Classroom Diversity
_As
teachers we must be aware of the diversity within our classrooms. Each
classroom will be different and hold its own unique students. Teachers
need to know how to handle and address the diverse students they will
encounter within the classroom. One group of students that is becoming
prominent within the United States is Japanese students. The below
attachment addresses cultural and educational differences between Japan
and the United States while providing tips for teachers on how to
address Japanese students within their classrooms.
How
Can Teachers Ease this Process?
Kaleigh Narracci
Molloy College
Abstract
Within the United States there are a number of diverse groups and diverse cultures. Educators in the United States deal with the diverse population on a daily basis within their classrooms. One of the major groups within the United States today is Japanese Americans. Although Japanese Americans are one of the groups that assimilate well into American culture due to prior knowledge of English language and the West, they still come from a culture that is extremely different from American culture. Japanese culture evolved around Shinto beliefs about respect and authority. While Japanese customs evolved around values of politeness. These beliefs have been incorporated into the Japanese school system and have also been deeply ingrained within Japanese citizens and even Japanese Americans. Americans teachers must take these differences into account when teaching Japanese students and be sure to help them assimilate into American culture by addressing the hidden curriculum within schools.
Assimilation for Japanese Students into the American Education System:
How Can Teachers Ease this Process?
Many different cultures live within the United States. Teachers experience interactions with many of these different cultures within their classrooms. As teachers, they must try and help that student learn as much as possible. However, teaching a student is easier to do when there is an understanding of the student’s cultural background. One group that has become prominent in the United States is Japanese Americans. Japanese students may have a very hard time assimilating to the United States education system because it is so different from the Japanese system. In order to make the assimilation process easier for these students, teachers must first recognize the strong cultural heritage and educational background that these students have.
Due to their culture and educational background Japanese Americans are both easy and hard to assimilate into American culture and the United States education system. One important fact to remember as a teacher is that Japanese Americans try to reinforce their cultural values and maintain them through their children (Spickard, 1996). In fact some send their children to Japan Language schools after school in order to have them taught reading, writing, grammar, pronunciation, Japanese history and geography (Spickard, 1996). The Japanese have a strong and proud heritage that is a product of their history.
Japan is an island nation which is located in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Asia, it is made up of four main islands and thousands of smaller ones (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan is threatened by earthquakes and typhoons in August and September (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan has been historically run by an emperor since the year 600 BC, although there were feudal lords ruling from the 12th to 19th centuries (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan was actually in isolation until 1853, when American Matthew Perry forced open their ports for trade, awakening the “rising sun” era when Japan began to gain regional power through military victories in China and Russia (Culture Grams, 2009). However, this era was ended along with World War II when the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan (Culture Grams, 2009). After the end of World War II, the United States and Japan have actually had close ties since the United States help to rebuild the nation and give it a democracy (Culture Grams, 2009). Since World War II, the Japanese focus has been economic development and modernization, creating one of the world’s top manufacturers and economic powers (Culture Grams, 2009).
Aside from Japanese history shaping its culture, their religion has also had a major impact on society. Although most Japanese are not strictly religious they follow a mixture of Buddhist and Shinto practices (Culture Grams, 2009). Shinto is based upon an ancient mythology in Japan and stresses ones relationship to nature and its many gods, which enforces the Bushido Code of social values calling for honor, courage, politeness and reserve from Japanese citizens (Culture Grams, 2009). In fact due to the Bushido Code, Japanese children are taught that they owe respect to their teachers, parents and country (Spickard, 1996). This respect is shown by modesty, earnestness, small timid voices, bowing to authority figures and correct posture (Spickard, 1996). Due to their religious beliefs as well, the family has become the foundation of Japanese society and many social customs found in Japan (Culture Grams, 2009).
