From the "Iijima Ai (
The phenomenon has made educators, including myself, feel lost.
About 23 years ago, when I first began my eight years of study in Japan, I was stunned by the colorful variety shows and the zealous fans and groupies who followed celebrities wherever they went.
I disagreed with the phenomenon and told my classmates that such behavior would never take place in my country. During class discussions about the underlying causes for many young Japanese students' refusal to go to school, I also told my classmates Taiwan would not have such a problem, because cutting classes was considered taboo in Taiwan then.
Today, some 20 years later, however, increasing school violence, high numbers of drop-outs and the younger generation's crush on pop idols, especially Japanese pop idols, seem to have become the distinctive characteristics of Taiwan's youth.
During my studies in Japan, I heard discussions among Japanese pre-school educators about their society's over-emphasis on packaging, people's blind obsession for name-brands, and young children's lack of independence and innovation as a result of excessive pampering.
At the time, though, I just thought that the Japanese were making a mountain out of a molehill.
To my dismay, however, these same problems are now found in today's Taiwan. In fact, we have outdone Japan, as these problems have grown three-fold.
In Taiwan, "free competition and the market mechanism" (
Although there are differences among kindergartens, nursery schools, "talent classes" (才藝班) and after-school classes (安親班), all these classes share one thing in common -- they hold the present and future of our kids in their hands. It is also common for one school to offer a variety of "talent classes," after-school child-care and even nursery classes all in one single building.
From dawn until dusk, one school does it all, be it education or babysitting.
A child may spend up to twelve hours each day for up to twelve years in such a school. The relationship lasts longer than the child's relationship with any other school or educational institution. Although this means endless business opportunities for schools, many dangers lurk behind such arrangements.
For example, these schools typically provide some very intensive curriculum. Mathematics, and language courses, particularly English, are highly popular.
Other popular subjects include art, music, computing and physical education.
Most schools tell parents, "Your children can learn whatever subject they want here." Just as in universities, each course is taught by a professional in the subject.
In contrast, although Japanese children also take talent classes, their parents have to arrange for such classes separately as they are not included in the regular kindergarten curriculum. In fact, Japanese educators now believe that schools cannot escape responsibility for the rampant value confusions in modern Japanese society.
In other words, going to school may therefore be the root of the problem. Therefore, some educators have decided there should be no more disciplinary and dogmatic schooling. Rather, liberate the children, or, at the very least, let them have fun while they are still little.
Nowadays, when people first visit Japanese kindergartens, they might be surprised to see half of the kids playing and having fun. Japanese teachers and parents often answer, "When are they supposed to play if they are not allowed to have fun in the kindergarten?"
In the early days, Japan's educational system was largely modeled on that of Western European countries, and Taiwan's system in turn was a clone of its Japanese counterpart. Therefore, the Japanese system is not necessarily any better than ours.
There is one thing, however, about Japan's educational system that is worth studying.
The Japanese government established many child-care support centers and counselling centers for parents and children nationwide beginning in 1994. The quality of child care is now a major issue for the Japanese government.
It's goal is not only to reduce the economic and psychological burden of parents, but also to increase monitoring of instances of suspected child abuse or other misconduct by parents.
These are all parts of the government's project of building a "child-care network" (
Japanese youth are not superior to Taiwan youth. But Japanese society's investment in education, however, is greater and began earlier in comparison to Taiwan.
Weng Li-fang is a professor of the Child Education Department at National Taipei Teachers' College.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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