Schooling Comparison

Well it’s been such a long time since I’ve posted because I’ve simply run out of things to talk about but I am aiming for a revamp sooner rather than later. So, to kick-start this revamp, (motivated by the fact that this is a summative assignment for Japanese) the first instalment is an educational and insightful post into the differences and similarities between schooling in Japan and Australia.

The Australian schooling system, based on my own experiences as this can vary, has a primary school which ranges from the ages of 5 in Reception all the way through to Year 7 at about the age of 12. However, before the age of 5, children attend kindergarten which is a mere introduction to the official schooling system.

During Primary School, students work to establish the foundations for the future of their education. High Schools can be selected depending on how heavy a fee the parents want to pay or simply for reasons such as location and popularity. Students then remain in High School for 5 years which is the end of their schooling until University.

Primary Schools in Japan work on a similar basis with a kindergarten at about the age of 4 that is followed by the start of Elementary School. Students spend 6 years in Elementary School (主学校(しゅがっこう)) and then move into a Junior High School (中学校(ちゅがっこう)) where they will spend three years until they then reach high school (高校(こうこう)). There are then difficult entry exams for students to enter universities.

Now you know the basic structures I have provided you with something more interesting and informative as below is a recount of my experience in a Japanese High School during an exchange at year 2 which is an equivalent to year 11 in an Australian High School:

‘During my stay in Japan I had the fortune of attending a competitive high school called Tachibana. The first thing I noticed about the schooling system was that it was a lot more regimented than my school back home and most of the students that attended this high school were quite lucky as it’s a difficult school to get into, due to the difficulty of the application exam. Japan has the highest attendance rate in the world when it comes to non-compulsory education. Every morning I would see thousands of other students going to many different schools within one area.
Students would arrive at school as early as 7.00am in Japan. This is in stark contrast to the Australian mind-set in regards to sleeping in and getting to school! Students in Japan do this in order to increase the amount of time available to practice their favourite sports. They do this through clubs and this is something that Australians don’t do to such a large extent. These clubs are serious and are all student driven.

I personally would arrive at school at 7.45am and talk with my friends who were studying before the day starts. Like Australian schools, we had a home class lesson in the morning before lessons. However, once lessons commenced, teachers would move around the school to the home classes, instead of the way it is done in Australia, with the students moving from room to room.

Teaching methods and styles also vary between the two cultures. I found it tiresome as the teachers teach in a lecture-style manner, without any interaction between teacher and student and no chance for open discussion. Students had work books and had to fill-in the blanks however there were never any assignments, videos, essays and rarely any practicals for subjects such as Biology.

One of my most shocking discoveries was the number of class mates who would fall asleep during lessons. At times, I could potentially count 8 or so students who would be slumped upon their desks, out like a light! This is because, although there are no assignments or essays, Japanese students are loaded with work for night time as they don’t get to do it in class. Classes are like lectures and most often the homework involves filling in books about the topics recently covered.

Furthermore, Japanese students don’t have recess. Instead, we work with ten minute breaks between subjects and then an hour long break for lunch between lesson four and five. Lunch is often eaten inside and comprises of an obentō or canteen food.

When school is finished in Australia, at generally 3.20pm, students have vacated the area within thirty seconds. In Japan however, the end of the day, which can be as late as 4.30pm, is followed by a session of cleaning. Each home class is rostered on for a certain section of the school and then that home class is divided into sections for specific jobs. A roll call is checked off to make sure everyone chips in and jobs range from cleaning carpets, sweeping to cleaning toilets and windows. Once cleaning is finished, at no official time, students then either remain at school for reasons still unbeknown to myself or attend club.

A degree of ‘study’ is undertaken during these long hours after school however, as hard working as the Japanese culture may be, a great lot of socialising goes on during this timeframe. Students can arrive home as late as 8.00pm from school and will stay up into the early hours of the morning completing homework or using their ‘keitai’ between consciousness and dreams as they lay on their beds or slumped at their desks.'

I hope my personal experiences give you a more realistic insight into the life of a Japanese student in comparison to Australia. If I was made to choose, I still don’t know what I’d choose, there’s something enjoyable about the way Japanese people become so addicted to their club and passionate about doing well but I definitely missed the relaxed Aussie lifestyle!

Melissa Ryan