Noriko Taira Yasohama
Professor of Instruction; Co-Director, Weinberg Language Resource Center
M.Ed., University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Noriko Taira Yasohama has extensive training in foreign language education and curriculum development as well as some training in research design on second language acquisition. She is one of the recipients of the 2012 Arts and Sciences Alumni Teaching Award, the Weinberg College Distinguished Teaching Award, and has contributed to several chapters of textbooks on Japanese language, English culture and intercultural communication. Taira is the inaugural co-director of the Weinberg Language Resource Center. She also serves as the president of Illinois Association of Teachers of Japanese since 2023. Taira is a certified tester of the Japanese Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) Test for the American Council on Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). 