Customs from Japan are very rigid and must be taken into account when teaching Japanese students. First of all greetings are very strict. Customary practices are bowing and introductions with formal ties, first names are only reserved for family and friends (Culture Grams, 2009). Students are expected to hold their books with two hands and sit straight up with their feet on the floor; crossing their legs is only acceptable when it is knee-over-knee or ankle-over-ankle (Culture Grams, 2009). In Japan, yawning and chewing gum in public is seen as impolite and laughter may signify embarrassment, not joy (Culture Grams, 2009). They have many different hand gestures than American citizens, such as pointing with the whole hand, referring to themselves by placing their index finger to their nose, and beckoning one another by waving their fingers with their palm down (Culture Grams, 2009). Three major customs to remember are that Japanese are very modest and will often deny compliments, so try to avoid excessive compliments to avoid embarrassing them, second, gifts are often given in business transactions or on home visits, normally food goods, but these gifts are not opened right away and lastly it is improper to eat while walking in public (Culture Grams, 2009). Understanding these customs can help teachers better understand their students’ behaviors, gestures and how to understand them and make them comfortable within the classroom.
Also within Japan there are appropriate attitudes and appearances that should be displayed at all times according to the Japanese culture. For example Japanese society is group oriented therefore loyalty, devotion, and cooperation is essential while honoring age and traditions is practically mandatory (Culture Grams, 2009). Politeness is essential within Japanese society and therefore people will not always give long detailed answers or direct yes and no’s because they rely on abilities to interpret one another’s feelings by subtle means, such as the tones of their voices (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese also value conformity and want to be in harmony with the crowd (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese culture is also strongly reflected in their education system.
The Japanese place a high value on education and school is marked as the most important time in a child’s life, and success in school translates to success in life (Bossy, 2000). The Japanese education system relies on student assessment through standardized tests and widespread parental investment in academic tutoring and private examination preparation courses (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). This should be important to American teachers, since now they know Japanese students are used to preparing for exams but also shows teachers to keep Japanese students’ parents involved in their child’s education.
However, even though such an emphasis is placed on education in Japan, only from ages six to fifteen are schools free, after that families must pay tuition (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese school system stresses math and science (Culture Grams, 2009). The high schools in Japan are both compulsory and noncompulsory, offering general and vocational high schools and higher education options in the forms of junior colleges and four year universities, all of which are based on a national curriculum (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Still more than 90 percent of students proceed to high school in Japan (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Middle school is actually where students will make or break their futures, since decisions as to which high school and universities students will attend is made then.
Middle school teachers have a relatively high occupational status within Japan due to all the tasks they perform to help their students (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Japanese schools do not have psychologists, social workers or counselors; it is the teacher’s job to address all student behavior, morality, social activities and discipline (Bossy, 2000). Middle school teachers typically have detailed information about their students’ parents, their occupation, and home environment which is all collected through routine home visits in order to guide students to choose the correct high school and therefore university (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Although the Japanese teachers use strictly direct instruction in the form of lecture and students are expected to sit, listen and write notes, students and teachers form a close relationship since teachers are guiding students in how to pass the rigorous high school and university entrance exams (Bossy, 2000). This may make it harder for Japanese students to get used to the American system of having many different teachers and going to actual counselors for university preparation.
Due to the importance of the high school and college entrance exams within Japan, competition is extremely high among students (Bossy, 2000). Performance on these entrance exams affects not only the student’s future but the future career of their teachers, school, and reputation of their family (Bossy, 2000). Therefore students experience a tremendous amount of pressure to perform well in school (Bossy, 2000). Due to the importance of these exams, Japanese parents often directly engage themselves in their child’s education by sending them to “shadow education” or private extracurricular examination preparation courses and tutorial services (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Since Japanese children are prepared basically their entire lives for these examinations, Japan actually has one of the top rates of university attendance globally (Bossy, 2000).
