HOTOKUGAKUENLOCATION

Kinkakuji Temple

OKAYAMA

HYOGO

KYOTO
Kiyomizudera Temple

HOTOKU GAKUENNISHINOMIYA CITY

Himeji Castle
Rokko Mountains
KOBE

Kobe Port Tower

SETO INLAND SEA

Akashi-Kaikyo
BridgeOsaka Castle

OSAKA
OSAKA

Tsutenkaku Tower

The Great Buddha of Nara

Kansai International Airport

NARA

AWAJISHIMAWAKAYAMA

Junior & Senior High School

JAPAN

HYOGO

OSAKATOKYO

HOTOKU GAKUEN
Junior & Senior High School

5-28-19, Kamioichi, Nishinomiya, Hyogo, 663-8003, JAPAN
Phone : +81-798-51-3021 Fax : +81-798-53-6332
URL : http://www.hotoku.ac.jp

ENGLISH GUIDE

1911
Ichimatsu Ohe , inspired by Ninomiya Sontoku’s
philosophy, established Hotoku Business School inMikage, Kobe.
1924
Renamed Hotoku Commercial School.
Ichimatsu Ohe (1871-1943)

Ninomiya Sontoku's handwriting

FounderTohru Ohe
Chancellor

1932
Transferred to Aotani, Kobe.
1944
Renamed Hotoku Technical School under the directionof the Minister of Education.

SCHOOL MOTTOES

1947
Transferred to Nishinomiya.
（During the war, the school had suffered war damage:all the school buildings had been burnt down.
New school buildings were built on the present site.）Naohiko Kawaguchi
Principal

1952
Renamed Hotoku Gakuen Junior and Senior HighSchool.
1988
Exchange agreement established with Christ ChurchGrammar School, Western Australia.

EDUCATIONAL PRINCIPLES

Hotoku Gakuen’s educational ideals are extensively propounded in the teachings of Ninomiya Sontoku(1787-1856), a financial reformer and stoic humanitarian during the late Edo Period. His teachings areusually summed up as Hotokuism among his followers, who place a high value on its cause and utility.

The spirit of Hotokuism was thus referred to by lchimatsu Ohe (1871-1943), who founded Hotoku

business school in 1911, as being greatly useful in forming an educational policy for his new school, adecision to which the present-day Hotoku Gakuen owes a great deal of its honored history.
Hotoku Gakuen's three school mottoes, originally written in Japanese, may be interpreted as follows:
1. We seek to return virtue for virtue.

2. We deem sincerity a great asset to our lifelong work.

3. We spend no more than we need to, but instead save it for others.

1990
The Senior high School started the English language
study program.
1999The Junior high School started the English language
study program in the U.K.
2008
Exchange agreement established with AlbuquerqueAcademy, New Mexico, USA.
2011
Celebrated 100th anniversary.

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HOTOKUGAKUENNINOMIYA SONTOKU
Ninomiya Sontoku(1787-1856) made up, throughhis experience, the principle of man's deed orsocial morality, that is, how to act and how to live
as a social being. He practiced it himself andhanded this model of behavior down to thefollowing generations. To practice this principle
according to the model is called “Shiho (themethod)”. Sontoku named this principle “Hotoku(returning virtue for virtue)”.
The characteristic of this principle lies in that
moral practice and economic practice must go
together, in other words, man’s deeds, however
moral they may be, and that this economic activity must not be done without a moral sense.
In his teaching verses, he says “Economy without
morality cannot last for ever. Morality without
economy struggles in vain.”He meant that we should not only pursue ourSCHOOL LIFE
personal happinessand interests, but havean attitude of thankfulness to the society
which includes ourparents, husband orwife, and brothers andsisters, because in thewidest sense, we owe
what we are now to the nature around us. So wemust, he says, return such favors as we havereceived to everyone and everything around us.
To do for others may give back something tooneself. Moral activity cannot be one-way. Hetells us that morality and economy are two wheelsof a cart.

