Japanese Public Education, `Big Operation`

Japanese public elementary, middle and high schools have implemented alternative Saturday as off- day for two to three years.

The background for implementing such change is in the keyword such as` leisurely education`, and the `power for life`.

It means to quit the cramming system of education and to give mental freedom and leisure to students so that they can get the basic education fundamentally.

The rest time is to bring up` power for life ` by studying what they want or utilizing time for hobby activity.

Saying a word, it will teach how to catch fish rather than giving fish.

As Saturday being a holiday, class time is obviously going to get reduced.

If it applies to new education course, 30 percent of class time in elementary, middle school will be reduced.

In high school, if it applies to the new teaching guide from the first year in April 2003 gradually, the class content would be reduced, too.

According to this, the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter that is taught in elementary school would be changed from 3.14 to `around 3 `, and formula for finding area of trapezoid would be excluded, therefore, volume of text book would be thinner and the contents easy..

Newly inducted class in place of it will be `comprehensive class time which will be provided to 3~6 academic year of elementary school and whole middle school students and `selected class by school` which will be provided to high school.

School gives time for utilizing program or new class in each school and middle school provides 3 hours in a week and high school provides till 20 units (74 units is needed for graduation).

ksshim@donga.com