Study Visit to Japan

Japan is one of the top 10 countries on the 2018 PISA international assessment with 18.3% of its students excelling in mathematics, compared to 8.8% in Israel. As in other Asian education systems, such as Singapore, Shanghai and Taiwan, Japan also gives significant priority to education, with substantial public investment and a continuous push from parents. Although high performance on tests has traditionally placed Japan at the top of the international league, in recent years there is growing public concern about the levels of creativity and innovation of graduates, and expectations from the education system are on the rise.

Therefore, Japan updated in 2021 its national curriculum, shifting its focus from rote learning and procedural fluency traditions to a more balanced approach which includes open ended tasks, critical discussion, and reasoning skills. The expected results of the 2022 PISA cycle will reveal if this change had an effect. This kind of transition occurred in many OECD countries, as well as in Israel, which as of this school year is starting to incrementally update its mathematics curriculum. The Israeli and Japanese education systems are also similar in structure, as both have middle schools, and both implement a very centralized national curriculum.

Japan is not only at the high end of world performance in education but is also considered the gold standard with its rigorous and precise pedagogy. Japanese teachers employ a well-planned and deliberate method of teaching, and they collaborate in joint critical discourse to improve their practice. This methodology, which was termed “lesson study”, was carefully investigated by renowned education experts and attracted professional visits to schools in Japan, with many countries trying to implement it in their education systems. Abraham Arcavi of the Weizmann Institute made such an attempt two decades ago, by inviting Japanese teachers to Israel to teach our educators how to use this practice.

As part of a joint learning process with our partners, we wish to plan a professional visit to the Japanese education system in 2024. We intend to invite four delegates, including one scholar and one practitioner, which will bring diverse perspectives. In addition, we are trying to get permission from the Japanese authorities to invite a TV crew from Israeli Channel 13 so that the documentation of the visit will be shared with a wide Israeli audience as well. The idea is to visit schools and to meet with districts, municipalities, and relevant departments at the Ministry of Education. The Foreign Affairs Ministry, both countries’ embassies, and the Japanese Ministry of Education are assisting with preparing the visit.

The delegation will explore the following questions:

1. How does Japan’supdated national curriculum contribute to creative problem solving and reasoning skills of secondary school students?
2. What elements ofprofessional development and training options are available for mathematics teachers that promote student centered teaching?
3. Are there difficulties and lessons that have been learned, particularly in the areas of teaching and learning of mathematics and the sciences?
4. In preparing for the next technological wave, how does the Japanese education system prepare for an era of machine learning and AI?

* The text above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors / Grant 532