I Have a Question

Why do people insist the Japanese have the best school system? I grew up in the 80s and everybody talked abt how we had it too easy and we should be like the Japanese who went to school at least 8 hrs a day and then went home and did hours and hours of homework every night. It sounds like a very cruel system to me and from what I hear the adults don't even work 40 hrs a wk. So why expect kids to work over 50 hours on schoolwork? It sounds like they are punishing kids just for being kids. I could imagine the American adults who want to have the harsh Japanese system never had to work that hard as children nor would they willing to now. End of rant

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Freeranger · M

My understanding is that, that distinction belongs to the Scandinavian countries.

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Freeranger · M

@Neoerectus I don't find the recesses as compelling as what they are allowed to do [i]during[/i] them. They let them walk through puddles and play in the mud, because the mindset is that, they are exploring things with their minds. As in the mud, the kids would make dams and small canals, then sit and watch the way the water flowed, making improvements along the way....
They are allowed to explore the most simplistic of things, where outside playtime, rain or snow is paramount to the sense of concentration fostered by free time inside during class time.....

Interesting stuff

Neoerectus · M

@Freeranger Bottomline is kids AND adults need unstructured time to recover... research indicates it speeds learning as well as decreases stress.

Freeranger · M

@Neoerectus I can only offer good luck with the adult piece. Can you hear it echo? "we're not payin' you to sit around......"

gmatthewb · 51-55, M

Depending upon what source you look at, Japan is normally in the top three education systems in the world. I think that is mainly due to the technology they use and how much is invested into their education system. I read once that they have very high standards as well. I'm sure there are plenty of reasons other than just the amount of time the students are required to be in school. I think a lot of it also comes down to the pride and honour most Asian countries have in their society. For them, it is probably a sign of respect to their parents that they do well in school so they have higher drive to do well.

JenniferB · 46-50, F

They actually want to educate their children.

Cloud7593 · 46-50, F

@JenniferB So do we

JenniferB · 46-50, F

@Cloud7593 No, the powers that be want to indoctrinate them. That's why America is near the bottom of the industrialized world in education.

Cloud7593 · 46-50, F

@JenniferB You mean only teaching what they want the kids to learn?

MartinII · 70-79, M

I guess the claim is based on academic achievement. Only one part of education, in my opinion. And as @bijoxbroussard has said, a homogeneous culture like Japan’s is very different from a variegated one like the US or UK.

33person · 26-30, M

It's not about punishment. It's about dedicating time to learning. Homework is not about making students do work. It's not the same as doing work for a company. It's kind of like saying, "Why is it that when I spend more time on taking care of my house, my house looks better?" It's about them engaging in learning activities. I personally flat-out agree with the Japanese system you outlined above.

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33person · 26-30, M

@Cloud7593 I am not demanding it. I am only saying it would work. Would there be cons to it? Definitely. It wouldn't come at no cost.
I did have some teachers who gave hours of homework, though, and it was generally an effective way of learning.

Cloud7593 · 46-50, F

My math teacher in 9th grade gave hours of homework and no it wasn't effective, because by the time you got done with it you didn't care whether it was right or not. It was just overload.

33person · 26-30, M

@Cloud7593 It isn't JUST about the amount. It has to be designed well. For example, not all the problems should be from the new section. Perhaps a few from the new section, a few from yesterday's section, some old review problems, and one or two challenge problems, rather than 40 all form the same day's lesson.

FigNewton

The school system in Japan is tough...almost to a community college level upon high school graduation. The college system, however, is far easier than the US university system with the exception of perhaps one or two universities in Japan. That's where the competition in the school system comes to play. In order to be selected to one of the decent universities, you have to be the best. And subsequently, the universities look at the better high schools to accept...which look at the better primary schools....which look to the better pre-schools.

bijouxbroussard · F

Typical case of people trying to laud one cultural norm over another without understanding [b]other[/b] aspects of the countries involved. Japan has a mostly homogeneous culture with a majority of their population growing up with similar beliefs. The U.S. couldn’t be less like that.

ABCDEF7 · M

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