Exploring the emic understanding of ‘critical thinking’ in Japanese education: An analysis of teachers’ voices

Abstract

In the most recent Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS2018) conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the percentage of Japanese teachers who taught critical thinking (CT) and professed self-efficacy in CT teaching was by far the lowest among participating economies (OECD, 2019). This research explores the emic or indigenous understanding of CT in Japanese education through in-depth qualitative interviews with 12 schoolteachers of diverse backgrounds. Japanese schoolteachers find the nuance of CT undesirable. Yet, a particular facet of CT, namely multidimensional-multiperspective thinking (MMT), is well-received since the national curriculum guidelines, which most participants find to be their teaching foundation, lay strong emphasis on MMT. Almost all participants agree that low socioeconomic-status (SES) schools have difficulty teaching CT/MMT. Furthermore, a hidden curriculum in Japanese schools, namely valuing empathy, also affects CT teaching. Being empathetic constitutes a core value in Japanese schooling, so participants find it impossible to practice CT without teaching empathy. The findings suggest that the curricular power, whether official or implicit, is forceful in Japan. Still, schoolteachers practise indigenous versions of CT teaching and manage to keep away from the power of the etic/global model of CT teaching. This paper concludes with practical implications for educators to reconcile the etic and emic understandings of CT teaching.

Keywords:

• Teacher
• critical thinking
• curriculum
• empathy

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Acknowledgements

This research benefitted from inspiring discussions with Henry Kwok. My appreciation goes to the tremendous editorial support from Eric (Rui) Yuan. Yet, any errors or inconsistencies in this article are solely mine.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

Support for this research came from JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 21K20208.

Notes on contributors

Kazuyuki Nomura

Kazuyuki Nomura is currently an assistant professor at Chiba University, Japan. Kazuyuki is an educational fieldworker, and his research areas cover teaching Japanese as an additional language, culturally responsive pedagogy, and curriculum studies.