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Nihonjin gakkō

, also called Japanese school, is a full-day school outside Japan intended primarily for Japanese citizens living abroad. It is an expatriate school designed for children whose parents are working on diplomatic, business, or education missions overseas and have plans to repatriate to Japan.

The schools offer exactly the same curriculum used in public elementary and junior high schools in Japan, so when the students go back to Japan, they will not fall behind in the class. Some schools accept Japanese citizens only; others welcome Japanese-speaking students regardless of citizenship.

They are accredited by Japan's Ministry of education and science and receive funding from the Japanese government. There were 85 schools worldwide as of April 2006, and all of these schools provide English classes in the primary education.

Every school hires teachers from Japan on a two- to three-year assignment, but they also hire people from the local community as Japanese-speaking teachers, English and other language instructors, administrative assistants, gardeners, janitors and security guards.

Nihonjin gakkō serve elementary school and junior high school. One nihonjin gakkō, Shanghai Japanese School, has a senior high school program.

Schools that partially offer the nihonjin gakkō's curriculum after school hours or on weekends are sometimes called Japanese schools, too, but strictly speaking they are categorized as hoshū jugyō kō or hoshūkō, a supplementary school. Overseas Japanese schools operated by private educational institutions are not classified as nihonjin gakkō, but instead as .

History

Some of the nihonjin gakkō in Asia have a long history, originally established as public schools in the Japan-occupied territories in Thailand, Philippines, and Taiwan.

As Japan recovered after World War II, increased numbers of Japanese international schools serving elementary and junior high school levels opened around the world. The first postwar Japanese overseas school was the Japanese School of Bangkok, which opened in 1956.

The Ministry of Education of Japan, as of 1985, encouraged the development of nihonjin gakkō, in developing countries, while it encouraged the opening of hoshū jugyō kō, or part-time supplementary schools, in developed countries. However, some Japanese parents in developed countries, in addition to those in developing countries, campaigned for the opening of nihonjin gakkō in developed countries due to concern about the education of their children.

In 1971, there were 22 nihonjin gakkō worldwide. During the postwar rapid economic growth in the 1950s to early 1970s and the Japanese asset price bubble in the 1980s, the country gained economic power and many sogo shoshas and major industries sent their employees all over the world. That was when many nihonjin gakko were established to educate their children in Asia, Europe, Middle East, North, Central and South America. The number of nihonjin gakkō increased to 80 in 1986 with the opening of Japanese schools in Barcelona and Melbourne. As of May of that year 968 teachers from Japan were teaching at these Japanese schools worldwide. That month 15,811 students were enrolled in those schools. The number of nihonjin gakkō increased to 82 by 1987.

In the early 1980s, 40% of Japanese national children living in Europe attended nihonjin gakkō, while almost 95% of Japanese national children living abroad in Asia attended nihonjin gakkō.

Many Japanese parents abroad sent their children to Japan to attend high school after they completed the junior high school abroad, or leaving the children behind, so they could become accustomed to the difficult Japanese university entrance systems. Toshio Iwasaki, the editor of the Journal of Japanese Trade & Industry, stated that this reason inhibited the development of Japanese senior high schools in other countries. The first overseas international schools that served the senior high school level were the Rikkyo School in England, gaining senior high school level classes after 1975, and the Lycée Seijo in France, which opened in 1986. By 1991, Japanese international senior high schools were in operation in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Germany, Denmark, and Ireland.

By 1991 many overseas Japanese high schools were accepting students who were resident in Japan, and some wealthier families in Japan chose to send their children to Japanese schools abroad instead of Japanese schools in Japan.

While Japan was experiencing a major recession called the Lost Decade in the 1990s, so were nihonjin gakkō. Many of them were closed due to a dramatic decrease in enrollment.

With its rapidly growing economy, China is an exception. Schools in Beijing, Shanghai and have been expanding and new schools had founded in Dalian, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Qingdao, Suzhou since 1991.

By 2004 there were 83 Japanese day schools in 50 countries.

Characteristics

Nihonjin gakkō use Japanese as their language of instruction. The curriculum is approved by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) so that students may easily adjust upon returning to Japan. For foreign language classes, each school usually teaches English and, if different, a major local language of the country. Most nihonjin gakkō do not admit people lacking Japanese citizenship. This practice differs from those of American and British international schools, which do admit students of other nationalities. Nihonjin gakkō usually use the Japanese academic calendar instead of those of their host countries.

Tendencies

As of 2005–2007, parents of Japanese nationality residing in the United States and Europe, as well as other industrialized and developed regions, generally prefer local schools over nihonjin gakkō, while Japanese parents in Asia and the Middle East prefer nihonjin gakkō.

In 2003 11,579 Japanese students living in Asia (outside Japan) attended full-time Japanese schools, making up more than 70% of the Japanese students in Asia. In Oceania, 194 Japanese pupils attended full-time Japanese schools, making up 7.7% of the total Japanese students in Oceania. In North America there were 502 students at full-time Japanese schools, making up 2.4% of Japanese pupils on that continent. As of 2007, there were a total of three nihonjin gakkō on the U.S. mainland recognized by MEXT.

