Infomation Education in Japan: Current Status and Future Directions
Yasushi KUNO∗
2013.6.20

1Agenda• Appropriate self-evaluation of one’s activities□ Social perticipation to information society□ Information Education in Japan• History and Current Status (briefly)• Understand roles and effects of information• Many Problems (briefly)• Understand needs for ”information morals” and responsibility• Why Information Education? (briefly)□ Activities Toward the Future• Willingness to participate in creation of ideal society• New curriculum proposals□ Teaching guidelines for ”information” subject area

• Evaluation / University entrance exams(1999)• Educational programming languages / environments• 3 subjectes: Joho A/Joho B/Joho C• All contains three goals (Practice/Science/Social),
with different weights

2Information Education in Japan □ Problems...
(history)• Blurred distinction (A/B/C names, same goals)□ until 1990s: ”to be carried out in each subjects”• Class hours: 2 unit (minimum)• Joho A: easy subject (not mentioned in Mext com-

• no teacher trainingmittee)• a little computer topics in math (programming)□ New subject started in S.Y. 2003

• ==> not effective□ Next teaching guidelines ... announced in 2008

□ Mext resognizes importance of information□ Mext’s research committe ==> report (1997)• Two subjectes: ”Sicence of Inforamtion”, ”Societyand Information”• Goals for infomatics education• Descendant of ”Joho B”/”Joho C” respectively• New subject area in highschools: ”Information”• Easy subject ”Joho A” dropped□ Goal: Abilities to survive ”Information Society”□ How about in elementary and junior-high scholls?

□ Practical ability toward information usage• Japanese school: strongly subject area-based• Appropriate usage of infomation media/equipments• Collect/judge/represent/process/create• No ”information study” subject in elementary /informa-jounior-high schoolstion on its own• junihor-high ”technology and howsework” contains
some ICT education (hours are not enough; no ”in-• Output information with receiver’s status in mind

formation expert” teachers)□ Scientific understandings of information• Mext says that all subject should participate in information education, but actually not realized• Know various properties/principles of information□ How about in universities?

∗ Faculty of Business Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tokyo1• Newcomers are highly varied: from ”well educated”
to ”nothing” ==> have to start from scratch at• ”General information education”• Some universities teaches principles and systematiccurriculum

each school• Boring to well educated, too high hurdle to ignorant• Other (many) colleges simply teaches usage of MSoffice□ Varied general information education also at universi-ties

3

Strong and Weak Points
Japanof• In total, no ”bottom line” in the knowlege/skill levels archieved by school education in Japan• Excess variability continues in citizens...

□ Teacher Problems□ GOOD: Social aspects were stated as educational goal

• Large teacher needs when new subject started

from the start• Gave licences to science/math teachers with 15-days• How to behave in information society

training (14,000 teachers in total, in 2000-2002)• How to communicate with others• Non-professional teachers: could only teach software operatin• (How much of the goals archieved is another prob-lem)• Many teacher posts are still occupied by such teachers□ GOOD: Focus to creation (group problem solving, presentation)□ Ignorance Problems• What we lack most in Japanese schools• Managers’/Govrnments’ idea: ”information” is just

• (Western schools includes such curriculum tradi-a computer school and not importanttionally)• Leads to insufficient resource allcation and (maybe)neglection• (How much of the goals archieved is another problem)• Doesn’t recognize problems even when what istaught is not as what the mext teaching guidelines
defines4□ Problem of No choice for students□ The reason we need infomatics education should notbe forgotten• Mext says: students should choose which subject totake according to their interests□ Basic premise: today is ”infomation society” in that...

• Actually, most school teaches opens one subject, so• Information technologies are ubiquitous

no choice• People place more and more values to information• ”Joho A” (easy subject) was the majority (80 percent)(contents, experiences)□ Young people joining to our society needs basic under-□ Teacher problems (2)standings on information and infomation technology
because...

• Minimum class hours ==> many teachers teachboth information and other subject• They have to work on many jobs (> 10) throughout• Albeit teachers, part-time license to unrelated subjects’ teachers (e.g. Art, Music, ...)

their life and most of those jobs (many nonexistenttoday) requires IT.

□ Non-uniformity Problem• Elementary and junior-high:

Why Information Education?

• In today’s society, all citizenz should posses basic understandings on what are ITs and what theySome scool invest

can/cannot archieve, so that they can make appropriate decisions on their own.

many hours while others ”none”□ NOTE: both are on ”education for every people”

2• IT experts are of course needed and information □ Our basic plinciple:
education should prepare foundations toward this• Configuration: mandatory subject ”Joho I” + elecdirection.
tive subject ”Joho IIB” (current ”mandatory with• However, ”information fluency for citizens” should
choices” had many drawbacks).
be the primary goal (my opinion).
• ”Joho I” forcuses on basic principle — carefully□ Japan problems: many professionals do not understandchoose what it should contain. However, ”programimportance of IT and software development skills; they
regard those as ”what they can purchase with money”.

ming experiences” should be included anyway.
• ”Joho IIB” contains more detailed scientific contents. Difference of problem solving (Joho I: social• e.g. Many Japanese coropration do not hire IT pro-problems and solution process; Joho II: algorithmic/complex problems).

fessionals; they only expect some ”nice” specification emerging from IT company.

