Thursday, October 23, 2008

We visited the high school today. This is their "parking lot." Students who are university bound attend this school and they are very focused on the entrance exams. There is very little interaction between students and teachers during most classes. The teachers feel they have to impart as much knowledge as they can to the students in order to prepare them for the test and so they write lots and lots of notes and formulas on the board and the students copy.

The most amazing thing I saw was the home economics class. The students were cutting and chopping and used huge knives. They cooked with gas flames and while it was noisy I didn't witness any accidents. When we questioned the teachers about that they said that if a student hurts himself then they will learn not to do that next time!

We ate lunch with several members of the student council. High school students bring their own lunches in bento boxes--that's a student lunch on top and my bento box on the bottom. When I asked the student I ate with what he knew of America, he said that our economy was bad. He also knew the election was coming up and asked who I thought would win. He was a serious young man who wants to study economics at the university. He plays piano and attends a "cram" school after regular school to prepare for the entrance exams.

After school most of the students participate in club activities. I watched students practice kendo and kyudo. I am impressed by the discipline shown by most students I met. They have demanding schedules, homework, and they balance it with their family and personal lives.

Teachers were generally reserved but I did manage to find out some interesting things. First, they work very long hours--6:30 or 7 in the morning until around 7 or 8 at night. The mandatory retirement age is 60. There is also a policy in place that transfers teachers around every 4 to 5 years. I found that one to be the harshest as it must place a burden on families.

My school visits have come to an end. It is interesting to me that educators we spoke with brought up some of the same issues we have--lower test scores, the inability of students to apply their knowledge, classroom discipline, parental issues, and a general feeling that education just isn't as important to some people anymore. It seems that we have a lot in common--more than I had originally thought.