Believe it or not, the university entrance exams in Japan were created as a means of catching up with Western education systems, except the exam has become the sole instrument by which students are measured within Japan now (Bossy, 2000). The universities within Japan are ranked according to excellence and students are admitted based on their performance on the entrance exams (Bossy, 2000). Also, the sole criterion for future employment within Japan is based on the university a student attends (Bossy, 2000). However, a funny fact about the Japanese universities is that cheating is not uncommon and has a blind eye turned toward it since the Japanese feel that the student’s fate is already set due to the university they are attending (Bossy, 2000). Due to the rigorous Japanese education system, one would think that Japanese students within the United States would assimilate with ease into the United States education system, and although Japanese students have an easier time than most other cultures, their history within the United States and the difference between the two systems does make assimilation hard for them.
Japanese Americans have a very harsh historical background within the United States. They have been cast as “perpetual foreigners” up until recent times but are still deeply affected by their history within this country which includes internment during World War II and widespread anti-Asian sentiment and legislation which limited opportunities for Japanese Americans within the United States prior to that (Takamori, 2010, p. 220). Despite the prejudices that the Japanese have faced within the United States, and the scars each nation has left on one another, Japanese Americans are still one of the quickest groups to assimilate into American society.
This nation was built on immigration and many theories on how the cultures assimilated into the American culture have emerged. One such theory states that the first generation of immigrants learns enough English to survive economically, the second speaks the parental tongue at home but English in school, work and public, and the third generation speaks mainly English (Takamori, 2010). However today we do not see this often, as more immigrants are holding onto their own cultures while still adapting to American culture. Japanese Americans are an example of this. Although Japanese is the official language of Japan, English is taught in Japan’s secondary schools and is often used in business within Japan giving Japanese immigrants knowledge of the English language before entering the United States (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese are able to hold onto their culture and are proud of their culture while also fitting into American culture in today’s world. However, this still takes some time and adjustment especially within the schools.
The American education system is a unique system which has created one of the largest numbers of Nobel Prize winners and also some of the lowest scores in math and science among developed nations (Yoshida, 1994). Differences between the Japanese and American educational systems reach from curriculum to structure of the school environment itself, which will affect Japanese students within the classroom. However, one of the main differences between the two education systems is now under change within the United States which may make assimilation easier.
Within the United States, the creation of a set of national standard for education called the Common Core Curriculum Standards is just beginning, whereas previously there were no set standards in American schools creating varying levels of abilities within the United States and different levels of college readiness (Yoshida, 1994). Within Japan there has been a set of national standards for years that schools use as guidelines for education and the Ministry of Education must approve (Yoshida, 1994). However, this is only one small difference between the two systems. The major difference occurs due to cultural values which infiltrated both schooling systems.
The United States, as a nation emphasizes individuality while Japanese society emphasizes the group (Yoshida, 1994). These cultural values of individualism versus egalitarianism set the learning environment apart in each country (Yoshida, 1994). The United States emphasis on individuality pushes that each child is born with different potential and different limits which is why the United States education system classifies individuals based on abilities and not all children are expected to do equally as well (Yoshida, 1994). Japanese students may find this American cultural aspect concerning since the egalitarian view in Japan enforces that all people are born with the same potential and have no honors classes or skipping of grades since it is believed that “all children are born with limitless potential if they work hard and the appropriate environment is provided” (Yoshida, 1994, p. 31).
These different cultural values affect how students learn within the classroom. In the United States, Japanese students who are used to working collaboratively may find it hard to adjust to the independent work that is common here (Yoshida, 1994). The Japanese are taught how to learn and work together in a group, whereas American group work produces stars and competition where the higher students rise and the lower students fall (Yoshida, 1994). The Japanese students are not used to this notion since they all fear falling behind the group and therefore will all work together and work harder which also leads to competition (Bossy, 2000).
Although the United States and Japan are linked closely economically today, and Japan had become a modernized country with the United States help, cultural differences and educational system differences may make it hard for Japanese students to assimilate into American society. As educators, teachers must not only ensure that Japanese students are grasping the information taught but that they learn to understand the hidden curriculum within schools too. Teachers must become aware of the customs, culture and education systems their students came from in order to make assimilation easier for those students.
