School Differences
Now that I’ve been in school for awhile, I think it’s time to offer my observations on what’s different in Japanese schools compared to America. But before I start, I want to stress that there’s obviously a lot of overlap between the cultures. Teachers teach. Students learn. So it’s important to not think that Japanese schools are somehow drastically different from us. They’re not. In particular, there’s one similarity that I want to discuss directly: kids are kids. Sometimes they talk in class, or joke around or fall asleep. A lot of Americans think that Japanese students are incredibly disciplined all the time; this is not the case. They are just kids.
Students don’t move classrooms, teachers do. Though it seems like a small difference, its effects are far-reaching. A student has a homeroom, or a room that they stay in all the time except for classes that require a different room (like art or gym). In turn, each homeroom has a “homeroom teacher,” or a teacher who is responsibile specifically for that homeroom. This contributes to the student’s idea of belonging to a group. The classroom is a much stronger unit than classrooms in American junior high or high schools because the students are together all the time. Additionally, in many school festivals (like the sports festival or chorus festival) students compete by their homerooms. The homeroom is both an academic and an extracurricular team. Interestingly, one of my teachers knew that American schools don’t have homeroom teachers. But it took me awhile to explain how the school functions without homerooms.
Students are very shy. This is one American preconception of Japanese students that is actually quite true. Not every student is shy; just like America, people are different and some students are very outgoing. But in my experience, there are more shy Japanese students than American students. Additionally, the shyness is conveyed in different ways. In America, shyness is conveyed by indirect eye contact, blushing, or one-word answers. In Japan, shyness is conveyed more obviously and includes completely ignoring someone (even to the point of perceived rudeness), literally turning away from or walking away from a person, hiding behind a friend (which was really odd to me, because in America this is a sign of humor) or stopping mid-sentence once you see the person you are shy toward (even if you are not talking to that person). Sometimes, extremely shy students might even start crying.
Touching and horseplay. In Japanese schools, touching other people is tolerated to a higher level than in American schools or workplaces (within gender). So for example, it is very common to see Japanese girls holding hands or leaning on each other. Japanese boys will put their arms around friends or lean on them. Strangely, though, hugging is extremely rare in Japan. Actually, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Japanese people do it. Additionally, boys and girls (at least in junior high) are very avoidant of the other gender. Also, horseplay is tolerated to a much higher level. Boys will trade martial art strategies or hold their hands high as a target for a friend’s kick. Keep in mind that these acts are not fighting- in “target practice,” if you will, the objective is to trade techniques, not blow your friend’s hand to smithereens. If horseplay gets very rough, teachers will step in. But this “horseplay threshhold” is much higher in Japan than American schools would allow.
There is no administration. All disciplinary measures are handled first by the teacher in the class where the misbehavior occurs, second by the class teacher and the homeroom teacher, third by the vice principal, and fourth by the principal. I have never seen any dramatic issues of misbehavior.
There are very few, if any, staff. I know three staff members at each of my three schools. Staff members place school lunch orders (explained shortly), direct incoming packages, prepare homeroom teakettles for lunch, keep track of school supplies, and help with the general upkeep of the building as necessary. Since students clean the school, there is no need for a janitorial crew.
Students clean the school. This is probably the single largest difference I have seen between the two systems. At the conclusion of each day, students push all chairs and desks to one side of the room, sweep and mop the floor, move the chairs and desks to the clean side, sweep and mop the other half of the floor, then place the chairs and desks back in their original positions. Simultaneously, some students wipe down the chalkboard, dispose of chalk dust, and clean the erasers. (Japan has these interesting vacuum machines specifically for erasers to suck out chalk dust.) While this is going on inside the classroom, other students sweep and mop hallways and entranceways and even clean bathrooms. That’s right- Japanese students clean their own bathrooms. The entire school cleaning operation takes 15 minutes every day.
There is no cafeteria. Students eat lunch in their homerooms. Additionally, students and teachers can buy a school lunch, but it is not prepared at the school. The student reads a menu, selects the lunch they want, and pays for it before first period begins. A school lunch company drops off the lunches right before lunch time.
Clubs are much more prevalent and important. Nearly every student is in one club, and clubs meet nearly every day. The school day officially ends at 3:30, but most students stay at school until 5 or 6 with their club. Many clubs are sport clubs like track and field, volleyball (girls only), baseball (boys only), basketball (girls and boys separate), and kendo (girls and boys together). But there are also art clubs, photography clubs (more popular in high schools), and even home ec clubs.
The buildings. Finally, the buildings themselves are different. Students enter through one big room where they take off their outdoor shoes and put on their indoor shoes. Teachers have a similar entranceway except it is smaller. The buildings have no heat or central air. (There may be an airconditioning system for the staffroom only, though it is rarely used.) Windows are very large and open widely to help things cool down in the summertime. Classrooms have fan systems for hot weather. In the wintertime, students wear more layers and classrooms have large kerosene heaters. Though it hasn’t gotten cold enough for the heaters yet, I’ve heard the room can still have a bit of a chill, even with them. Students don’t seem to mind, and instead simply wear more layers and keep the doors and windows shut. Additionally, less emphasis is placed on landscaping. This is not to say that the look of the building is neglected- it’s simply that the school doesn’t care if all blades of grass are not neatly mowed. Some schools are even encouraging the growth of plants and vines on lower windows to keep the building cooler in the summertime. Also, less emphasis is placed on the looks of walls and floors. If a poster is removed from the wall and some paint comes with it, no big deal. Same with scratches. There is no urgency to touch it up or repaint. Yet everyone still seems to take pride in their school, despite these flaws; I suspect it is because of the combination of having homerooms and also having students clean the school. Both of these contribute to a sense of ownership.
