1. 2002/04/091 Very Young Children  Some basic information: –Couples traditionally do not have children within the first year of marriage –When a baby is born, the mother spends the first post-birth month or two with her mother, away from her own home –Two key differences in infant care Integration vs. individuation  “soothing” vs “stimulation” –Families sleep together, children in parents’ bed, as late as age 10

2. 2002/04/092 Japanese Preschools  Children go to preschool (hoikuen 保育 園) at a rate comparable to that of US children –However, the reasons are culturally specific  Note that the Health and Welfare Ministry (Kōseishō 厚生省) is in charge of preschool administration –Government provision is made for preschool

3. 2002/04/093 Questions for discussion  What are the salient differences between Japanese and US preschools, and what do they indicate? –How do child-child and child-teacher interaction differ? –How does Benedict’s concept of the “arc of dependency” fit with preschool education in Japan an the US?

4. 2002/04/094 Education: Overview  A 6-3-3-4 system  School year begins in early April, ends in mid-March –Summer vacation, mid-June—late August –New Year’s: late Dec.— ca. Jan. 7  How many school days in a year? –Usually said to be 220 Japan vs 180 US –BUT contests and festivals consume days

5. 2002/04/095 Education: Overview II  Compulsory education to age 16  95%+ complete high school, compared with ~60-70% in the US  English language classes begin in 7 th grade and continue through high school –Typically, no functional competence achieved  Paternalism: who is responsible for students?

6. 2002/04/096 Elementary school (Kristof)  Learning is active –Learning by doing –Students work in groups and teach each other  Middle school: the difficult years –Academic pressure increases –The difficulties of adolescence

7. 2002/04/097 High school: the vise closes  College entrance exam looms  Much more rote learning  Little emphasis on analytical thinking  Some schools track students by ability, some don’t  Outlets: clubs, school festival  Academically, Japanese students are ahead of their US counterparts at graduation

8. 2002/04/098 University  Difficult to get in, easy to get out  Failing a course is nearly impossible, especially in the first two years  Academic standards are low  Universities work to match students and employers –The school’s reputation is critical

9. 2002/04/099 Getting into university  Two routes: examination and recommendation –“examination hell” –The recommendation system (suisen): an alternate route  The “inverted funnel” system of education

10. 2002/04/0910 School after school: juku  Extra review in preparation for exams  Can start in elementary school, but usually starts in middle school  Do students resent it? –Surprisingly, no. –Another chance to see friends –Better teaching –Young, interesting teachers

11. 2002/04/0911 Teaching K-12  High prestige  Stable, especially in public schools  Fairly competitive job market  Low to middling salaries; public schools pay better than private –30-40% of urban high schools are private

12. 2002/04/0912 Education issues  Ijime (bullying)  The “education mama”  Classroom chaos (Takahashi)  The examination system  Suicide  Analytical thinking, English education

13. 2002/04/0913 Summary  6-3-3-4 system, year starts in April  The pressure of the examination system –The “inverted funnel” system  Being a university student in Japan –School and work  Being a teacher in Japan  Education issues