When working with Japanese students it is important to understand the role respect and authority figures play within their society. Teachers should not be surprised if a Japanese student come to them for advice, they are used to discussing their futures with their teachers, not a counselor whom them see once a year. Teachers must also recognize that most behavior seen within an American school such as gum chewing, yawning, walking in the halls with food, the nonconformity among students, the separation of students by ability and the informal greetings given may shock Japanese students who are used to a more reserved and modest society. Teachers need to be aware of how the student is reacting to all these new behaviors they are observing and be sure to explain it to the students. Also, if the Japanese student is lost during group or independent work the teacher must be sure to help and guide them since in Japan group work is different and independent work is rarely seen. Teachers must also make sure not to compliment students too much, or to embarrass the students by expecting them to participate more in class right away or making them speak up. Japanese culture holds respect very high and students are used to being seen and not heard.
Japanese students are not the only diverse population teachers will come into contact with in the classroom. However, they are a growing population within the United States and how to address and act with these students is important to know. However, teachers should not just learn about one type of student within their classroom, they need to attempt to learn about all students and treat them appropriately based on their previous educational experiences and their cultural background.
References
Bossy, S. (2000). Academic pressure and impact on japanese students. McGill Journal of Education, 35(1), 71-89. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/202724845?accountid=28076
Culture grams world edition 2009. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest.
Spickard, P. (1996). Japanese americans. United States: Library of Congress.
Takamori, A. (2010). Rethinking japanese american “heritage” in the homeland. Critical Asian Studies, 42(2), 217-238. doi:10.1080/14672715.2010.486650
Yamamoto, Y., & Brinton, M.C. (2010). Cultural capital in east asian educational systems: The case of japan. Sociology of Education, 83(1), 67-83. Retrieved fromhttp://search.proquest.com/docview/725256243?accountid=28076
Yoshida, K. (1994). The deming approach to education: A comparative study of the USA and japan. The International Journal of Educational Management, 8(5), 29-40. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/2292022413?accountid=28076
Kaleigh Narracci
Molloy College
Abstract
Within the United States there are a number of diverse groups and diverse cultures. Educators in the United States deal with the diverse population on a daily basis within their classrooms. One of the major groups within the United States today is Japanese Americans. Although Japanese Americans are one of the groups that assimilate well into American culture due to prior knowledge of English language and the West, they still come from a culture that is extremely different from American culture. Japanese culture evolved around Shinto beliefs about respect and authority. While Japanese customs evolved around values of politeness. These beliefs have been incorporated into the Japanese school system and have also been deeply ingrained within Japanese citizens and even Japanese Americans. Americans teachers must take these differences into account when teaching Japanese students and be sure to help them assimilate into American culture by addressing the hidden curriculum within schools.
Assimilation for Japanese Students into the American Education System:
How Can Teachers Ease this Process?
Many different cultures live within the United States. Teachers experience interactions with many of these different cultures within their classrooms. As teachers, they must try and help that student learn as much as possible. However, teaching a student is easier to do when there is an understanding of the student’s cultural background. One group that has become prominent in the United States is Japanese Americans. Japanese students may have a very hard time assimilating to the United States education system because it is so different from the Japanese system. In order to make the assimilation process easier for these students, teachers must first recognize the strong cultural heritage and educational background that these students have.
Due to their culture and educational background Japanese Americans are both easy and hard to assimilate into American culture and the United States education system. One important fact to remember as a teacher is that Japanese Americans try to reinforce their cultural values and maintain them through their children (Spickard, 1996). In fact some send their children to Japan Language schools after school in order to have them taught reading, writing, grammar, pronunciation, Japanese history and geography (Spickard, 1996). The Japanese have a strong and proud heritage that is a product of their history.
