Hokkaido University Graduate School of Media and Communication
Associate Professor Takayuki Ito
In this interview series, we ask people active in various fields to tell us the moment their font switch was turned on. In this issue, we speak with Takayuki Ito, who works as a Japanese language education coordinator for international students at Hokkaido University.
People feel that UD Digital Textbook Font is "just right as a font for beginners studying Japanese." What made you turn your attention to fonts in the Japanese language learning field?
The importance of written language in Japanese language education, as seen through my own experience
Please tell us about your background and your daily work.
ItoHokkaido University, where I am currently enrolled, offers a four-year undergraduate program for international students called the Hokkaido University Contemporary Japanese Studies Program. This program includes a preparatory course for students whose Japanese language proficiency is insufficient, where they receive Japanese language education for several months before enrollment. After completing this course, they can study as regular students at Hokkaido University.
I am the coordinator of Japanese language courses for the regular curriculum at Hokkaido University's Contemporary Japanese Studies Program.
I understand that you have experience working overseas.
Please tell us about an experience you had when you were in a foreign country and put yourself in a foreigner's position.
ItoI previously worked as a full-time foreign lecturer at the Department of Japanese Language, College of Liberal Arts, Thammasat University in Thailand for about four years. I had a very difficult time checking the destination signs on the bus.
At the time, the destination signs on the buses I used in Thailand were written in a variety of font designs. In Japanese, it would be like having different fonts for each bus, such as Gothic, Mincho, and Pop.
As someone whose native language is not Thai, it was very difficult for me to instantly read and understand the characters I could see while looking at a moving bus and determine whether the differences were due to the original characters or the font design.Some characters looked very similar in shape despite being different depending on the font design.
However, the experience of struggling with fonts every day has led to my current way of thinking, which is that it is important to choose a font that suits the recipient, so I think it was a good experience.
As you work in Japanese language education, what challenges do you face regarding fonts?
ItoI feel that fonts are very important in Japanese language education, especially for people who have just started learning Japanese.
I once saw a handout made in pop font by a teacher in charge of a beginner's class, where students had just started to memorize the days of the week and months of the year.
At the time, the teacher who created it said that he chose it because he thought it was "cute," but I felt that this was a document created from the creator's perspective. Of course, it is important to know the various fonts in Japanese, but...
If the text is difficult to read, it can be a burden or cause stress for some people.In the worst case scenario, in Japanese language education, the font could make it difficult to understand what is written, and could reduce motivation to learn.If this happens, the teacher's efforts will be wasted, even though they have put in the effort to create the materials with the students in mind.Choosing fonts from the learner's perspective is very important in Japanese language education.I felt that this was probably the case.
The benefits of UD fonts in Japanese language education
You said that UD fonts have benefits for both students and teachers, but in what situations have you felt this?
ItoInternational students are fresh minds and try to absorb what they are taught without any doubt, so if you use a font with a strong design that is different from handwriting, they will try to absorb it as it is and may feel scared.
A distinctive feature of the Modern Japanese Studies program at Hokkaido University is that it has students from a wide range of nationalities. As a result, many students are not from countries where kanji is used, and many find it difficult to determine whether the font shape is due to differences in the original characters or to design.
This makes the character shapes easy to understand, read, and see.UD Digital Textbook Fontteeth,A good font for beginners studying JapaneseI feel that way.
Also, although I initially started using the UD digital textbook font with the recipients of the materials in mind, as I continued to use it I realized that it was convenient for the people creating the materials and made me feel good too.
Of course, it's easy to read, but when I give conferences or small presentations, there are often international students in the room, so I'm very happy to know that they can read it without stress.
In what situations do you use UD fonts, and where would you like to spread them in the future?
ItoCurrently, unless otherwise specified, I use the UD Digital Textbook Font for all materials I create, such as class materials and research documents. I also started adding the UD FONT mark to my presentation materials, hoping to spread the use of UD fonts.
*If you would like to use the UD FONT mark,HereIt can be downloaded from
I hope that students will not find the various fonts they use to study stressful.If the idea of choosing fonts that take into consideration the perspective of students whose native language is not Japanese becomes widespread, that will also lead to globalization.I think so.
I also hope to be able to convey the importance of font selection to people not only on campus but also to local governments and those for whom Japanese is not their native language.
A plan that allows you to use 55 UD fonts that can be used in educational settings
For details on MORISAWA BIZ+Here
If you are interested in solving problems in your school organization or considering using UD fonts, please feel free to ask us any questions below.
We held a seminar on "UD Font (UD Digital Textbook Font)" and "Easy-to-understand Layout" for Japanese language teachers and those aspiring to become Japanese language teachers!
