Inside Japanese Classrooms: The Heart of

This detailed ethnographic study of fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms offers new insights into Japanese culture, as many aspects of daily social life are embedded in the educational system. Additionally, this book provides new perspectives on educational reform in the U.S., since many current issues and programs focus on notions of community, collaboration, and systemic reform, all of which are central to understanding Japanese teaching-learning processes in schools.

1 Introduction

1

(12)

2 Setting the Stage

13

(28)

2.1 Education-Contemporary Japan

13

(7)

2.2 Education-Contemporary United States

20

(2)

2.3 Overview of Relevant Literature

22

(6)

2.3a Contemporary Japanese Education

22

(2)

2.3b History and Organization of Japanese Schooling

24

(2)

2.3c Japanese Cultural Context

26

(2)

2.4 Conceptual Framework

28

(5)

2.5 Research Methodology-Revelations About Japanese Schooling

33

(8)

3 School Settings, School Organization, and Teacher Work Arrangements

41

(24)

3.1 Neighborhoods

41

(1)

3.2 School Facilities and School Populations

42

(3)

3.3 School and Classroom Organization

45

(8)

3.4 Educational Materials

53

(2)

3.5 Teacher Work Arrangements, Roles, and Responsibilities

55

(10)

4 A School Week and a Year in the Students' Lives

65

(44)

4.1 Beginning the School Week: Whole-School Ceremony

65

(2)

4.2 Understanding "Supervision" as Interpersonal Relations: The Heart of Teaching and Learning Processes

67

(2)

4.3 Threads of Significance

69

(2)

4.4 School Week Continued: In the Classroom

71

(2)

4.5 Subject Matter Studies

73

(5)

4.6 Recess, Lunch, and Class Meetings

78

(3)

4.7 Grouping Patterns: Roles and Responsibilities

81

(4)

4.8 Extracurricular Activities and Responsibilities

85

(3)

4.8a Club Activities

86

(1)

4.8b Student Council Activities (Iinkai)

87

(1)

4.9 The School Calendar

88

(7)

4.10 Interpretation

95

(14)

4.10a Basis for "The Basics"

96

(3)

4.10b Becoming a Connoisseur of Standardization with Standards

99

(10)

5 Two Classrooms, Two Realities

109

(58)

5.1 Meet the Students

109

(13)

5.2 Detailed Accounts from Daily Research Notes

122

(21)

5.2a Umi, Mr. Seki's Classroom: Monday, January 25, 1988

123

(11)

5.2b Mori, Mr. Ito's Classroom: Monday, February 1, 1988

134

(9)

5.3 Meet the Teachers

143

(5)

5.4 Summary of Classroom Observations

148

(11)

5.5 Teaching-Learning as Intersecting Spheres of Instruction: Teachers and Students Together and Apart

159

(8)

6 Classroom Instruction

167

(46)

6.1 Introduction

167

(1)

6.2 Instructional Patterns

168

(15)

6.2a Underlying Principles for Teaching-Learning

168

(2)

6.2b Kinds of Spheres of Instruction

170

(4)

6.2c Examples of General Instructional Patterns by Subject Matter

174

(7)

6.2d Summary

181

(2)

6.3 Feedback and Evaluation Mechanisms

183

(3)

6.4 Authority and Control

186

(8)

6.4a Authority and Control in Action: Self and Peer Supervision

186

(3)

6.4b Analysis: Mechanisms of Authority and Control

189

(5)

6.5 Five Essential Elements: Facilitating Community, Enabling Connectedness

194

(17)

6.5a Variety in Intellectual and Representational Forms

194

(8)

6.5b Communication and Work Patterns

202

(5)

6.5c Congruence Between Adult World and Student World

207

(1)

6.5d Norms: The Ability Myth and the Labeling Dilemma

207

(1)

6.5e "Sho ga Nai," the Cultural Adhesive

208

(3)

6.6 Summary

211

(2)

7 Equality and Equity: The Japanese Case

213

(30)

7.1 Historical and Ideological Base

213

(5)

7.2 Equality and Equity in Japanese Elementary Schools

218

(8)

7.3 Inequality and Inequity in Japanese Elementary Schools

226

(8)

7.4 Genuine Community as Equity: The Art and Craft of Teaching

234

(9)

8 Conclusion

243

(22)

8.1 Insights About Japanese Education

245

(5)

8.1a Educational Excellence Japanese-style: What Are the Basics?

245

(1)

8.1b Challenges for the Japanese

246

(4)

8.2 Implications for Contemporary Education: The United States and Japan

250

(9)

8.2a Lessons? New Visions?

250

(4)

8.2b Methodology-Future Research

254

(5)

8.3 Education and Community

259

(6)

8.3a On Community

259

(1)

8.3b School as a Social Process: Complexities of Constructing Community

260

Appendixes

A School Calendars

265

(2)

B Research Instruments

267

(10)

C Data Map

277

(2)

D List of Objectives for Moral Education Program

279

(2)

E Detailed Accounts from Daily Research Notes

281

(16)

Bibliography

297

(18)

Subject Index

315

(8)

Author and Education Programs Index

323

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Inside Japanese Classrooms: The Heart of Education

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials