Education in Japan

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

I thought that I should make a new thread regarding some thoughts on the educational structure of the Japanese society. I was educated in Japan from 3yrs old through college. Education is considered a very important issue in Japanese society. It is compulsory form 6yrs old through 9th grade. I find it interesting that, although it is not compulsory for students to go to high school in Japan, 90% of the population attends anyway. More than 2.5 million students advance to universities and colleges. Traditionally, Japan has stressed respect for the society and tends to reward group goals above individual accomplishments. It is thought that hard work and perseverance are the elements that bring success to one's life.

[Anonymous]

An interesting debate going on in Japan right now is in regards to the school children having two days off every week. (Saturday and Sunday) The schools in Japan started giving students two days off per week about five years ago. Ever since they started, it has been quite a hot debate. Many parents are against this new idea as traditionally Japanese students have attended school six days per week. Saturday was usually a half-day. Private schools, on the other hand, use Saturday for test preparation. Some parents feel that this puts the public schools at a disadvantage. It will be interesting to see how this controversy is solved in the years to come.

[Anonymous]

Formal education in Japan came from the Chinese culture in about the 6th Century. It was a combination of Buddhist and Confucian teachings along with literature, science and calligraphy. Buddhist monasteries were the main centers of learning. During the Edo period (1603-1867) Samurai ethics were taught. Temple schools were the main places of education for the normal class of people. Modern education in Japan started in the Meiji period and western-style learning was adopted. It wasn't until after WWII that women were able to join school in a co-educational setting.

[Anonymous]

My students and I have been carrying on a discussion regarding the amount of stress that is placed on a typical student in Japan. The question of stress was raised because of the high number of student suicides that take place in Japan every year. Recently, the focus has been on junior high students and the pressures put on them to pass their high school entrance exams. There have also been many new cases of bullying in the classroom. It is my opinion that some of this bullying takes place because of the structure of the classroom. The teachers move from room to room, but the students remain together as one class the entire year.

[Anonymous]

I have been reading the threads about Japanese education and find them very interesiting. I am beginning the study of Japan with my seventh graders and I will share some of your comments about Japanese education with them. I think they will find it interesting when they find out that normally Japanese students have gone to school 6 days a week. My students are upset when they have too much homework. I think this will put things in perspective.

[Anonymous]

After our speaker last night's discussion including information on how important tradition and the 'unspoken ways' are in Japan, this book seems apropo:

Etiquette Guide to Japan: Know the Rules...that Make the Difference
http://www.amazon.com/Etiquette-Guide-Japan-Rules-that-Difference/dp/0804834172/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3/104-5568077-4452706?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174407391&sr=1-3

[Anonymous]

My wife tells me stories about her schooling growing up in Japan. It sounds more fun. There is more work, but watching the news, she will point out this field trip they went on or this activity they did outside of the classroom. Maybe it is that extra 1/2 day on Saturday that allowed them to do those extra things.

She also tells me about the lunches they ate in elementary school. 5 Star meals!!! Comparing it to our sloppy joes and pizza, the lunches she ate as a child sound great.

thanks for the insights

[Anonymous]

The Japanese Daily Sun (March 31, 2007) had another article on cases of "bullying" in Japan. Japanese call this "Ijime". This year (2006/2007 school year) it was reproted that 'bullying" has increased 36 percent in schools from last year. There were 973 school-related cases reported. Most of the "bullying" has taken place on the junior high and high school levels. In many cases, the teacher was present during the event.

[Anonymous]

If you are looking for educational resouurces on Japan, go to http://www.japan-101.com/. This site focuses on travel, food, geography and general living in Japan. This is an especially good site to have the students visit if they are working on a paper about modern Japanese life. [Edit by="tsuzuki on May 24, 7:08:59 AM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

If you are looking for resources on teaching Japanese language, a good website is http://japanese.about.com/. This site has many Japanese resources, especially focusing on language training. I like their lessons that detail the exact stroke order when writing Kanji characters as well as katakana and hiragana. The students will enjoy this site![Edit by="tsuzuki on May 24, 7:10:57 AM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Without a doubt, one of the most useful websites for Japanese language teachers would be http://www.jflalc.org/index.php?act=. This is the Japan Foundation website where you will find valuable lesson plans, job openings, teacher's resources as well as support for teachers of the Japanese language.

[Anonymous]

Another useful website I recommend is http://www.physics.ucla.edu/~grosenth/japanese.html. At this website you will find various software programs that you or your students can download for free. Some of the programs help your computer to read and write in Japanese.

[Author]

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