Japan is an island nation which is located in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Asia, it is made up of four main islands and thousands of smaller ones (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan is threatened by earthquakes and typhoons in August and September (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan has been historically run by an emperor since the year 600 BC, although there were feudal lords ruling from the 12th to 19th centuries (Culture Grams, 2009). Japan was actually in isolation until 1853, when American Matthew Perry forced open their ports for trade, awakening the “rising sun” era when Japan began to gain regional power through military victories in China and Russia (Culture Grams, 2009). However, this era was ended along with World War II when the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan (Culture Grams, 2009). After the end of World War II, the United States and Japan have actually had close ties since the United States help to rebuild the nation and give it a democracy (Culture Grams, 2009). Since World War II, the Japanese focus has been economic development and modernization, creating one of the world’s top manufacturers and economic powers (Culture Grams, 2009).
Aside from Japanese history shaping its culture, their religion has also had a major impact on society. Although most Japanese are not strictly religious they follow a mixture of Buddhist and Shinto practices (Culture Grams, 2009). Shinto is based upon an ancient mythology in Japan and stresses ones relationship to nature and its many gods, which enforces the Bushido Code of social values calling for honor, courage, politeness and reserve from Japanese citizens (Culture Grams, 2009). In fact due to the Bushido Code, Japanese children are taught that they owe respect to their teachers, parents and country (Spickard, 1996). This respect is shown by modesty, earnestness, small timid voices, bowing to authority figures and correct posture (Spickard, 1996). Due to their religious beliefs as well, the family has become the foundation of Japanese society and many social customs found in Japan (Culture Grams, 2009).
Customs from Japan are very rigid and must be taken into account when teaching Japanese students. First of all greetings are very strict. Customary practices are bowing and introductions with formal ties, first names are only reserved for family and friends (Culture Grams, 2009). Students are expected to hold their books with two hands and sit straight up with their feet on the floor; crossing their legs is only acceptable when it is knee-over-knee or ankle-over-ankle (Culture Grams, 2009). In Japan, yawning and chewing gum in public is seen as impolite and laughter may signify embarrassment, not joy (Culture Grams, 2009). They have many different hand gestures than American citizens, such as pointing with the whole hand, referring to themselves by placing their index finger to their nose, and beckoning one another by waving their fingers with their palm down (Culture Grams, 2009). Three major customs to remember are that Japanese are very modest and will often deny compliments, so try to avoid excessive compliments to avoid embarrassing them, second, gifts are often given in business transactions or on home visits, normally food goods, but these gifts are not opened right away and lastly it is improper to eat while walking in public (Culture Grams, 2009). Understanding these customs can help teachers better understand their students’ behaviors, gestures and how to understand them and make them comfortable within the classroom.
Also within Japan there are appropriate attitudes and appearances that should be displayed at all times according to the Japanese culture. For example Japanese society is group oriented therefore loyalty, devotion, and cooperation is essential while honoring age and traditions is practically mandatory (Culture Grams, 2009). Politeness is essential within Japanese society and therefore people will not always give long detailed answers or direct yes and no’s because they rely on abilities to interpret one another’s feelings by subtle means, such as the tones of their voices (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese also value conformity and want to be in harmony with the crowd (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese culture is also strongly reflected in their education system.
The Japanese place a high value on education and school is marked as the most important time in a child’s life, and success in school translates to success in life (Bossy, 2000). The Japanese education system relies on student assessment through standardized tests and widespread parental investment in academic tutoring and private examination preparation courses (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). This should be important to American teachers, since now they know Japanese students are used to preparing for exams but also shows teachers to keep Japanese students’ parents involved in their child’s education.
However, even though such an emphasis is placed on education in Japan, only from ages six to fifteen are schools free, after that families must pay tuition (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese school system stresses math and science (Culture Grams, 2009). The high schools in Japan are both compulsory and noncompulsory, offering general and vocational high schools and higher education options in the forms of junior colleges and four year universities, all of which are based on a national curriculum (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Still more than 90 percent of students proceed to high school in Japan (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Middle school is actually where students will make or break their futures, since decisions as to which high school and universities students will attend is made then.
