Observe in Kyoto why its high schools have some of the highest rankings in the world for student performance and happiness to incorporate these findings with Stamford students, 37% of whom registered a positive attitude about their education.
Every teacher and administrator in Kyoto emphasized the importance of fostering a profound sense of community and belonging for their students. This begins from the moment they wake up and put on their school uniform and remove their shoes upon entering the building. It was a powerful learning experience for me to discover how high school students in Japan are expected to incorporate into their behavior the explicit moral education they studied in elementary and junior high school.
I learned that my classroom can truly become a unique learning community and a “home away from home” for my students. As a teacher, I can be even more devoted to my students’ individual self-actualization and sense of belonging. I will put increased focus on making sure they understand that I appreciate their distinctive points of view and life experiences, even as they work together to share their work with me and each other. I see how fostering genuine collaboration is character-building.
An unexpected experience of my fellowship was seeing firsthand the vital and profound reverence for ancient tradition the residents of Kyoto incorporate into everyday life. Most of the 1600 Buddhist temples and 400 Shinto shrines here stand alongside modern structures, including a temple built in 691 right next to a Seven Eleven by my hotel. In general, Kyoto students may not be as worshipful as older generations, but they still value the community spirit at the heart of their moral education.
I plan to brief my students (as well as administrators and other teachers) about what I learned in Kyoto, pointing out the success and sense of belonging Japanese students enjoy. Specifically, I will make clear how my students can take pride in not using phones or computers in class, so they can focus on higher order thinking and sharing ideas - all designed to increase their sense of being part of a special community of learning, while building their self-esteem and ability to collaborate.
I will build on the peer editing my students have always done to increase collaborative work, including group projects and presentations in class and for parents on open-school night. I will encourage my own students to emulate how high schoolers in Kyoto engage with their communities by reading books to younger children and the elderly, and by modeling ethical behavior both in class and outside of school. I will also start each class with a brief guided meditation to help students focus better.
I will try to initiate the open-classroom (pod) concept practiced by Kaiken High School, including cross-curricular projects with teachers and students in other subjects (particularly social studies). Westhill High School, where I teach, has already designed a new building complex that incorporates this idea. It should be ready for occupancy within five years, giving us time to practice the pod system. I also hope to coordinate with Ms. Iwasaki to establish communication between our students.
The major change (so far) in my classroom was to require all assignments to be handwritten in class. Eliminating the use of computers (as well as cell phones) helped students focus better and attain higher order thinking in group discussions as well as their individual literary analysis and introspection. This has been a challenging year for my school, and disruptive policy initiatives have made it difficult to work with colleagues to create changes outside of my classroom.
My own students have responded positively, consistently demonstrating higher order thinking and better focus on their work. I will continue to encourage our teachers and administrators to consider ideas I would like to implement as a result of my fellowship, including cross-curricular projects with teachers and students in other subjects (particularly social studies), as well as the open-classroom (pod) concept practiced by Kaiken High School in Kyoto.
The inspiration I attained from my fellowship has enabled me to maintain high academic and behavioral standards for my students, despite the challenges resulting from changes to our attendance policy (no consequences for absences and tardiness), the elimination of midterms and finals, and state statistics showing that fewer than half of our high school graduates demonstrate readiness to graduate.