• The result is low-quality software requrement spec- □ Belows are breif overviews of each subject.
ification, low-quality and high-cost information systems.

5.1

Joho I• Good-quality software developers in Japan are rare
because many customers cannot evaluate quality □ Information and Its Representationand just jump into ”cheap and low quality” solutions.

• definition of information, nature of information, information society• Currently Japanese corporations are acting in• infomation and media, analog/digital, representation of various information

Japan’s local economics, but in the next era of globarization...

• information transmisison / expression, desigining□ To overcome the problems, we should raise ”basic infor-presentation

mation knowledge levels” for all people (my opinion).

□ Computers and Networks□ In summary:• structure of computers and its operation principle,
software / application• We should promote information education to young
people because they will need those to live.

• basic algorithm elements, programming language
description• We should promote information education to young
people because appropriate level of IT understanding for every citizens are mandatory; otherwise• network structures / principles, security, mail andWeb

Japan will not survive the next era.

□ Communication and Information Morals5• communication, media literacy

Information Curriculum Proposal for the Next Decade• information morals / ethics, trade-offs, dilemma• law and individual responsibilities, intellectual
property□ IPSJ primary and secondary educational commit-

tee have been interested in Highschool ”Inrofmation
Study” subject from its start.

• copyright law, protection of personal information□ Information Society and Problem Solving• We have publised curriculumn propsal in the formof ”experimental textbook” in advance each time
Mext designes and publishes official teaching guide-• charasterics of information society, information systems w/ examples

lines• problem solving process, gathering / analyzing information• In 2012, we have publised our new version of ”experimental textbook” targetting next dacade guide-• execution and evaluation, PDCA-cyclelines (expcted around 2016).
3

5.2

Joho IIB• Balance — technology (incl. programming) and socials□ Computers and Networks□ Joho II• computers and information processing — computers as information processors, roles of software,• Elective subject, more technology-oriented (for future engineers)

communication with computers• network and communication — protocol layers,• Deteiled network technology, detailed programmingrouting, error control, compression / expansion,
network algorithms(more on algorithm), database and data management• information systems and information technology —• Social part: more of developer’s side, HCI, engineer
ethics, PM

modeling information systems, requirements andspecification, system development process□ Problem Soving and Computers6• algorithms and software — algorithm definition,”Information” University Entrance Exams

roles of programming languages, control structures□ For any subject, proper evauation method is mandaand procedures
tory.
• algorithmic problem solving / problem definition• Japan’s specific situation: no common graduation
and algorithm — data structures, procedural strucexam for highscool ==> university entrance exam
turing / abstraction
conveys such roles• modeling and simulation — role of models, various modeling techniques, simulation implementa-• Major subject area (national language, math, English, science, social studies): ”center exams” forms
common basistion and practice□ Managing Infomation for Problem Solving• No such method for ”information” yet — no ”center exam”, few universities set question on ”infor-• storage and management of infomation anddatabase — why storeage?, database concepts andmation”

functions, roles of database on probem solving• RESULT: ”information is unimportant subjectarea” (many teachers’ / schol managers’ recogni-• problem solving processes / techniques — problem
discovery, problem solving, role sharing, recoding /tion)

evaluation / improvement□ JNSG — Joho Nyuushi (Infomation Entrance-exam)□ Information Society and Information Technology

Study Group (2011.1-)• Develop ”standard information exam problem set”

• infomation society and information systems — rolesof information systems, safety and crimes, lights

as common evaluation criteria.

and shades• human and computers — cognitive property of hu-• Promote ”information exams” for more university
to include in their entrance exams.

mans, user interface, effects of information society
over humans• Mock entrance exams for year 2013, 2014, 2015 sothat more students / teachers would recognize infomation as major subject area.

• inforamtion and occupation — occupation / en-gineer ethics, various occupations, teamworks,□ Problem set #001 — made public on Oct. 2012
project management• Part 1 — common questions (8 questions)□ In summary:• Part 2 and 3 — science of information□ Joho I• Part 4 and 5 — society and information• Mandatory subject, basic bottom-line for future cit- □ Part 1 — common questions: various related materials;
izens
both multiple-choice and written questions4• (1) difference among analog and digital.

student whole
number47
89
highest 90
99
lowest16
16
average 34.1
53.0

• (2) definition of ”digital” (written question).
• (3) question on sequrity (require understanding of
why some activity is prohibited).
• (4) organizing e-mail messages (actual experiences

100-990-8180-71
70-61
60-51
50-41
40-3130-21
20-1110-0will help).
• (5) wiring of LAN (actual experiences will help).
• (6) question on information ethics (require understanding of reasons).
• (7) question on matters enabled by computers /networks (require understanding of essential component for each case).

10911626719100□ In Summary:• (8) question on information coding (actual experiences will help).

