My son is doing terrible at third grade Japanese

[Buntaro]

I have been thinking about the tribulations that Cloa and his son have been going through, and I have some questions for anyone out there.

It seems that the son will be able to pass sixth grade without difficulty ("social graduation"), but I am concerned as to what will happen when the son tries to enter a middle school (seventh grade). Do most middle schools have an entrance exam? If so, I am afraid thing will not go well for the son.

But are most elementary schools connected to middle schools, two schools which are part of the same organization? If so, in such cases, is there no entrance exam from the sixth grade to the seventh grade? This would solve one of Cloa's problems (for at least the next several years.)

 

[mdchachi]

My understanding is that there are no entrance exams for middle schools unless they are private. In Japan compulsory education is only through middle school which is why even public high schools have entrance exams.

 

[Lothor]

My understanding is that there are no entrance exams for middle schools unless they are private. In Japan compulsory education is only through middle school which is why even public high schools have entrance exams.

Correct. The spawns of Lothor went to the local public middle school, and there was no entrance exam. They both enjoyed the school, and thanks to them applying themselves at cram school, they have ended up at a really good university and high school. The older spawn also had mediocre marks at elementary school and struggled to fit in, so there is hope if the first few years of education are difficult.

 

[cloa513]

Correct. The spawns of Lothor went to the local public middle school, and there was no entrance exam. They both enjoyed the school, and thanks to them applying themselves at cram school, they have ended up at a really good university and high school. The older spawn also had mediocre marks at elementary school and struggled to fit in, so there is hope if the first few years of education are difficult.

There is an entrance exam for an English public middle combined high school school. I don't whether he want to go there. He is entering 5th grade now. The teachers tried to get him to all the prefectures with massive rote writing but he maybe learned 30 of them and they also are trying for all the prefectural capitals and that is even worse at the latest time. He does all his maths homework (that he can) by copying from the back of the book. The Japanese tests are not too terrible but certainly he should getting a few more right. Another problem is how non-existent teacher feedback is.

 

[Buntaro]

Cloa,

I think you should definitely ask him if he would prefer the Japanese school or the English school

 

[Majestic]

The spawns of Lothor

Sounds like a death metal band.

 

[Lothor]

There is an entrance exam for an English public middle combined high school school. I don't whether he want to go there. He is entering 5th grade now. The teachers tried to get him to all the prefectures with massive rote writing but he maybe learned 30 of them and they also are trying for all the prefectural capitals and that is even worse at the latest time. He does all his maths homework (that he can) by copying from the back of the book. The Japanese tests are not too terrible but certainly he should getting a few more right. Another problem is how non-existent teacher feedback is.

That sounds like poor teaching. There must be loads of ways to gamify the learning of information as routine as prefectures and their principal cities, not least jigsaws.

 

[Buntaro]

I get the feeling that a lot of the curriculum in Japanese schools is just rote memorization

 

[Lothor]

Sounds like a death metal band.

Even more so if I capitalise the 'spawns', which I will do in future!

 

[cloa513]

Cloa,

I think you should definitely ask him if he would prefer the Japanese school or the English school

By the way, it is a English specialisation- it is still mostly a normal Japanese middle and high school. They lead on the international scholarship for foreign universities.

 

[Buntaro]

Cloa,

Do you consider your son to be a native English speaker? If so, he might enjoy helping the other students with their English (and this might motivate him to do better at his subjects too).