Japanese students' attitudes toward English for evangelistic purposes

Recently much debate has surrounded the ethical use of English courses offered for evangelistic purposes (EEP), yet little is known about English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students' attitudes toward EEP. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to discover and describe Japanese EFL students' perception of English courses offered for evangelistic purposes. Data were collected using semi-structured qualitative interviews with participants currently attending EEP classes in the Tokyo area of Japan. The researcher concluded that students perceived EEP courses as a potentially attractive alternative to traditional EFL courses. The findings of this study will contribute to a greater understanding of students' perspectives, which will help EFL educators in better meeting student EFL needs.