Transferability of US Education Techniques to Japan: Do They Cross Cultural Lines?

Abstract

Examines the traditional Japanese model of university teaching and compares it with the traditional model found in American universities. After a comparative analysis of both approaches, he discusses and raises questions about the feasibility of developing a truly universal methodology, given deep cultural differences and expectations. Describes inroads made by American teaching methodology into Japanese university education, using numerous illustrations and anecdotes as examples.

Keywords:

• Transferability
• comparability
• quality circles
• culture‐ridden

Notes

1. This is a fiction in the sense that the original experience was not in Japan but Norway.

2. Besides lectures, most typically, there are seminars for juniors and seniors which consist of several students or a dozen, idealistically, in Japan. Graduation thesis is imposed in many universities.

3. A noble depicts what Japanese university classes and their environmental conditions look like, which convey values in a university community. For example:

“No professors could survive unless they come to classes eight minutes after the scheduled time and end their lectures eight minutes earlier than the scheduled time.”

“Professors do not show up in classes in the first couple of sessions.”

“The promotion of faculty members is decided solely by what they wrote. The quality of lectures is not counted.”

“To show his name in mass media is regarded as the end of his life as a scholar.”

4. In Japan there are about 120 schools of social work, or departments of social welfare, but the major component is the undergraduate program. Most classes are lectures and some are seminars. About a third of schools have graduate programs, each of which have usually a few or ten students per cohort. Classes there are exclusively seminars.

5. What strategy and technique should be adopted depends on the aim of each course, in addition to the subject and the audience of the student body. Purposes of this course are the provision of basic knowledge and the training of value, sensitivity and the way of viewing. The teaching of research methods such as data search, paper writing and oral presentation are also aims. The provision of skills is not.

6. Many of these are not necessarily from the traditional culture but have been reinforced from recent young people's culture of fear of bullying and shaming.

7. Cf. The first clause of QC Circle Charter by Nikkagiren.

8. Raising these as Japanese culture may be conventional. The weakness of discussion on culture is the lack of rigorous examination of the content of culture.