Japanese Lesson Study
Origin and Some Cases
ISODA, Masami
Institute of Education
University of Tsukuba
Aim and Contents
 The Aim of this lecture is to know what
Lesson Study is, how Japanese developed it
and what kinds of system support the Study.
1.
Lesson Study, or developmental study way of Japanese
teaching method by teachers, as the reform wave from
Japan to the world
2. An example of study lesson at the open school research
lesson forum in the Attached Elementary School of the
Univ. of Tsukuba
3. The origin of Japanese Lesson Study
4. The behind system of Lesson Study
5. An Example of the system in the case of the Attached
Junior High School of the Univ. of Tsukuba
6. Final Remark ; The Study enable each teacher to actualize
him/herself in his/her school life.
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Focus on Japanese Lesson
from WW or US point of view
TIMSS Videotape Study
“Before it’s too late”
A Report to the Nation from the National Commission on Mathematics
and Science Teaching for 21st Century
Goal 1: Establish an ongoing system to improve the
quality of mathematics and science teaching in grade
K-12.
Goal 2: Increase significantly the number of
mathematics and science teachers and improve the
quality of their preparation.
Goal 3: Improve the working environment and make the
teaching profession more attractive for K-12
mathematics and science teachers.
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From the Videotape Study
in“Before it’s too late”
 The basic teaching style in American mathematics
classrooms remains essentially what it was two
generations ago.
 In Japan, by contrast, closely supervised,
collaborative work among students is the norm.
 Teachers begin by presenting students with a mathematics
problem employing principles they have not yet learned.
 They then work alone or in small groups to devise a solution.
 After a few minutes, students are called on to present their
answers; the whole class works through the problems and
solutions, uncovering the related mathematical concepts and
reasoning.
 The students learn through reasoned discovery, not lecture
alone; Problem Solving Lesson Style in Japanese
Univ.of Tsukuba
Why Japanese teacher can do?
in“Before it’s too late”
 Japanese approach is a natural outgrowth of the teaching
culture in Japan, which accords teachers not only abundant
time for preparation, but also for collaborative lesson
planning. (Because of it’s a culture, it looks overprize for Japanese!)
 Fully 99% of all elementary teachers and 50% of all middle
school teachers participate in lesson study groups that meet
for two to five hours per week. (It’s must be counted many kinds
of meeting time, or after school, out of working time, meeting. Most of
them is two hours or so! )
 The debilitating professional isolation of U.S. teachers
stands in stark contrast to this pattern.
 A core conclusion from the videotape research: “The key to
long-term improvement [in teaching] is to figure out how to
generate, accumulate, and share professional knowledge.”
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Univ.of Tsukuba
Open Forum; In the case of Attached
Elementary School
In the process of lesson study, teachers propose their lessons to their school
or other school teachers for presenting the new ways or ideas of teaching.
 Study Lesson is most important part of Lesson Study because teachers strongly
believe that the lesson is only way to prove the evidence of their study.
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Univ.of Tsukuba
Open Forum;
Teachers attend the study lessons, open forum, for
knowing the newest research trends of lesson study.
 In the case of Attached Elementary School
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Open Forums is the part of the experimental
study for developing curriculum and teaching
methods by teachers.
Outline of Study Lesson;
Observation (Presentation), Discussion,
Discourse (comments from invited expert)
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Origin of Japanese Lesson Study; Cherysanthemun
& Paulownia
Meiji Period (1868 - 1912)
 In 1868, the emperor came back after the
Tokugawa Shogun, army, government and the
constitutional monarchy had begun with
western civilization.
 Before Meiji Period, Japanese had own
education system for ordinary people called
Terakoya (= kids-school-in-temple). The
literacy rate at 1868 was 43% in the case of
males and 10% in females.
 Western style school system began in 1872 and
the first normal school in Japan, Tokyo
Normal School (now, Univ. of Tsukuba), was
funded by the emperor.
 At the beginning of new system, the knowledge
of western scientific subjects was introduced
by western teachers (such as John Perry) who
were employed by Japanese Government and
Japanese students learned it based on
Japanese - Chinese disciplinary education.
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Embeded Several Traditions; Before Meiji
EX. Try one’s skill against a member of the same or another
school; Competition in classroom, school and enter schools.
Observation meeting of each others game.
What is he doing?
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An Origin in Meiji
Tokyo Normal School and its Attached School
 Observing Lessons as a student;
 Western teachers (around 1870) presented the lecture style for teaching scientific
subject and students learned unknown teaching style at the same time as they learned
subject matter.
 Pestalozzi Method;
 Takamine, principal of TNS later, had studied the teaching method of Johann
Heinrich Pestalozzi at NY in US and introduced the method to Japan through TNS.
 The Attached School teachers as system makers;
 The attached school teachers adapted the method, trained other school teachers and
published the teaching method book.
In the first teaching methods textbook (1883) for normal schools in Japan,
written by the attached elementary school teachers in TNS, the way of critically
observing teaching practice and the obligation of critical comment was already
described as one of most important teaching content at all of normal schools.
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Univ.of Tsukuba
Its Development;
Taisyo(1912-1925), Syowa(1925-1989)
Taisyo; Autonomous Development
 Teachers tried to getting their autonomy based on John Dewey
 Problem Posing and Solving Lesson Style began to develop.
 Japan Society of Mathematical Education funded(1919)
Syowa; from Statism to Democracy
 Before WWII, Japanese teacher education system and methods of
teaching was entire structured.
 After WWII, US occupation tried to break the system and introduce
US style teacher education system and teaching method which was
also based on Dewey but far from already Japanese had
implemented.
 Japanese teacher assimilate US style and teachers’ autonomous
democracy exploded.
 In 1970s and 1980s, Lesson Study had effloresced.
Heisei (1989-); lost person who bear.
 Occurred extreme shortage of teachers job offer.
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The System, its behind.
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 Official System; related with promotion in school system
 Teacher has obligation to improve his/her lesson and the study is included in his/her job.
 Teachers promotion is with in the competence of principal and the board of education.
 Principal supports teachers’ study through managing his/her school such as setting lesson studies
in the school year and endorse teachers’ outwork . Some active principals usually set his/her school
open forum once in three years or so to show the evidence of his school teachers well developed and
influence the movement to other schools.
 Official teachers’ societies managed by teachers and principals to enhance teachers’ studies.
 In each school district, board of education sets various recurrent courses in working hours.
 Voluntary System; related with self-actualization
 Teacher usually finds his/her life worth if students growing well, thus he/she wants to do better
mathematically teaching practice for each student’s growing in his/her classroom and school.
 Teacher wants to identify, self-actualize in the teachers’ society and promote in the age.
 Some teachers want to enhance special reform based on private group or society.
 Commercial System; related with the socialization of their product
 Publishers support lesson study to publish teachers’ practice. Engaging teachers have a lot of
chance to publish their best practice and could feel ownership in reform movement.
 Academic System; related with administrative and scientific implementation
 Supervisor supports teachers’ practice based on the view from the Ministry of Education
 Didactic researcher supports teachers based on his/her scientific interest.
 Teachers join supervisor and researchers depending on what they want but any cases, he/her knows
that evidence is not on the paper but in his/her classroom students and on his/her practice.
Final Remark;
For Professional Development
 Lesson Study supports the growth of teacher’s career.
 It works well if teacher actualizes him/herself through the
study and finds the worth of living in his/her school life.
Career Development of Japanese Teachers
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Teacher
Subprincipal, Supervisor
22
30
40
50
60
Principal, Board of
Education
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Math.Edu.
Univ.of Tsukuba