Rate My Professor Wako Tawa

Tawa's research centers on two primary areas: formulating Japanese grammar from a non-Western grammatical viewpoint to address limitations in traditional Western-influenced descriptions, and investigating foreign language teaching and learning processes, especially for Category IV languages like Japanese that pose significant challenges for English speakers. Prominent publications include her 2023 book '日本語学習者のための文法再考察 (Rethinking Japanese Grammar for Learners of Japanese as a Foreign Language)' published by Kaitakusha, and the influential 'Japanese Stage-Step Course' series from Routledge in 2009, encompassing a grammar textbook, workbooks 1 and 2, a writing practice book, and sound files on compact disks. Additional contributions comprise translations of NHK surveys on Japanese language changes (2017-2021), edited proceedings such as 'Proceedings of the Workshop on Japanese Syntax: Issues on Empty Categories' (1988) with Mineharu Nakayama, and articles including 'Implicit Arguments in Japanese Potentials and Resultatives' (Canadian Journal of Linguistics, 1995) and 'Interpretation of Definiteness in Japanese: Examples from Null NPs' (Word, 1993). Her innovations have earned accolades like a $150,000 Arthur Vining Davis Foundation grant in 2009 for Category Four language instruction and conferences, Five College Mellon Grants including a 2018 Innovative Language Teaching Fellowship ($22,950), multiple Amherst College Faculty Research Awards (1989, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005) and Senior Sabbatical Fellowships (2002-03, 2009-10, 2016-17, 2023-24), the Japan Foundation grant (1999), Culpeper Foundation (1998), and ongoing Shoyu Club support (2006-present). Tawa has hosted colloquia on Category IV languages (2012) and AP Japanese articulation (2009), influencing pedagogy through teacher training and workshops.