At a junior and senior high school in Setagaya, Tokyo, extensive reading has been incorporated into English classes since 2004. The program lasts for six years, featuring extensive in-class reading and lending of books. In February 2025, a survey of graduates was conducted using Google Forms. A total of 156 respondents, including university students, graduate students, and working professionals, participated. The number of words read during their six school years ranged from under 300,000 to over 3 million. When the open-ended responses were coded, they could be summarized into three key concepts. Students expressed gratitude for having studied at a school with an extensive reading program and reported that it had influenced their current English learning and way of life. Reflecting on the various extensive reading activities conducted over the six years, the presentation also considers practical approaches, how to create an extensive reading environment, and instructional methods.

ER learners have many opportunities to be exposed to materials about social issues, activists and people who have contributed to our world. Many graded readers address these topics, though learners tend not to choose such books proactively. In Hokusei Junior College's ER course, the instructor chooses some short books to read to the students in class. Reading aloud to learners has benefits and presents the opportunity to expose the learners to various topics. Randomly introducing topics on the instructor’s whim can seem unnatural, however relating it to a special day can be a convenient way to broach the topic and possibly generate further interest. Every year is full of special days, such as Earth Day, Malala Day, and even World Chocolate Day. Sharing books related to these days with students contributes to global issues education, even in the context of a curriculum not specifically designed to do so.

The presenter will first share their experience in ER teacher-training programs in schools in Nepal and Indonesia. Both countries share challenges including low literacy levels in home environments; economic hardship; diverse L1 backgrounds in which minority languages often have an oral tradition; and unsupportive institutional environments (Chaudhary, 2024). These factors have hindered the establishment of not only a robust reading culture but also in sustaining and cascading ER practices, particularly when there is a dearth of reading resources and libraries necessary for building a school reading culture (Loh, et al. 2017; Sharma, 2024). This will be followed by a look at two communities where ER has been successful due to the perseverance of individuals that believed in its efficacy. The success seen in initial reluctant reader groups will be shared based on their testimonials over a 5-year period. Their initiatives might serve as models for sustainability in low-resource communities.

Traditional teaching methods can sometimes fail to engage students, especially for reading tasks. Game-based learning introduces an element of fun and competition, which can significantly increase students' motivation to read English Extensive Reading books. This study investigates the impact of game-based learning on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students' reading comprehension by employing pre-test and post-test assessments. The primary objective is to measure the changes in students' reading comprehension ability after participating in game-based learning activities during reading classes. This research was conducted among Mongolian high school students during one academic year of Extensive reading with game-based activities. Preliminary results have indicated a significant enhancement in students' reading comprehension, suggesting that game-based learning can effectively support literacy development in EFL education. The research findings are intended for EFL educators seeking to enhance English reading comprehension through effective teaching methods.

Please join our plenary speakers, ERF chair, and other guests for this panel discussion, where we will share our reflections and observations on ERWC7, as well as announce the exciting location and host affiliate for ERWC8 in 2027.