2024 is already coming to an end… Time flies. Truly, it does. This year has been a tumultuous one, with various events unfolding both domestically and internationally. It feels as though we are being tested on how to live in an era where the future is truly uncertain. I have come to realize that we, as researchers in Educational Technology, must study systems (in a broad sense, not just limited to information technology) that foster the talent needed to thrive in such times.

Thanks to everyone’s cooperation, we were able to advance our research and practice again this year. Thank you very much. We were able to be very active in both research and practice this year, for which I am extremely grateful. Looking back at our achievements:

6 journal papers (2 of which are SSCI, another 2 have Impact Factors; 3 are in the top 20 of Google Scholar Metrics)

6 international conference papers (1 received an Honorable Mention Poster Award at a CORE ranking A conference, and another was nominated for a Best Full Paper Award)

It was a significant milestone to have one international co-authored paper in both the journal and international conference categories. In particular, I was finally able to publish a paper co-authored with Dr. Stephanie, who was so helpful to me in Michigan. This was a big achievement. I still have more ideas, so I look forward to publishing them. As for books, I was able to publish one book chapter through Springer. This came from an invitation for those whose full papers were accepted at the CELDA international conference two years ago, and I am glad I applied and published it.

It was also a great opportunity to deliver a keynote speech and serve as a panelist on the international stage. I accepted an invitation to give a keynote speech at a seminar at the Faculty of Education, National Taiwan Normal University, and to serve as a panelist at an international conference. Due to a typhoon, the keynote had to be moved online, but many people attended. The international conference was held in person, and I was able to discuss future collaborative research with Dr. Sylvia, who invited me.

In terms of international collaborative research, we were able to launch a project with Purdue University in the United States. This is a three-university joint research project involving Dr. Maeda and Dr. Jennifer from Purdue University, and Dr. Goda from Kumamoto University. I believe this is a major step forward. We are currently discussing how to proceed with various aspects of the research, and a grant for which I am a Co-PI at Purdue University was accepted, which is another significant advancement. I am very grateful for such opportunities.

In terms of practical work, within the university, I have supported the establishment of a research unit that supports research aimed at realizing well-being in a digital society, as well as supporting its progress, holding study groups, and organizing symposiums. The “Designing a Human-Centered Digital Society” symposium held in February was a great success. We invited Dr. Hayakawa from Kyoto University of the Arts, and his insights on design from the perspective of his expertise were extremely valuable.

Outside the university, I served as the chair of a committee considering the future of Fukuoka City high schools, where we were able to outline the future direction for Fukuoka Girls’ High School and Hakata Technical High School, and we are now moving toward its realization. Furthermore, regarding this, we have decided to proceed with joint research with Fukuoka Girls’ High School and Fukuoka Seiryo High School through the Fukuoka City Board of Education. This is also a very significant step. We are currently in the preparation phase for this as well.

We are also conducting joint research with Eishinkan Co., Ltd., and are holding frequent meetings to discuss a data-driven educational support environment. President Tsutsui himself participates, and we discuss the results of our data analysis with the Eishinkan team, debating various interpretations. When we ask, “Can this be interpreted in this way?” the Eishinkan team responds with, “That interpretation is also possible,” and I truly enjoy these meaningful discussions. We are considering new developments for this project in the coming fiscal year as well.

At the end of the year, we were able to produce one new Ph.D. graduate. This was also a very meaningful time for me as a research supervisor. They were the first doctoral student in the Yamada Lab. It took time, but I believe this research on Instructional Design for Japanese CLIL—a field that is not yet widely explored domestically or internationally—will pave the way for the future.

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Well, there are less than 12 hours left in this year. I wish you all a happy New Year.

Thank you for your support this year. Thank you very much.