HOTOKU-KUN (The Teaching of Ninomiya Sontoku)

School starts at 8:30 am and ends at 4:20 pm on weekdays. There are four classes in themorning and two or three in the afternoon. Each period is 50 minutes long, and each classconsists of 40 students or so. Except for some elective subjects, students stay in their homeroom classes and wait for their teachers to come unlike in many schools in Western countries.
Various kinds of subjects are offered such as English, Japanese, mathematics, science, socialstudies, art, music, P.E., domestic science, information technology, and so forth. In addition tothese subjects many special activities are prepared, so that the students enjoy their school life
as much as possible.

8:00

8:30

12:35

Some students commute bytrain or on foot, and others cycle
to school. Most students live
in areas within easy access toschool. No students are livingin the dormitory, which is open
only for occasional events.

At the morning meeting, thestudents are given instructions for the day by their
homeroom teacher. They areinformed of the matters to beattended to during the day.
The junior students spend
their time reading books
before the meeting begins.

The lunch period is from 12:35 pm
to 1:20 pm. They have lunch
chatting merrily with each other.
Some of them enjoy using thecafeteria, and others bring theirown boxed lunch from homefeeling the warmth of their
happy family.

COMING TO SCHOOL

The origin of the human being is the Spiritual order of the Universe.
The origin of thy physical body is due to upbringing by thy father and mother.
Thanks to exertions by husband and wife, children grow up to succeed to the family.

THE MORNING MEETINGLUNCH TIME

Riches and honours thy father and mother are blessed with owe their forebears.
Riches and honours thou art blessed with are the fruit of good deeds done over and over again foryears by thy father and mother.
Thy children may enjoy riches and honours provided thou art industrious in the pursuit of thy occupation.
Long life springs from proper clothing, feeding and housing.
Clothes, food and houses are obtainable from farm land, woods and mountains.
Farm land, woods and mountains are made serviceable by tireless tillage and development by men.
Clothes and food one uses during the present year are the fruit of productive industry carried on during
the preceding year.
Clothes and food one will use next year will be produced by hard work done during the present year.
Year in and year out one must not forget to return virtue for virtue.

The above passages are quoted from A GUIDE TO “HOUTOKU”, Sontoku Ninomiya’s Philosophy,
published by Dai-Nippon Houtoku-sha.

Ninomiya Sontoku, known as a
typical pragmatic philosopher andalso as a man of filial piety, supported his family since his earlyboyhood. After he lost his parents
at the age of sixteen, he was forced
to lead a severe life taking care of
his two younger brothers. He madeevery effort to work and study
industriously, and consequently
succeeded in rebuilding his family

2when he was 24 years old. Laterhe became one of the mostcompetent leaders in Japan, whohelped rebuild more than six
hundred impoverished villages.
This statue that represents his
younger days reading a book while
carrying firewood on his back, hasbeen regarded as a symbol ofdiligence.

four classes
8:30

8:45

three classes
12:35

13:20

16:10

16:20

16:10

16:20

16:40

At the closing meeting, thestudents are informed of theschedule for the next day.
Also they read aloud thewords by Ninomiya Sontoku
together so as to keep them inmind and they finish the day
peacefully.

Classrooms are cleaned by
the students’ own hands. They
share the job of cleaning up:
some sweep the floor, somewipe the desks with damp
cloths, and others wash thewindows.

After class most of the students
participate in club activities.

THE CLOSING MEETING

CLEAN THE CLASSROOMSCLUB ACTIVITIES

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HOTOKUGAKUENCLUB ACTIVITIESSCHOOL MAP & FACILITIES

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Front Gate

Otani Hall

GardenArita Hall

5678

Administrative
OfficeComputer Room

Guidance
Counseling RoomGymnasium

9101112

Dining Hall

Library

Training RoomTennis Courts

1314

Other Facilities

SPORTS

Sumo Wrestling, Judo, Kendo, Kyudo, Shorinji Kempo, Track and Field, Gymnastics,Swimming, Baseball, Rugby, Tennis, Football, Basketball, Volleyball, Table Tennis, Handball, Skiing, Hiking, Golfing

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES

Chado (Sado, Japanese styled tea ceremony), Shodo (calligraphy), Igo and Shogi(traditional Japanese games like chess), Brass Band, Broadcasting, Art, Photography, Gardening, Social Studies, Mathematics, Science

Bicycle Parking
Area
16 Judo and Kendo Dojo
17 Swimming Pool
15

Sumo & Kyudo
Dojo
4

Dormitory

5