To All Young Teachers Part 1 ⑧_ Let's assert, "I am a teacher who raises students to be ○○ people."
This is Tobira AI, a resident of this area. Thank you for always reading. Please make yourself at home.
The QUIZ for this time is
students cleaning at Japanese schools is due to the influence of < >.
Here are the details.
The purpose of education is the acquisition of a way of being human
I believe that the purpose of education is not the acquisition of knowledge, but the acquisition of a way of being human. Knowledge becomes obsolete in an instant. What kind of person you become is what matters most.
Also, I don't like the phrase "have a dream." When you say "dream," it often turns into a job, doesn't it? Like a doctor, nurse, teacher, or hairdresser. No one here says they want to be a salaryman (which is strange). Whether you are a doctor or a salaryman, the important thing is "what do you do after you become one?" I would rather call it an aspiration than a dream.
Growth Mindset and Positive Psychology
When asking what kind of person to become, Carol S. Dweck's growth mindset from Stanford University often comes up. If you don't know it, that's a big problem. That means you haven't studied enough.
The second book is a book on positive psychology by Barbara Fredrickson.
Reading books is important, but gathering information on social media is also important.
Getting the latest information on LinkedIn
Personally, I recommend LinkedIn. You can register for free. LinkedIn is not a frivolous social media platform; various experts from around the world are registered there. Just following them is enough.
You can register for free, so just register and follow a lot of people. In the field of education, I follow
Harvard Graduate School of Education/American Psychological Association/
International Coaching Federation/UCL Institute of Education/TED Conference/Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST)/Coursera
TED-Ed/Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI)
Kasvatustieteiden ja psykologian tiedekunta — Faculty of Education and Psychology/Growth Mindset/Mental Health :)
and so on. There are so many, right? But there are institutions you won't find on regular social media. I was able to connect (what you call friends on Facebook) with people from India and Dr. Fredrickson of positive psychology. It is mainly in English (only one is in Finnish), but it's fine because there is a proper translation function. So, I register this in notebookLM. Since the latest research is always coming out, it is extremely educational.
Eastern thinking was rooted in traditional Japan
However, when it comes to what kind of person we want to raise, I want you to value Eastern thinking. I believe that the philosophy of how to live should not come from the West, but should be unique to Japan. However, the father of Japanese philosophy is Kitaro Nishida (1870-1945), who is a recent figure. If you ask whether Japan had no philosophy until then, it all came from China.
Changing the subject a little, it is natural for students to clean in Japanese schools, right? This is different in the West.
The reason why Japan is like this is because of the influence of Zen Buddhism. In Zen Buddhism, it has long been positioned that cleaning (samu) = ascetic practice. In Zen temples, monks polish their hearts not only through zazen but also through cleaning, cooking, and gardening. In "Tenzo Kyokun" (Dogen) and "Eihei Shingi," it is taught that cleaning is purifying the heart and is the Buddhist path itself. As symbolized by the saying "A day without work is a day without food" (Baizhang Huaihai), there is the idea that labor and ascetic practice are inseparable, and this spirit also influenced temple schools in the Edo period and the ethics of samurai (frugality, cleanliness, diligence). After the Meiji Restoration, the content of subjects came from the West, but the basic cultivation as a human being preserved the Zen Buddhism of the Edo period. And that Zen Buddhism came from China.
In other words, the Japanese of the past cultivated their spirits based on Chinese classics. This culminated in the moral education (Shushin) subjects, including the Imperial Rescript on Education, but after the war, they were all deleted as symbols of militarism. What is unfortunate is that it was all deleted. Of course, there is an opinion that the imperial view of history is a problem, but basically, many important things as a human being were written, such as the Confucian idea of valuing parents, being grateful, and being kind to living things. After the war, moral education was born, but the content taught in moral education is also wandering, isn't it? According to Tanaka (2024), it seems that in many other countries in the world, religious education is the basis. Post-war Japanese people don't have a very good image of religion, do they?
There is no core. Japanese people.
Recommendation of "Records of the Grand Historian" (Shiji)
Thinking that way, when I started this note 4 months ago, the first article I wrote was "Teaching the Zuo Zhuan to elementary school students." It went from ① to ⑩ and is still stopped halfway. I intend to revive it soon.
Duke Wen of Jin and Duke Xiang of Song mentioned above are super famous people. However, philosophy books are difficult to read regardless of whether they are from the East or the West. So, personally, I would like to recommend, why don't you put a manga version of "Records of the Grand Historian"?
Really various people appear in the Records of the Grand Historian (the Records of the Grand Historian and the Zuo Zhuan overlap in time by about half). There are good people, eccentric people, brilliant politicians, people who held grudges because they made laws too strict, and people who stuck to their faith. When I was a student, I used to read Chinese classics a lot (I was a strange person), but it is really educational, and I want you, the teachers, and the children to read it. I deeply respect Lord Xinling of Wei (? - B.C. 244). I haven't written an article about him yet.
A "core of one's own" is not something that can be built immediately. However, teachers themselves should build it from now on, and make students think about it too. If you could use the INSPIRE framework there, I would be even happier. "I am a teacher who raises students to be ○○ people." Please become a teacher who can assert this without hesitation soon.
Did everyone remember? We were just about to start the parent-teacher conference to build a relationship of trust.
I look forward to seeing you next time.
The answer to the QUIZ was Zen Buddhism.
Postscript: If there is anyone who hasn't read Carol S. Dweck, be sure to read it. That one book alone is enough.
Thank you very much.
If you liked this article, I would be happy if you could give it a like. I am also looking forward to exchanging opinions with everyone in the comments. If you could also follow me, I am afraid to use a cliché expression, but it will be encouraging. Thank you very much.
Deepest gratitude
Warm Regards,
Sincerely, Tobira AI