Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society

School of Education Hosts Student Group from Japan’s Kobe University

Tuesday, February 16, 2016, By Jennifer Russo
Share
disabilitiesSchool of Education

A group of students from Kobe University in Japan visited the University during the first week of February. The seven students, both undergraduate and graduate, and their faculty mentor spent a week with School of Education faculty and local school sites to see various educational structures and learn about disability studies and inclusive education from elementary grades through higher education. Also, several days were spent on lesson study activities.

Japanese students who visited Syracuse University recently, with School of Education Dean Joanna Masingila, center

Japanese students who visited Syracuse University recently, with School of Education Dean Joanna Masingila, center

Jugyō kenkyū, or lesson study, is a form of long-term professional development in which teachers conduct collaborative classroom research to study their lesson instructions in order to determine how students understand best. Its origins can be traced back to Japanese elementary education. Lesson study is considered to be a powerful transformation tool for students, because it concentrates on improving teaching methods to suit student learning.

During their visit, the Japanese students celebrated Setsubun, a Japanese festival, on Feb. 3. It is also called the bean-throwing festival because it is believed that wandering spirits come close to the physical world around that time and the Japanese people throw beans to drive them away.

The Japanese visitors were also in Syracuse to visit Kazushige Akagi, associate professor at Kobe University. Akagi has been in Syracuse since March 2015 to study the style adopted by Americans in lesson study. He has been working with Sharon Dotger, associate professor in teaching and leadership in the School of Education and chair of the department of Science Teaching in the College of Arts and Sciences, who focuses on how learning is related to teaching. She collaborates with elementary teachers to conduct research and study about how students think about science, and has open research classes on campus every year. Dotger and Akagi make collaborative visits to local elementary schools as part of their study.

“I came here to learn about lesson study and inclusive education,” says Akagi. “I am surprised to see that Americans concentrate on a child’s learning ability, while in Japan we study the same with concentration on a teacher’s instruction and teaching ability.” Akagi feels another difference has been teachers’ participation in lesson study. He feels while all teachers participate in lesson study in Japan as a weekly exercise, it is not so in the United States.

The Japanese students had a hectic schedule over the one-week period. They attended seminars and events on lesson study, and met many groups of Syracuse faculty and staff. They visited elementary schools in Syracuse to see how children with disabilities are included in regular classes.

“We wanted to explore the American education system with respect to disability studies,” says Yuki Shinohara, a graduate student studying psychology, at Kobe University.

“I work in disability service in a nonprofit organization,” says Ikumi Fukagawa, another graduate student, “and I am curious to see how such students are being taught in the United States.”

The Japanese students were excited about an exchange program with Syracuse University in the future, or even a short summer course. They felt the experience would give them an opportunity to explore a different place and culture, while learning about children with disability and understanding inclusive education, a subject they care about the most.

  • Author

Jennifer Russo

  • Recent
  • COVID-19 Update: Effective Wednesday, June 1, Masking Level Returns to Yellow
    Friday, May 27, 2022, By News Staff
  • Preparing Students for a Life of Success
    Friday, May 27, 2022, By Caroline K. Reff
  • Alumni Draw on Their Military Experience in Their Roles as Teachers
    Thursday, May 26, 2022, By Martin Walls
  • Bringing ‘CSI’ Into the Classroom
    Thursday, May 26, 2022, By Dan Bernardi
  • Eugene ‘Gene’ Anderson to Depart Syracuse, Tapped to Lead University of Pittsburgh’s Business School
    Thursday, May 26, 2022, By News Staff

More In Health & Society

Alumni Draw on Their Military Experience in Their Roles as Teachers

Do military veterans make good teachers? This question was posed to two School of Education alumni—one a former U.S. Army pilot and the other a former Air Force systems and IT technician turned linguist—who both now teach in Upstate New…

Social Work Student Bre’Yona Montalvo Receives First Sunflower Scholarship

At her high school in Harlem, Bre’Yona Montalvo was the kind of classmate who always made time to listen. “Being in discussions in class and with friends, I was helping others without intentionally planning to help them,” says Montalvo, who…

NBA Player Shares Personal Experience With Stuttering With CSD Students

Students walking into Grant Auditorium for CSD 450/650 Clinical Seminar last semester saw a celebrity instead of their usual professor. National Basketball Association (NBA) player Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was visiting the class to give the students a unique perspective on both…

Falk Graduate Student Rebecca Garofano Honored by Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

Rebecca Garofano, a Falk College graduate student in nutrition science, was honored with the Outstanding Dietetics Student Award at the New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Annual Meeting and Expo April 8-9 in Syracuse. Garofano is actively engaged…

Phillandra Smith Finds and Fosters Community at Syracuse University

Phillandra Smith hadn’t considered a Ph.D. until a professor at Barry University asked what she would do after finishing a master’s degree. Smith, who is from the Bahamas, had planned to return to the classroom. “This professor was honestly really…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.