BIO
Dr. Hiromi Takayama was born in Oita, Japan to a mother who worked as a part-time homemaker and a father who worked in industry. Along with a younger brother, Dr. Takayama grew up with close relationships with her grandparents. She spent her primary and secondary education in Japan and pursued her interest in foreign languages by studying French and European culture for her undergraduate degree in an Aichi Prefecture public university. Influenced by American popular culture and her English private tutor, Dr. Takayama wanted to study English in her higher education. After graduating from university, she worked as a factory programmer and for an insurance company for several years before coming to San Diego, California to stay with a host family, study ESL and attain a TESOL certification to teach English in Japan. After a couple years, Dr. Takayama moved to the United States for her master’s degree. She worked with a study abroad program in the University of Wisconsin before starting her PhD degree at the University of Iowa where she focused on teacher efficacy and identity of native and non-native English speaking teachers in Japan. Dr. Takayama was then hired as a full time Japanese instructor at Rice University. In this interview, Dr. Takayama talks about her perspectives on teaching styles in Japan versus the United States, her experiences staying with a host family, and her involvement with Houston community organizations. As a part of organizations like the Japan-America Society of Houston and Japanese Teachers Association, Dr. Takayama has given talks and held leadership positions where she has contributed her experience and encouraged others to do the same. She speaks about race relations, how to discuss them in a classroom setting, and how she teaches Japanese culture by developing students’ individual interests.