• JNSG are proposing ”information” university entrance exams.

□ Part 2 — Programming• Conducting mock exam on 2013, 2014, 2015.
• Program lines are response alternative ==> choose
those line-by-line and compose correct program• GOALS: establish standard evaluation criteria for”information”, promote precense of ”infomation”
subject area.

• Tradiditonal form: complete-the-blank questions(could be answered by memorizing)• We would like to see the ”real” programming ability.

7□ Part 3 — Database

Programming Education: Reasons and Points• Small fraction of students will actually learn□ Programming were mandatory in old-age computer eddatabase (relational mode, SQL, ...)
ucation because:• Our question will readily be answered if students
have experiences with spreadsheet data processing• There were no ready-made application software.
(or maybe with just thinking on the fly).

• One had to craft one’s own program to achive• We would like to stress importance of data manupilation.

someching important.
• In those ages, programming classes were ubiquitous.

□ Part 4 (and Part 5; whilch were not included here) —□ Today, one need not program because sotware are read-Society and Information

ily availabe.

• Reading long sentences on specific theme (relatedto social aspect of information)• In spite of the fact above, we believe that programming should be mandatory in infomation education.

• Both reading / comprehenshion abilities and knowl-• Other countries (UK, USA) moving in this direction.

edge related to ”society and information” (e.g. sequrity, copyright, network technology, information□ The reasons we should teach programming:systems) are required• to understand essence of computers and its univer-□ Prompt report: mock exam using set #002 on May 18,sality.

2013.

• Knowlege of application are not general ones and• Levels of set #002 are similar to set #001 (as wealso outdates quickly, while programming principles
do not change.

expect).
• About 80 attendans (half of them are highschoolstudents)• One should know how to ”create new thing” withcompouters.

5• Making things are attractive topics for students.
□ However, we should be aware on the past failures andbe careful not to repeat them again:• Using unsuitable language for education (e.g. BASIC and LOGO are very old languages and has large
gap on learning)• Concentrating on programming language syntax
and teaching them one-by-one (we should concentrate on writing actual, fun-to-make programs).
□ Following three points should not be missed:• GOAL: ”experience programming to come into contact with the essence of computers.”• Japanese ==> could be used for pre-English age
pupils• SHOLD: choose appropriate language / emviroment
according to studens’ intersts and concerns.

• Turtle graphics (from LOGO) — good starting• HOW: ”create and observe what children con-point for chlidren

cieved,” ”children approach the lessons by thinking• Object orientation — various useful parts can beon their own.”

programmed

7.1• Text-based ==> smooth transition to traditional
language

Educational Programming Environment□ Traditional Languages (BASIC, LOGO, ...) *could* beused for education, however...
• Many obstacles ==> need careful workarounds (byexperienced teachers)□ New Educational Languages:• Far less obstacles which trap children• Appropriate environment for various concerns /needs (examples below)

7.2

Dolittle□ Educational, Japane-based, O-O language (Kanemuneand Kuno)

7.3

Scratch□ Programming Environment from MIT (successor ofSqueak eToys)

6• Block-based ==> no text typing, no syntax error• Moving robot on grid-plane using block-composed
programs• Many workshops, materials, on-line sites and communities.

• GOAL: take all ”flags” placed on some of the places• (Mext also developed block-based environment
called ”programmin’”)• Success if all flags are cleard; emphasis on shortprogram ==> strong taste of puzzles / games• A kind of ”gamification-based” programming education?

7.4Algologic□ Block-based virtual robot programming by Oyama(JEITA)

7.5

Viscuit□ Rewiting-based program on freehand drawings byHarada (NTT Labs.)

7

7.6

Status of Practical Applications ofProgramming Education□ Highschool — included in ”Joho B” (old taechingguidelines) and ”Science of Inforamtion (new ones),• However, those subjects are minor (around 10 to 20percent).
□ Junior Highschool — mainly by some ambitious teach-ers• Subject of technology includes ”mesurement andcontrol” materials ==> many corporation sells program controlled toy cars w/ sensors.

• No text / instruction, only pictures ==> OK forpreschoolers• Nost technology teachers have weights on wooden /metal crafting• Simple ”glass” (rewriting rule)-based program canmake various interesting movement ==> basic□ Elementary School
characteristic of computers.
• No regular school curriculum for programming• Aesthetic perspectives (handwritten pictures, col• Local government-based clubs, NPO-based after-ors, movement)

school class, etc. (e.g. Viscuit-Juku, TENTO programming school, ...)• (often used in workshop-like setting)□ In summary:• Development of many ambitious programming environments are under way.
• Needs for programming education is becoming
widely known.
• However, ordinary teachers are too busy in otherproblems.
• Also, they are reluctunt to teaching programming
because most of them have not majored in sciences.

8

Review of Agenda□ Information Education in Japan• History and Current Status (briefly)• Many Problems (briefly)• Why Information Education? (briefly)□ Activities Toward the Future• New curriculum proposals• Evaluation / College entrance exams• Educational programming languages / environments8