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The Japanese School System

The Japanese education system is formed according to the French and German model. It consists of six years of elementary school, each three years of junior and senior high school and four years of university or two years of junior college. Japan's school year starts in April. It is comprised of three terms, separated by short holidays in spring and winter, and a one month long summer break.

A characteristic of the Japanese school system are entrance exams, and with them a high competitiveness among students. Most high schools, universities, as well as a few private junior high schools and elementary schools require applicants to write entrance exams. In order to pass entrance exams to the best institutions, many students attend special preparation schools known as a juku along with their regular classes, or for one to two years between high school and university.

One of the major differences in schooling in Japan in contrast to America is that high school is not required education. Another difference is that they do not change classes. The students stay in one class. The teachers are the ones who move class to class. Therefore, your class becomes something like a group. Most likely you will be with the same classmates all three years. Each class usually is divided into forty five to fifty people. There is a leader from each grade on the student council as well as one for each class. Each class also has a number to tell what grade and is usually followed by a letter or number to tell them apart.

The classroom is usually with a blackboard in the front, a platform in front of it where the teacher lectures, desks lined up in rows facing it, sliding doors to the hallway on one side of the room and windows on the other. In the back of the room are lockers, but they do not lock and are usually used to hold your Physical Education clothing. What makes the classrooms different from each other is that the students who stay in the room keep many things they own in there. It becomes rather personalized with their bags, games, reading materials and so forth.

High school subjects are Modern and Ancient Japanese, government/economics, ethics, math, physics, chemistry, biology, earth science, home economics, health, Physical Education, writing, English, English Composition, and English Reading. Japanese school scheduling rotates throughout the week and every classroom has a schedule taped to the wall. Additionally, students go Monday through Saturday. (Saturday is only half a day.)

In addition, in Japan, public schools have the students wear uniforms. Usually boys wear black pants and a black jacket. Girls usually wear a sailor-like uniform. The skirt is usually gray or dark blue and the shirt is usually a sailor top. Each school has its differences in uniform by style details and coloring showing what school you go to.

Another difference is Physical Education. Usually boys and girls are split up. They do their classes simultaneously though. The sports they do most is volleyball and basketball. Others can include running or aerobic-type activities.

There is the in between classes time. In some American high schools it can be just five minutes for a student to leave class, go to his or her locker, go to the restroom, get a drink of water and go through a hall or two just to get to a classroom on the other side of the building. In Japan, there is ten minutes between classes. Since for most of their classes they do not change rooms, the students are messing around their desks, looking for what they need next class, socializing or goofing off.

Another thing the students do is they eat their lunch in the classroom. Usually the school does not sell lunch. People usually take obentoo, a rice packed lunch in plastic boxes. It is not quite a lunch box as such is in America. It is more like a single portion takeout meal. A traditional bento holds four parts of rice, three parts of the main dish, either meat or fish, two parts of vegetables, and one part of a serving of pickled vegetables or a dessert.

Lunch is usually forty-five minutes long. Usually those who sit in groups move around the desks. Time can be spent reading, talking, listening to music, playing games, drawing on the board, or playing with one's hair. Some will go to the gym after eating to do a quick game of volleyball. As soon as the bell rings, everyone returns things to normal, clean up and go back to work.

Sources:
Maiko Covington: Life in Japanese School

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