Center for Multilingual Education: Mission and Vision Our Mission
Global Challenges
We face a range of global challenges, including ethnic and religious conflicts, widening economic disparities, issues surrounding migration and refugees, and the ongoing destruction of the environment. It is now more crucial than ever for universities to make meaningful contributions to the international community. To work collaboratively and creatively with people from diverse multilingual and multicultural backgrounds and to build a better world, universities must cultivate individuals who possess not only strong English proficiency but also robust multilingual competency. This is a key mission that higher education institutions must undertake in the 21st century. The Center for Multilingual Education (CME) at Osaka University is committed to transforming foreign language education and addressing these global challenges.
Unrivaled Educational Resources in 27 Languages
The University of Osaka boasts a world-class educational infrastructure encompassing 26 foreign languages plus Japanese. As a premier comprehensive university, we offer an exceptionally diverse and robust multilingual curriculum. The Center for Multilingual Education (CME) is the driving force behind this initiative, providing the sophisticated multilingual literacy and global perspectives that only an institution of our scale can deliver.
Innovating Foreign Language Education
Since the 2019 academic year, the Center has spearheaded a transformative overhaul of our foreign language curriculum, with English as our initial priority. Our approach combines “ubiquitous learning” through advanced e-learning platforms—bolstering foundational proficiency—with intensive, small-group sessions. These face-to-face classes leverage cutting-edge active learning methodologies to sharpen students’ ability to articulate and advocate for their ideas globally. Furthermore, we utilize standardized assessments like the TOEFL to ensure our students meet international benchmarks of excellence. This innovative framework is being systematically extended to Japanese and our other 25 languages.
Enhancing Our Global Presence
Beyond reforming general education university-wide, we are dedicated to amplifying the University of Osaka’s international visibility and intellectual influence. We achieve this by pioneering English for Specific Purposes (ESP) programs, providing specialized support for high-level English presentations, and fortifying our Japanese language initiatives. Central to this mission is the OU Multilingual Plaza, a one-stop hub that integrates diverse learning resources and provides students with a seamless educational experience.
Looking Toward the Future
The “Renaissance of Foreign Language Education” at the University of Osaka was inaugurated in 2018 with the founding of the Center for Multilingual Education.
- 2019: Launched comprehensive English curriculum reforms and opened the OU Multilingual Plaza.
- 2020: Piloted advanced ESP programs and initiated full-scale, specialized Japanese language support.
- 2021 and beyond: Continued expansion and deepening of our multilingual education ecosystem.
Through these strategic reforms, we are contributing to the evolution of the University of Osaka as a global leader, fostering a more interconnected and better world through the power of language.
Establishment of the Center for Multilingual Education (Established April 2018) Purpose and Objectives
The Center for Multilingual Education was established as an integrated and sustainable framework to develop and deliver university-wide education across English and 26 other languages. This initiative represents the full realization of the synergy between the University of Osaka and the former Osaka University of Foreign Studies. Our work directly advances “Open Education”—the foundational pillar of “OU Vision 2021” within the university’s third medium-term goal period.
Under the aegis of the Graduate School of Language and Culture, our predecessors established vital milestones, including the university-wide adoption of TOEFL-ITP, the integration of e-learning, and the creation of the Academic English Support Desk. Building upon these successes, the Center for Multilingual Education was founded to consolidate the university’s expertise in language pedagogy. As a proactive and high-functioning organization, the Center oversees all university-wide language programs and leads continuous, multifaceted educational reforms.
Through this organizational evolution, we aim to:
1. Dramatically enhance student proficiency through the creation of rigorous, high-level English programs.
2. Champion multilingualism by leveraging our unique position as the only national comprehensive university in Japan with a specialized School of Foreign Studies.
3. Establish a definitive model for multilingual education in the global age by developing pioneering pedagogical systems for world languages, English, and Japanese.
