First Week of School
I have completed my first week of school as an ALT in Japan! I have my main junior high school that I'll be going to most of the week then one day each week I'll be going to an elementary school. I have four different elementary schools that I'll be going to for the year. The next semester my junior high school will change but my elementary schools will remain the same.
The language barrier has not made it easy to communicate with some of the Japanese teachers and students but everyone has been kind and tries to use the English they know. There have definitely been some differences I've noticed when it comes to Japanese and American schools.
One difference I mentioned on my first day of school was that you have outdoor and indoor shoes. When you arrive to school you switch out from your outdoor walking shoes to your indoor shoes. The students also have their homeroom classroom. Usually, the teachers are the ones that change classrooms when doing their lessons. The times when students change classrooms is for science, cooking or P.E. when they need special equipment for the class.
Something I really liked is that during their announcements they actually include a bit of meditation for the students to clear their mind. For lunch there actually isn't a cafeteria. Students carry the lunch up to their classrooms and rearrange their desks into groups to eat lunch. Below is a picture of one of my school lunches. They are quite meticulous on cleaning and recycling. I will have to do another post about the recycling system here.
After lunch there is cleaning time. The students and teachers clean the classrooms and hallways. They will even move the desks and wipe down the floors. There will also be students out in the hallways sweeping the area and then wiping them down. Even the vice-principal participates in vacuuming the teachers room. There is a sense of community and it is considered important to maintain the area clean for everyone to enjoy. I even have my own cleaning cloth with my name on it, although I can't read it.
The practice of community is so interesting. I think it would be beneficial to all the participants, students, teachers, and administrators. Your thoughts Gaby?
ReplyDeleteYes, I also find it interesting. I do think this is beneficial as it instills the sense of community at a young age. It would be interesting to see if/how this could be done in American schools since America is more individualistic.
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