Middle school teachers have a relatively high occupational status within Japan due to all the tasks they perform to help their students (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Japanese schools do not have psychologists, social workers or counselors; it is the teacher’s job to address all student behavior, morality, social activities and discipline (Bossy, 2000). Middle school teachers typically have detailed information about their students’ parents, their occupation, and home environment which is all collected through routine home visits in order to guide students to choose the correct high school and therefore university (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Although the Japanese teachers use strictly direct instruction in the form of lecture and students are expected to sit, listen and write notes, students and teachers form a close relationship since teachers are guiding students in how to pass the rigorous high school and university entrance exams (Bossy, 2000). This may make it harder for Japanese students to get used to the American system of having many different teachers and going to actual counselors for university preparation.
Due to the importance of the high school and college entrance exams within Japan, competition is extremely high among students (Bossy, 2000). Performance on these entrance exams affects not only the student’s future but the future career of their teachers, school, and reputation of their family (Bossy, 2000). Therefore students experience a tremendous amount of pressure to perform well in school (Bossy, 2000). Due to the importance of these exams, Japanese parents often directly engage themselves in their child’s education by sending them to “shadow education” or private extracurricular examination preparation courses and tutorial services (Yamamoto & Berinton, 2010). Since Japanese children are prepared basically their entire lives for these examinations, Japan actually has one of the top rates of university attendance globally (Bossy, 2000).
Believe it or not, the university entrance exams in Japan were created as a means of catching up with Western education systems, except the exam has become the sole instrument by which students are measured within Japan now (Bossy, 2000). The universities within Japan are ranked according to excellence and students are admitted based on their performance on the entrance exams (Bossy, 2000). Also, the sole criterion for future employment within Japan is based on the university a student attends (Bossy, 2000). However, a funny fact about the Japanese universities is that cheating is not uncommon and has a blind eye turned toward it since the Japanese feel that the student’s fate is already set due to the university they are attending (Bossy, 2000). Due to the rigorous Japanese education system, one would think that Japanese students within the United States would assimilate with ease into the United States education system, and although Japanese students have an easier time than most other cultures, their history within the United States and the difference between the two systems does make assimilation hard for them.
Japanese Americans have a very harsh historical background within the United States. They have been cast as “perpetual foreigners” up until recent times but are still deeply affected by their history within this country which includes internment during World War II and widespread anti-Asian sentiment and legislation which limited opportunities for Japanese Americans within the United States prior to that (Takamori, 2010, p. 220). Despite the prejudices that the Japanese have faced within the United States, and the scars each nation has left on one another, Japanese Americans are still one of the quickest groups to assimilate into American society.
This nation was built on immigration and many theories on how the cultures assimilated into the American culture have emerged. One such theory states that the first generation of immigrants learns enough English to survive economically, the second speaks the parental tongue at home but English in school, work and public, and the third generation speaks mainly English (Takamori, 2010). However today we do not see this often, as more immigrants are holding onto their own cultures while still adapting to American culture. Japanese Americans are an example of this. Although Japanese is the official language of Japan, English is taught in Japan’s secondary schools and is often used in business within Japan giving Japanese immigrants knowledge of the English language before entering the United States (Culture Grams, 2009). The Japanese are able to hold onto their culture and are proud of their culture while also fitting into American culture in today’s world. However, this still takes some time and adjustment especially within the schools.
The American education system is a unique system which has created one of the largest numbers of Nobel Prize winners and also some of the lowest scores in math and science among developed nations (Yoshida, 1994). Differences between the Japanese and American educational systems reach from curriculum to structure of the school environment itself, which will affect Japanese students within the classroom. However, one of the main differences between the two education systems is now under change within the United States which may make assimilation easier.
Within the United States, the creation of a set of national standard for education called the Common Core Curriculum Standards is just beginning, whereas previously there were no set standards in American schools creating varying levels of abilities within the United States and different levels of college readiness (Yoshida, 1994). Within Japan there has been a set of national standards for years that schools use as guidelines for education and the Ministry of Education must approve (Yoshida, 1994). However, this is only one small difference between the two systems. The major difference occurs due to cultural values which infiltrated both schooling systems.
