Relationship Between Parenting, Schooling and Cognitive Ability in Japanese Children

Manuel Guerrero
Prof. King
EDGE 6101


Relationship Between Parenting, Schooling and Cognitive Ability in Japanese Children


In this paper I will explore why Japanese students outscore their Western counterparts.

There is no one answer which indicates why the Japanese outperform the United States, it

is a series of conditions. First of all, the Japanese have an entirely different school

system. Secondly and more importantly, their approach to parenting is different from

ours. The manner in which the Japanese raise their children is in direct correlation to

their cognitive abilities.

American educators and scholars have become obsessed with the Japanese educational

system. To some, evidence of declining educational standards in the United States is

measured in S.A.T. scores. This of course must indicate that we can not compete with

Japan and other western nations. We must then ask ourselves: what are the Japanese

doing that we are not? Are test scores valid methods of determining what an “educated”

person should be?

Order and efficiency is the order of the day in Japan. Strong pressures to conform are

found in many facets of Japanese life. In Boye De Mente’s book Japan’s Secret Weapon:

The Kata Factor, he claims that their uniqueness resides in the concept of kata (ways of

doing things). According to De Mente, Japan has no “genuine philosophy; and form

replaces substance.” The Japanese leave little to no room for change or creativity which

leads to static thinking and unbending norms.

In Japan, children are not asked for opinions or how they feel about what they have

learned, they are “asked to regurgitate information” (Young, p.130). Japanese children

are not permitted to have original thoughts or to express the way they feel. Such

treatment can lead to mechanized modes of thinking; children become automatons. If

asked for an opinion, “students seem uncomfortable in giving one” (Young, p. 130).

In Japan, there is one correct way of doing things: arranging desk contents in a special

way (pencils to the right), placement of shoes (toes pointing out) to exact note taking

from the blackboard. The number of pencils, erasers and supplies one brings to schools

is sometimes a matter of policy, not personal choice. Schools provide rules governing

students’ use of time over vacations and weekends asking, for instance that students get

up early, exercise daily and stay away from video game parlors. Schools also regulate

how students come to schools (in neighborhood walking groups that arrive well before

school starts) suggests an appropriate bedtime and wake-up time for students and even

suggest the appropriate timing of bowel movements (before school!) (Lewis, p. 142)

These subtle and not-so-subtle ways of doing things, undermine students’ willingness

to think and act as individuals. This system uniformly regulates the details of student’s

belongings and personal hygiene accustoms students to conform their behavior to that of

their peers and society as a whole. The method may foster obedient students and

employees but inhibits thoughtful, independent thinking. Many accounts of Japanese

junior high schools suggest that regulation of student’s behavior during this period

escalates, sometimes becoming “harsh, authoritarian and arbitrary” (Lewis, p. 143).

Students must also watch their every step because they may be subject to corporal

punishment. The Japanese instill fear and intimidation as pedagogical methods to

reinforce academic achievement. Outside pressures have led to suicide among high

school and university students which is no wonder that there is also such a high rate of

truancy.

Before going into too dark of a tangent, the Japanese do have approaches which

America would be wise to consider. For instance, Japanese teachers remain with students

throughout most of their academic lives. Drawing from John Dewey’s vision of

progressive education, “attachment” theory creates an emotional bond between student

and teacher. Albert Shanker, former president of the American Federation of Teachers

wrote:

The problem is that (American) schools are not organized in a way that gives teachers and students a chance to develop close and caring relationships… elementary schools are not organized in a way that gives teachers and students a chance to develop close and caring relationships… elementary school children spend one year with a teacher-just long enough to start feeling comfortable-then they move to a new teacher. Why shouldn’t elementary and junior high school students stay with the same group of kids for three or four years? Why shouldn’t…the class be broken down into small groups so each group can get to know each other? These ideas are sound in educational as well as emotional and moral terms. Students who are connected with another adult and with one another are less likely to drop out… but we are kidding ourselves if we think we can make a dent in this enormous problem with ad-hoc arrangements. We should stop working around the edges of the main institution concerned with children-the schools-and concentrate on making our schools moral communities.


To many Americans the educational pendulum has swung back and forth between

intellectual rigor and creativity. Both Japan and the United States schools show that the

pendulum does not need to swing. Creativity, social development and intellectual rigor

can go hand-in-hand. Schools must build on student’s creativity and allow them a sense

of purpose and identity. A school is a place where we can foster ideas and allow for an

open exchange of ideas. Creativity, social development and intellectual rigor can go

hand-in-hand. Schools must build on student’s creativity and allow them a sense of

purpose and identity. By opening a positive line of dialogue between our countries, can

we hope to achieve a better tomorrow.




































Work Cited



De Mente, Boye. Japan’s Secret Weapon: The Kata Factor. Phoenix Books, June 1990.



Dewey, John. Experience and Education. Touchstone Edition, 1997.



Lewis, Catherine (1984). Cooperation and Control in Japanese Nursery Schools.

Comparative Educational Review, 28, 69-84.



Young, Morely (1993). The Darkside if Japanese Education. Phi Delta Kappan.

October, 1993 130-132.