Date: Fri 01-Aug-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

Gordon-Williams-Japan-teacher

Full Text:

Teacher Gordon Williams Finds Community Spirit In Japanese Classrooms

(with photos)

BY DOROTHY EVANS

Having recently returned from a three-week Fulbright Memorial Fund (FMF)

Teacher Program in Japan, longtime Newtown resident Gordon Williams is glad

for a little time to catch his breath.

He left for Japan on June 13, shortly after being reelected chairman of the

Cyrenius H. Booth Library Board of Trustees executive board, and the days in

his Main Street home following his return to Newtown on July 3 have not been

exactly idle.

"Now that I'm getting acclimated again, there is so much to be done," Mr

Williams said during an interview July 23.

For the past 31 years - as long as he and his wife, Lina, have lived in

Newtown - Mr Williams has been a history teacher at Trumbull High School

where, most recently, he has been a teacher of American history, humanities

and global civilization.

When he won the Fulbright trip to Japan this spring, he knew this would be an

unprecedented opportunity to build on what had, up until now, been a purely

academic interest.

"A lot is accomplished in a Japanese school," Mr Williams said, mentioning how

important it was to look beyond the stereotypical image of Japanese

schoolchildren as being "robotic and highly structured."

While touring Japanese schools at all educational levels in the company of an

interpreter and a guide, Mr Williams and the 18 other teachers in his group

found the FMF Teacher Program was both stimulating and enlightening.

"It was incredible - like summer camp - something I haven't experienced for

more than 50 years," Mr Williams said.

Now, he's sifting through his meticulous notes, poring over the photographs,

assembling an album and corresponding with his fellow FMF participants, hoping

to put everything into perspective for a presentation to his school in

Trumbull this fall.

One immediate goal is to rewrite the Trumbull third grade curriculum,

incorporating the best of what he found in Japanese schools. Specifically, he

would like to analyze how it is that Japanese teachers can instill a true

community spirit in their students, even though there may be as many as 40

children per classroom.

Educational Exchange

Mr Williams was one of 102 teachers (two from each state) who were accepted

for the Fulbright program, a new educational initiative that has been fully

funded by the government of Japan and that is being administered by the United

States' Institute of International Education.

Two other groups of approximately 400 teachers each will travel to Japan this

fall, making a total of 1,000 American teachers invited to Japan during 1997

alone.

The new program, for which thousands of teachers have already applied, is

highly selective and will eventually send 5,000 teachers to Japan over a

five-year period, at a cost of approximately $10,000 per teacher.

The Government of Japan launched the FMF initiative in return for the

generosity of the Fulbright Program, which has enabled nearly 6,000 Japanese

citizens to come to the United States on Fulbright scholarships for graduate

education and research since 1952.

"I think the bottom line is, the Japanese government would like to see a more

equal educational exchange in the future," Mr Williams said.

This would result in a greater "comfort level" between the two cultures, he

said, which could also mean economic and cultural benefits for both countries.

As things stand now, Mr Williams pointed out, a large number of Japanese

students are seeking entry into the United States to pursue higher education,

but far fewer American students are choosing to go to Japan.

The Japanese would like to see more of a two-way flow, culture to culture.

And who better to bring back to the US their own knowledge and first hand

experiences of Japanese people, education and culture than the finest American

teachers?

Education, The Japanese Way

After spending three days in Tokyo, Mr Williams and his group traveled to

Maebashi, the capital of the Gunma state, located on the main island northeast

of Tokyo.

Although they toured local industry to view silk weaving and clothing

manufacturing, their primary goal was to become acquainted with the inside

workings of the local Gunma elementary, junior high and high schools.

As Mr Williams began amassing his notes during the group's many tours, he

gleaned facts that showed him how different, though not necessarily how much

better or worse, the Japanese educational system was from the American system.

"Overall, I would have to say that the Japanese students are more orderly and

well-behaved," he said, which may explain how learning can take place in such

large classes.

"The whole Japanese society is permeated in the work ethic - similar to the

old Puritan ethic in America," he added.

He gave the following summary of some of the most outstanding differences that

Japanese schools showed in contrast to their American counterparts.

Large classes, as many as 40 children, are common in Japan, even at the

elementary level.

Most of the children come to school by public transportation, trains or buses,

or they are driven by their parents.

Where Japanese children have traditionally been trained to work in groups,

cooperatively, the government is now urging students to work more creatively

and independently.

There are safety drills for earthquakes and natural disasters, as well as for

fires.

The teaching of math seems more advanced, and biology, less so. For example,

pre-calculus and chemistry are taught to sophomores. Biology, physics or

geology may be chosen in the junior year.

Some of the girls are reluctant to take physics.

There are no dances or parties at Japanese high schools.

The average homework load is two hours a night, but serious students spend

more time.

The Japanese school system is nationalized, run from a central bureau. There

are 240 school days in the year as opposed to Connecticut's 180. In Japan,

students attend school two Saturdays a month for a half day.

All Japanese elementary schools have swimming pools.

The Japanese don't use calculators. The idea is to think, not calculate.

There are no teachers' retirement benefits. They have to save.

A principal must give permission before a student can take an outside job.

Teachers usually work from 6 am to 7 pm each day, also acting as advisers for

after-school clubs that are student-run. They are employees of the government

and are considered civil servants. There are no teachers unions.

`Juku' Means A Cram School

As if the Japanese school day were not intense enough, many students also

attend cram schools, or Jukus, after their regular school hours "to bone up"

in certain areas where they want to achieve higher grades on the state exams.

"If you are an ambitious student (or your parents are ambitious) you go by bus

or ride your bicycle to Juku, which lasts from 5:30 pm to 9 pm."

"Also, if you are weak in something, or particularly fired up about a certain

subject, you go to Juku," Mr Williams said.

"Then you're home by 10 pm and you can start your regular homework," he added.

One way for a highly motivated Japanese student to avoid this kind of

double-duty educational program is to attend a private school, such as the

Christian academy Mr Williams toured in Aoyam, Gakain.

It was like a university, he said, having several campuses and enrolling

25,000 students from kindergarten through graduate school.

"The students didn't have to be Christian. But the private schools aren't easy

to get into. You might have to go to a pre-K Juku to be admitted," he said.

The Juku system, which permeates all educational levels, was the one

troublesome area or "sticking point" that Mr Williams found difficult to

accept about Japanese education.

"When are they allowed to be children?" he asked.

Bringing Back The Best To US

Part of the mission of teachers accepted for the Fulbright program was that

they should come back to the US prepared to communicate what they saw to their

own schools in America.

Mr Williams felt most impressed, he said, by the abilities of the elementary

schools to train the youngest children to follow certain invaluable codes of

behavior such as these:

Look out for each other and the group as a whole.

Don't do anything that would jeopardize the safety of someone else.

Be careful that you don't disgrace another person.

"There was quite a bit of ceremony built into the school day to encourage

these values. I hope that no matter what other changes the Japanese make in

their educational system, they don't lose that," Mr Williams said.

There has been a stated need to train Japanese students to think more

creatively and as individuals, he explained. But he was fearful that a little

of the wonderful community spirit he observed in Japanese schools might be

lost in the process.