Archive abj 2020

FACTSnet tours offer pre & post tour networking with links related to the Alberta K-12 curriculum. Japan is a fascinating place to visit, with its ancient culture (we will focus on the Edo and Meiji periods, Alberta Grade 8 curriculum) beautiful landscape (sea and mountains) and its modern facilities.  Tours are organized by FACTs and other groups who want to participate in our network.  If you follow the Curriculum tour a visit to the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb devastation will give a new perspective on war (grade 11 curriculum)  Other stops on the tour relate to either the grade 8 or 11 curriculum or both.    We suggest using travel by local transportation (instead of a tour bus) and JR rail, super trains.

December 2013:

Our itinerary was as follows: Tokyo (Dec. 17 - 21), Towada (Dec. 22-24) , and Sapporo (Dec. 24-26)  Tokyo (Dec. 28).  We contacted people in preparation for future tours.  Our time in Towada was a highlight.  Email factsc@gmail.com for more information.

Spring Break 2014 Tour:

This tour is similar to the December tour and will continue to develop Alberta/Japan Relationships in the Osaka Kyoto area (March 27-31) and in the Tokyo area (April 1-8).   Email factsc@gmail.com for more information.

Generic Alberta Curriculum Tour:
  1. Day 1: Fly overnight to Japan
  2. Day 2: Tokyo
    • Arrive in Tokyo
  3. Day 3: Tokyo (Rest Day)
    • Visits  (Several options - We will arrange guides for smaller groups)
    • Visit Holy Resurrection Cathedral
    • Options for diner and rest. 
  4. Day 4: Tokyo
  5. Day 5:Tokyo - Kyoto 
    • Travel by bullet train to Kyoto
    • Optional activities in Tokyo or Kyoto (tour group decides).
  6. Day 6: Kyoto
  7. Day 7: Kyoto - Nagasaki
  8. Day 8: Nagasaki
  9. Day 9: Depart for home
Tour extensions  (The whole group, smaller groups and individuals may decide to extend their tour).  Below are some of the options:
  1. Visit  Universal studios in Osaka. .
  2. Visit Himeji Castle
  3. Tokyo Disneyland
  4. Visit one of Japan's many resorts.
  5. Teach English
  6. Visit friends and/or sister groups to Canadian organizations.
For each tour we purchase Round-trip flights, JR rail passes and hotels as a tour group.  Each tour group decides on their pricing and options to add to the tour price.  For more info. on tour groups and pricing email factsc@gmail.com.  Larger tour groups (more than 6) will subdivided into groups of 7 or less with one of the members of this group being a group leader.  For example, a group from a school division may consist of a teacher as a group leader, two parents and 4 students.   If you are interested in being a group leader please indicate that in your email.

Optional:

In each city there are several other sites that could be visited some smaller subgroups may want to add these sites or to substitute these sites - see Historical Places to Visit in Japan Index.  (We may also find that the whole group wants to change sites).

Email factsc@gmail.com for more information on any of our tours.

Issues Faced by Japanese Students Today

In all levels of schooling, Japanese students face a great deal of stress, from school, peers, and family. This post is intended to highlight some of the issues that many Japanese students face along with some extreme social issues that exist among students, to raise awareness of what Japanese students go through, especially in contrast to Canadian students.

Education in Japan is very competitive, and students are under constant pressure to study hard for entrance exams for prestigious schools and universities. Often, this pressure comes from certain mothers, who will drive their child to study regardless of their physical and emotional well-being. Some mothers are more extreme than others. In the late 90s, a woman murdered her neighbor's two-year-old daughter because she had been admitted into a prestigious kindergarten that her own daughter failed to enter (http://www.wsws.org/articles/2000/jun2000/jap-j19.shtml). Many Japanese students attend cram schools during the evening to give them further time to study. In addition, all high school students are required to register with an extra-curricular club that meets year-round, adding even more to their schedule.

Because of all this pressure on Japanese students to succeed, suicide is very common among Japanese students. In 2005, 886 students committed suicide, many of which were school-related. (http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20070615a2.html) Suicides are especially prevalent during entrance exam season, when a student receives unfavorable marks. Currently, Japan's suicide rate is one of the highest in the world.

Many youth in Japan suffer from a unique condition called hikikomori. This is a condition in which youth, mostly young men, from early adolescence to mid-thirties, will shut themselves in their room and avoid social contact with anyone for a period of six months to several years. They go to such extremes because they are afraid of others, and cannot handle the pressure society places on them. (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/15/magazine/15japanese.html)

Ijime, or bullying, is a very major social problem in Japan, often more so than in North America. Usually, students who are bullied stick out in some way, and the entire class participates in bullying these students, often by ostracizing them. Teachers will often encourage bullying, as they see it as an effective means of "behavior modification," and parents tend to place the responsibility on the victims rather than the bullies. Bullying is another major contributor to both suicide and hikikomori. (http://legacy.lclark.edu/~krauss/advwrf99/causeeffect/akikocause.html)

In an interview with Paul Suzuki, who works with Japanese students, he identified the main concern Japanese students have as, "They are longing for a place of belonging... where they can feel at ease, feel accepted, know they would be welcomed, and belong." Many Japanese students do not feel they have a place of belonging, even at home.
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Japan-AB Archive

Vjm1-logan/charlie said...
We believe the canadian style is more effective than the Japanese style of teaching. But in canada we still do encounter some bullying but there have been no suicides we have heard of.
May 31, 2010 10:20 AM

So far I haven't heard of any school related suicides.
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