The WALS 2022 (World Association of Lesson Studies: https://www.walsnet.org/2022/) was held in Kuala Lumpur from 20-22 September 2022.
At this conference, we introduced the Japanese model of holistic education approach (Tokkatsu) through presentations at symposium, workshop activities, booth presentation, and translated video materials produced by the National Institute for Educational Policy Research, in close collaboration with the “Clarification of International Characteristics for Overseas Development of Special Activities,” a research project of the Japanese Association for the Study of Extracurricular Activities (JASEA).
Tokkatsu Special Session Keynote Speech
Professor Ryoko Tsuneyoshi, Vice President of Bunkyo Gakuin University, a partner institution of this research project, gave a keynote speech entitled “The Lesson Study of Noncognitive Learning: Lesson Study in the Japanese Model of Holistic Education Tokkatsu”.
Tokkatsu Special Session and Symposium
Following the above session, Prof. Tsuneyoshi moderated a session on “Lesson Study of Noncognitive Skills: The Japanese Tokkatsu Model of Holistic Education,” which featured presentations by the following presenters.
- Tatang Suratno, Professor, Indonesia University of Education
- Hiroshi Sugita, Professor, Kokugakuin University
- Safar Nour and Mohamed Abdelmeguid, Egyptian experts for the JICA technical cooperation project
- Tetsuo Kyomen, Assistant Professor, University of Tsukuba
In particular, from the experience in Egypt, it was suggested that the method of lesson study is also used as a tool to improve the skills of teachers in schools when introducing Tokkatsu, and that this could be called “Tokkatsu” among teachers.
Tokkatsu Special Sessions and Workshops
A special Tokkatsu session, “Use Kakari Activities to Nurture Whole-Child Development in Your Classroom: Designing and Reflecting Through Lesson Study,” was held as a workshop. The workshop was entitled “Use Kakari Activities to Nurture Whole-Child Development in Your Classroom: Designing and Reflecting Through Lesson Study.
The workshop was attended by about 50 teachers and researchers from Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, and other countries who had expressed interest in Tokkatsu at the aforementioned symposium and booth.
After the brief explanation on the roles of Toban Tasks and Kakari Activities, participants discussed in small groups about the qualities and skills that can be cultivated through Kakari activities, and what Kakari Activities they would like to actually implement in their own countries and schools in the future.
Following the discussion, Q&A session was held and questions were asked about the points on which the children came up with ideas for the activities and about the religious difficulties in introducing Tokkatsu in Egypt. The Egyptian experts from the JICA project shared their experiences in introducing Tokkatsu in the Egyptian context, rather than just adopting all of the activities as is.
Booth
During the three days, many researchers, school teachers, and educational administrators stopped by the booth to obtain information related to Japanese-style education. In particular, the video “Japanese-style education -One day of elementary school students in Japan” produced by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the classroom discussion demonstration in Egypt using VR goggles attracted a lot of interest. One participant commented, “Japanese-style education values children’s independence, so the teachers take a step back and look at the children.”
Through the conference, we expect more and more people got interested in the holistic education approach through Tokkatsu.