Since the early 1990s, more parents have chosen a local school or an international school over nihonjin gakkō. Reasons include:

  • The parents prefer for their children to receive education in English;
  • Nihonjin gakkō have only elementary and middle schools, grades first through ninth, which are mandatory in Japan. Some schools offer a kindergarten program as well as a high school program, but they are uncommon. Children educated in an English-speaking environment will be able to continue their education where they live with their parents. Those who choose not to participate in the local education system will need to pass an entrance exam to enroll in a boarding school in Japan or one of the seven (as of October 2006) Shiritsu zaigai kyōiku shisetsu (), Japanese boarding schools worldwide.
  • The parents' desire to acculturate their children;
  • Many private and public Japanese schools have become flexible and accept expatriate students via a separate admissions system, or by offering exams in English.

Locations

Nihonjin gakkō tend to be in the following types of areas in the world:

As of October 2006:

Map

Asia

Middle East (not including Africa)

North America

Central and South America

Europe

Africa

Oceania

Former locations

Africa:

  • Algeria
  • École japonaise d'Alger () - Algiers - Designated on January 11, 1978 (Showa 53), certified on January 12, 1994 (Heisei 6), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14)
  • Nigeria
  • Lagos Japanese School () - Designated and certified on March 1, 1975 (Showa 50), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14)

Asia (excluding Middle East):

  • India
  • Calcutta Japanese School () - Designated on March 30, 1976 (Showa 51), certified on December 18, 1992 (Heisei 4), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14).
  • Indonesia
  • Medan Japanese International School or Medan Japanese School (メダン日本人学校, )
  • It was affiliated with the Japanese Consulate General in Medan, and occupied a building on a property. It originated as a supplementary school in the consulate's library that opened in April 1972 (Showa 49). A committee to establish a new day school was created in 1978 (Showa 54), and in January 1979 (Showa 55) the school remodeled an existing building for this purpose. The school opened in April 1979. It closed in March 1998.

Middle East (excluding Africa):

  • Bahrain
  • Japanese School in Bahrain ()
  • Iraq
  • Baghdad Japanese School ()
  • Kuwait
  • Kuwait Japanese School ()
  • Lebanon
  • Beirut Japanese School () - Designated February 10, 1972 (Showa 47), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14)
  • Turkey
  • Ankara Japanese School (), under the name Japanese Embassy Study Group - Opened April 1, 1979 (Showa 54),

Europe:

South America:

  • Brazil
  • Escola Japonesa de Belém () - Designated on February 25, 1977 (Showa 52), Certified on December 18, 1992 (Heisei 4), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14).
  • Escola Japonesa de Belo Horizonte (), a.k.a. Instituto Cultural Mokuyoo-Kai Sociedade Civil - Santa Amélia, Paumplha, Belo Horizonte - Designated on February 6, 1982 (Showa 57), Certified on December 18, 1992 (Heisei 4), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14).
  • Escola Japonesa de Vitória () - Designated February 10, 1981 (Showa 56), Certified December 18, 1992 (Heisei 4), revoked March 29, 2002 (Heisei 14)
  • Ecuador
  • Colegio Japonés de Quito () - Closed in 2003

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

  • Nasuno, Mitsuko (那須野 三津子; Department of Children Studies (子ども学部), Tokyo Seitoku University). "Factors in the Government's Decision to Send Teachers of Children With Disabilities to Overseas Japanese Schools: 1979 to 2002" (海外日本人学校に対する障害児教育担当教員派遣の実現要因:—1979～2002年度の教員派遣制度を通して—); Archive" (海外日本人学校に対する障害児教育担当教員派遣の実現要因:—1979～2002年度の教員派遣制度を通して—; Archive). The Japanese Journal of Special Education (特殊教育学研究) 49(3), 247-259, 2011. The Japanese Association of Special Education. See profile at CiNii. See profile at J-Stage (CrossRef). English abstract available.
  • Ozawa, Michimasa. (小澤 至賢; 国立特別支援教育総合研究所教育 Department of Educational Support (支援部)). "Situation of Support for Japanese Students with Disabilities in Full-day and Supplementary Schools for the Japanese in the Eastern United States" (アメリカ東部地区の日本人学校及び補習授業校における障害のある日本人児童生徒への支援状況 (<特集>米国における障害のある子どもへの教育的支援の実際; Archive" (アメリカ東部地区の日本人学校及び補習授業校における障害のある日本人児童生徒への支援状況 (<特集>米国における障害のある子どもへの教育的支援の実際; Archive). Special Needs Education of the World (世界の特別支援教育) 23, 43–55, 2009–03. National Institute of Special Needs Education (独立行政法人国立特別支援教育総合研究所). See profile at CiNii. English abstract available.
  • 横尾 俊 (国立特別支援教育総合研究所教育相談部). "平成20年度日本人学校及び補習授業校に対するアンケート結果について" (Archive" (Archive). 国立特別支援教育総合研究所教育相談年報 30, 33-45, 2009-06. National Institute of Special Needs Education (独立行政法人国立特別支援教育総合研究所). See profile at CiNii.
  • 池﨑 喜美惠. "Actual Conditions of Consumer Education at Japanese Schools in Foreign Countries" (日本人学校における消費者教育の実態). The Bulletin of Japanese Curriculum Research and Development (日本教科教育学会誌). 37(3), 33–40, 2014. 日本教科教育学会. See profile at CiNii.