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The Integration and Use of Technology in the Classroom     

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The Integration and Use of Technology in the Classroom     

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Another thing that I was shocked about in the Japanese classrooms was that there was absolutely no technology present. The only form of technology that was present was a chalkboard and in very few classrooms, a roll in television or tape/CD player. There were absolutely no computers, no iPads, no SmartBoards, not even white boards in any classrooms. For maps there was a globe or poster and there was no video or website use present in the classrooms. this is very different from what is done in an American classroom where in recent years there has been an emphasis on technology integration into lessons, assignments, and overall classroom instruction. There is an entire section devoted to technology in our lesson plans in the United States, yet a country that is as technologically advanced as Japan has less technology in the classroom than I did when I began kindergarten. This is a completely opposite and old school approach compared to what is being done in American classrooms.

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Student as opposed to Teacher Accountabilities 

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Student as opposed to Teacher Accountabilities 

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One of the most apparent and surprising differences I encountered in Japan as a prospective educator was the varying degrees of teacher and student accountability. The students hold such responsibility and accountability starting as early as the kindergarten class I was able to observe at Seijo Elementary School. The discipline they receive seems much harsher than that of a United States classroom and it is very rare to see a student step out of line. The elementary school students were working independently and unsupervised with power tools and large knives and saws in art and were encouraged to push themselves because the teacher did not have to worry about being held accountable or having legal action taken against them - if the student were to act out and get hurt as a result they would take blame for it.  The kindergartners were allowed to walk across the campus to get to their next class with no adult supervision and had an unsupervised recess period.  In the middle school we went to, this was the same, the students had twenty minutes between classes where the teachers left the rooms and went to a teacher lounge and the students roamed the school free.

The students also take public transportation to school on their own as early as kindergarten, parents do not accompany them or drive them, they are expected to walk and get their on their own accord. Students  serve their classmates and teacher lunch which has been prepared for them and is eaten in their homeroom classroom.  No one dares to speak out against the professors and spend a great deal of time cleaning at the end of the day.

All of this is very unusual when compared to American practices.

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The Different Styles of Teaching and Learning Taking Place in Classrooms

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The Different Styles of Teaching and Learning Taking Place in Classrooms

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The teaching style that was used in the Japanese classrooms was very different than that which we aim for in an American classroom today. The structure in Japan was very lecture based versus the collaboratively based systems we strive for in the United States and seemed to discourage students questioning and challenging material or their instructor.
In an American classroom teachers encourage thinking outside the box and challenging material as well as questioning your instructor, as long as it is carried out respectfully, is considered a good thing because it means the student is thinking critically about the material. We often try to get students to turn their desks into group and foster collaboration and peer communication through doing group projects, team work, and aim for a sense of community to be built in the classroom where as in Japan the desks are still kept strictly in rows. Dr. Johnston actually said that in his experience students in his classes were opposed to putting their desks together which is unheard of in the United States. The type of classroom that is used in Japan and the teaching style that is portrayed would be considered old-fashioned, outdated, and out of place in America.

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Although there were similarities between the Japanese and American schooling systems, there was an abundant amount of differences that were very unexpected as well as apparent. There were small as well as fundamental differences such as the abundance  of male teachers as opposed to the high numbers of female teachers in the United States, the organization of the school, the discipline carried out; however there were some that stood out more than others...
1. The Different Styles of Teaching and Learning Taking Place in Classrooms
2. Student as opposed to Teacher Accountabilities
3. The Integration and Use of Technology in the Classroom