Job Discussion Forums

[kidkensei]

Im having trouble find reputable info on the net about the history of Japans education system. I'd like to learn more about the general principles and philosophy that has shaped particular aspects of JHS and HS life. I'd like to know the reasons behind some the daily routines like cleaning, ethics, moments of silence etc.

Someone posted a link a while back to the book 'Importing Diversity' which I found pretty interesting. Id like to find more info assessing the successes of assistant language teaching in Japan.


Any help would be amazing
Kensei

[G Cthulhu]

[Glenski]

The Big Bang in Japanese Higher Education
http://www.amazon.com/Big-Bang-Japanese-Higher-Education/dp/1876843233?tag=jcs0e-20

http://www1.doshisha.ac.jp/~kkitao/online/www/teij.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Flats/7947/japan.htm
http://www1.doshisha.ac.jp/~kkitao/library/article/wca.htm
http://www.wizweb.com/~susan/japan/
http://www.ed.gov/pubs/JapanCaseStudy/index.html

[Cool Teacher]

Good place to start is the imperial rescript of education

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

You won't find anything useful about ALTs in Japan. If you look, you can find master's theses about the JET program, but they likely aren't about ALTs and whether or not they are successful, because 'ALT' in Japan means little more than 'foreign native-level English speaking person'. Some do virtually nothing, the JTE continues to use the textbook as the syllabus and has the ALT sometimes read sentences, others do absolutely everything- the JTEs (if they are even in the class) just stand in the corner doing absolutely nothing, and the ALT does it all- curriculum, syllabus, material development, teaches the classes, ensures discipline in the classes, grades the students based on rubrics of their design, and gets the grades into the head of the department. What is very rare, is truly teaching in a team.

For 'the general principles and philosophy' behind it, you need to first look up Confucian education (versus Socratic education). Japan's education system was based on China's education system, then revamped in the Meiji era, then revamped again after WWII. Still, teacher, student roles are in Confucian tradition. There's a good article describing and comparing Confucian versus Socratic philosophies in Culture in Second Language Teaching and Learning edited by Eli Hinkel in the "Cambridge Applied Linguistics" series. You can get it at Kinokuniya in Takashimaya Times Square in Tokyo if you live near Tokyo.

There's an article in which the head of a university in Japan (Tamagawa University) describes Japanese education as being based on three principles:
1. de-individualization. The schools produce norm-conforming adults that will do what they're told " Having learned to be less individualistic, they are prone to accepting team effort and sacrificing personal values for the company�s. "
2. competition. Culminates in education with the university entrance exam. "Japanese workers �willingly� accept TQM [Total Quality Management- a management style] as an effective tool, so that they will have an advantage over their rivals."
3. Japanese society is authoritarian. So are schools and school functions. "Through daily activities, children internalize the value and function of the seniority system and become obedient to orders from the top"

An important thing to remember is that Japanese teachers are products of the Japanese system. This isn't just something that 'they do to' the students. In number three, 'school functions' doesn't just mean from teachers to students, that means from principal to vice-principal, to section and department heads to teachers. And unlike in western countries, principals usually have no real training in educational leadership beyond what they already had as a teacher. They are promoted from teacher to the Board of Education (or similar in a private school). Then they are promoted from that to vice-principal back at a school, and from there may be promoted to principal. Most of them didn't even choose to become principals. They were essentially ordered to become principals by the higher ups, and because they internalized the authoritarian system, they just do as they're told.

So JETs complain about the lack of training (leading many ALTs to be used as human tape recorders), and that JET conferences are like the blind leading the blind, but it's not much different than the way the Japanese education system in general works. You have your basic qualification and that gets you into work there. Then you do as you're told, and try to not rock the boat.

[stevenbhow]

One of the things I noticed when I was an ALT was the appalling lack of discipline in the classrooms. From what I've been told, up until the 80's Japanese teachers still physically disciplined their students, but there were a few cases where the teachers went way to far and severely injured, and in one case killed their students. After that the Ministry of Ed. did a 180 and went to a philosophy of, " If little Taro wants to learn we'll try and teach him, but if he doesn't then let him behave however he wants to in class."

I don't know for sure how accurate this is, but I this is what I was told by several J teachers and a few ALTs that had been in the game for many years.

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

There was talk of bringing corporal punishment back. Japan has a system that is based on consequences (tests etc). And then they largely removed consequences from the education system (little Yuuki cannot be removed from class, Little Yuuki cannot fail, Little Yuuki cannot be disciplined. Little Yuuki goes to a private junior and senior high so Litte Yuuki doesn't need to do entrance tests for SHS, therefore Little Yuuki will not actually do a meaningful test until the end of SHS. If Little Yuuki fails to get into a single university or college, then that's on Little Yuuki, not the school, they're done with him). Result: Little Yuuki is now Adult Yuuki and he's almost uneducated.

You still see physical disciplining going on in private high schools at times, but those times are for not sitting upright properly in assembly etc.

[Glenski]

[stevenbhow]

Well, even in the public Jr Highs occasionally teachers either loose it or decide to ignore the rules and man handle the kids. I didn't see it, but at one of the schools I taught one of the little brats got really lippy with f the J English teacher and he basically tackled him. He was an older guy, small, and really nice, but on that day the Yankee looking bozoku want to be's finally went to far. As far as I know, nothing happen to the teacher, so maybe it works both ways. Certainly, from what I saw, there were no consequences for lack of teaching ability, unless you were an ALT of course.

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

I don't know how prevalent it is. I've been in two different private highs for two and a half years now (one a well-known high level. one a more average level). Seen it in both. Other teachers in my school who've taught at other schools say they've seen it at previous schools as well. (I also taught for four years in the public system and saw it there, too, though not as often).

No way to know how prevalent it is if students don't complain.

[David W]

[womblingfree]

My MA dissertation was on language teaching in Japan. Chapter 1 was a brief history of English teaching in Japan. PM me if you want.