown. These apps include audio recordings of the stories, quizzes and translations of keywords. Eigotown is a Japan-based company able to use their strong local market presence to promote these apps.
ELT publishers looking to generate new business in Japan may wish to undertake their own research to get a clear idea of the competitive landscape in relation to their own content inventory. In general terms, however, we advise ELT publishers to avoid the textbook market for schools. Large-scale procurement is, in practice, restricted to Japanese publishers. Opportunities do exist at the university level for ELT publishers, although they should expect a very significant investment in terms of local sales staff and producing content tailored for a Japanese market.
An alternative approach for ELT publishers is to attempt to partner with one of the larger publishers that focus on the non-school ELT market or one of the private institutions that create their own materials. This is particularly true for any publisher with its own TOEIC preparation materials. ALC and Benesse are two of the larger ELT publishers working outside of the school textbook market. Private institutions include juku, such as Eikoh Seminar and Nichinoken, and language schools, such as Berlitz and Gaba. Unfortunately, none of these alternative juku are likely to procure from overseas on a regular basis; hence, onus would be on a Canadian publisher to engage these companies with their Japanese-speaking staff or with the assistance of a Japanese sales agent.
Although digital is still a small part of the education market, there are many Japanese companies developing products. Since the market is undergoing rapid change, these companies may be more willing to work with overseas ELT publishers, especially those with strong digital experience. Of the companies looking at formal materials for schools, Tokyo Shoseki is one the larger ones.