The Meiji Restoration (1868) ended the Tokugawa Shogunate regime (1603-1867) and proclaimed the emperor as the supreme power of Japan. The Meiji emperor's reign began abruptly, requiring restoration leaders to construct an emperor-centred ideology of whole cloth. This ideology posited an eternal imperial Japan: a unique, tight-knit community of…

This research examined whether incorporating learning progress (LPs) in teaching can help Japanese lower-secondary school students systemically understand science concepts. A teaching plan incorporating the learning progressions (LPs) concept was developed. Next, a lesson was conducted for 36 third-year students of a public lower-secondary school…

This paper reports on teacher research which explored the practicality and potential of World Englishes (WE)-informed pedagogy in the Japanese secondary education context. Based on qualitative data from written reflections and post-unit individual interviews with seven high school students in Japan, this paper presents students' perceptions of the…

Is it actually certain that our students are changing during our social studies classes? This paper aims to reveal structural development and evaluation in social studies education which is related to national curriculum requirements and focused on particular students in order to test the effectiveness of the lesson. In order to increase students'…

In this article, mathematics teachers in the United States were asked what constitutes a high-quality mathematics lesson. The returned responses varied greatly. This same question was asked of Japanese teachers also. For a clearer picture both American and Japanese teachers were directed to comment on videotaped mathematics lessons taught in both…

Although technology was once viewed literally as a means of bringing about utopian society, its means to that end was exhausted in the minds of many when it fostered the nuclear attacks on Japan in 1945. Since then, not only has technology lost its utopian verve, but it also has been viewed by some quite pessimistically. Nevertheless, technology…

This paper reports a project in which researchers at universities in Japan explored the use of Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) practices by developing a learning module intended to help improve students' scores on the TOEIC Listening and Reading Tests. MALL practices are currently being developed at universities in Japan because almost…

A student's choice of a field of study is a personal decision that combines individual tastes, inclinations, preferences, and prospects related to the working life with a number of financial and academic constraints. Therefore, the analysis of the effects of degree field on job satisfaction should also address the unobserved heterogeneity among…

This secondary level unit, designed for use in a social studies or introductory economics course, has students participate in decision-making activities about global auto production. Although Japan-United States interaction is emphasized, the concepts, terms and activities employed in the unit apply to other countries as well. The unit includes 11…

This guide and accompanying videotape are a product of the seminar "Analyzing the Teaching of Mathematics in Japan and the United States" held in Tokyo, Japan, following the 9th International Congress of Mathematical Education in August, 2000. The purpose is to introduce the concept of Japanese lesson study to the American mathematics…

Compares elementary mathematics instruction in Taiwan, Japan, Chicago, and Minneapolis. Finds that American teachers are overworked and devote less time to conducting lessons than Asian teachers, who employ proven inductive methods within the framework of standardized curricula. (DM)

This document contains a collection of eight selected secondary level units of study about Japan. Individual units were planned and written by teachers who participated in the first Southwest Program for Teaching about Japan (SPTAJ) study tour to that country during 1987. Unit topics include: (1) "An Introduction To Japanese Medicine"…

Uses a thematic unit on Japan to show how software can become an additional resource for elementary students' literacy learning in social studies, science, language arts, and art. Notes that the five-week unit addresses Japan's culture and customs. (RS)

Intended for use with students in grades 9-12, this collection of materials dealing with economics in Japan is based on and prepared from experiences and information gathered by a U.S.-Japan study trip. Materials focus on: (1) underlying values important to contemporary Japanese society, (2) Japan's rise from an "occupied country"…

This publication outlines content, objectives, and evaluation procedures for a two week unit of study on modernization in Japan which can be used in high school social studies courses. The teacher must select and adapt the content of the course from six volumes published by the Association for Asian Studies. The volumes, which are not included in…