The United States, as a nation emphasizes individuality while Japanese society emphasizes the group (Yoshida, 1994). These cultural values of individualism versus egalitarianism set the learning environment apart in each country (Yoshida, 1994). The United States emphasis on individuality pushes that each child is born with different potential and different limits which is why the United States education system classifies individuals based on abilities and not all children are expected to do equally as well (Yoshida, 1994). Japanese students may find this American cultural aspect concerning since the egalitarian view in Japan enforces that all people are born with the same potential and have no honors classes or skipping of grades since it is believed that “all children are born with limitless potential if they work hard and the appropriate environment is provided” (Yoshida, 1994, p. 31).
These different cultural values affect how students learn within the classroom. In the United States, Japanese students who are used to working collaboratively may find it hard to adjust to the independent work that is common here (Yoshida, 1994). The Japanese are taught how to learn and work together in a group, whereas American group work produces stars and competition where the higher students rise and the lower students fall (Yoshida, 1994). The Japanese students are not used to this notion since they all fear falling behind the group and therefore will all work together and work harder which also leads to competition (Bossy, 2000).
Although the United States and Japan are linked closely economically today, and Japan had become a modernized country with the United States help, cultural differences and educational system differences may make it hard for Japanese students to assimilate into American society. As educators, teachers must not only ensure that Japanese students are grasping the information taught but that they learn to understand the hidden curriculum within schools too. Teachers must become aware of the customs, culture and education systems their students came from in order to make assimilation easier for those students.
When working with Japanese students it is important to understand the role respect and authority figures play within their society. Teachers should not be surprised if a Japanese student come to them for advice, they are used to discussing their futures with their teachers, not a counselor whom them see once a year. Teachers must also recognize that most behavior seen within an American school such as gum chewing, yawning, walking in the halls with food, the nonconformity among students, the separation of students by ability and the informal greetings given may shock Japanese students who are used to a more reserved and modest society. Teachers need to be aware of how the student is reacting to all these new behaviors they are observing and be sure to explain it to the students. Also, if the Japanese student is lost during group or independent work the teacher must be sure to help and guide them since in Japan group work is different and independent work is rarely seen. Teachers must also make sure not to compliment students too much, or to embarrass the students by expecting them to participate more in class right away or making them speak up. Japanese culture holds respect very high and students are used to being seen and not heard.
Japanese students are not the only diverse population teachers will come into contact with in the classroom. However, they are a growing population within the United States and how to address and act with these students is important to know. However, teachers should not just learn about one type of student within their classroom, they need to attempt to learn about all students and treat them appropriately based on their previous educational experiences and their cultural background.
References
Bossy, S. (2000). Academic pressure and impact on japanese students. McGill Journal of Education, 35(1), 71-89. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/202724845?accountid=28076
Culture grams world edition 2009. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest.
Spickard, P. (1996). Japanese americans. United States: Library of Congress.
Takamori, A. (2010). Rethinking japanese american “heritage” in the homeland. Critical Asian Studies, 42(2), 217-238. doi:10.1080/14672715.2010.486650
Yamamoto, Y., & Brinton, M.C. (2010). Cultural capital in east asian educational systems: The case of japan. Sociology of Education, 83(1), 67-83. Retrieved fromhttp://search.proquest.com/docview/725256243?accountid=28076
Yoshida, K. (1994). The deming approach to education: A comparative study of the USA and japan. The International Journal of Educational Management, 8(5), 29-40. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/2292022413?accountid=28076
Cultural Diversity Brochure
As part of our cultural diversity study we had to create brochures to hand out to the class. As teacher candidates we should hold onto these brochures this way if we ever need to know about one of these cultures we already have the information. My brochure was on Japanese Students.
Cultural Diversity Oral Presentation Powerpoint
As teacher's a basic yet effective tool for display information to students is Microsoft Powerpoint. Powerpoint allows the teacher to display key bits of information for the students to take in the material being taught. Below is my Powerpoint presentation on Japanese Students in America which was an extension of my Diversity Paper and Brochure.