Komatsudani Then and Now: continuity and change in a Japanese preschool |
JOSEPH TOBIN, Arizona State University, USA
MAYUMI KARASAWA, Tokyo Woman's Christian University, Japan
YEH HSUEH, University of Memphis, USA |
pages 128-144
http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2004.5.2.2 |
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In this article the reflections of the teachers and directors of Komatsudani Hoikuen ('day-care center') on a video the authors recently made at their preschool are used to explore processes of continuity and change in Japanese preschool education over the course of a generation. The social changes that are associated with changing preschool practices in Japan include: a falling birth rate, women's changing attitudes about marriage and work, the social isolation of families, a putative decline in the quality of parenting, and a prevailing mood of national pessimism that is closely tied to a long period of economic decline. These factors are discussed in relation to Komatsudani's minimalist approach to curriculum, to its strategy for dealing with children's disputes, and to its development of a system of older children helping with the care of infants and toddlers. |
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JOSEPH TOBIN, MAYUMI KARASAWA, YEH HSUEH (2004) Komatsudani Then and Now: continuity and change in a Japanese preschool, Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 5(2), 128-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2004.5.2.2 |
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