Japanese Preschools and the Pedagogy of Selfhood

Japanese Preschools and the Pedagogy of Selfhood – Tobin, Joseph
Children need to spend time away from home to become proper members of society.
The preschool helps them to learn “kejime”, necessary as a grown up Japanese person. Without this knowledge it will be hard for them to interact with strangers without embarrassment. I agree that this is an important part of Japanese society,
Preschools serve this purpose which was earlier done by children having more opportunities outside of the home, as a mix of home and non-home.
Japanese children aren’t better behaved than American children, they have just been strictly taught how to act in specific situations and how not to act in others, taught to them at preschool.
I don’t remember strictly being taught in the way mentioned in the article, but from my preschool days the senior and junior hierarchy was already developed. Older kids sometimes had to look after the younger ones and check they were fine, teaching responsibility, which I thought was interesting.
Where Children Rule – Nicholas D. Kristof
Japan schools aim not only to produce smart children, but good disciplined children as well. This is said to lead to low crime rates, among other good things. Lots of emphasis is put on responsibility and community.
Asians often think intelligence is something gained, while Americans think it is something you are born with. I agree with this, intelligence is something that you get from trying hard.
The level of Japanese teaching is very high, and teachers of a high level with relatively high pay.
Big Wolves Aren’t So Bad in Japan – Nicholas D. Kristof
Fairy tales like Little Red Riding Hood are often changed in Japan to have happy endings to teach Japanese children to be thoughtful and a good person. They are used to teach values. It is suggested the low crime rate in Japan may even be linked to factors like this. I don’t know if there’s any link between the two, but I don’t remember being influenced