It is not a secret that technology is the vital engine that drives economic growth. Various statistics have shown that the more technologically advanced a country the wealthier it is. There seems to be a strong link between education and technological innovations. Highly developed countries tend to be ones that value and embrace quality education.
Among the top industrial countries, no country is more technology-focused than Japan. This is partly due to the fact that Japan is a resource-scarce country. The country even had to resort to war as a mean to expand its resource stock. Of course, we all know how Japan fared in World War II. But the country’s defeat might have been the best thing that could have happened to the land of the rising sun.
After the war, Japan turned to its vast human capital as the source of economic growth; the decision thus far has been a brilliant one. The country has the highest college graduate rate in science and engineering. Moreover, most of Japan’s exports are technology-related products including automobiles, electronics, and machineries. Japanese brands like Toyota, Sony, and Toshiba are well-known to world’s consumers.
While you are reading this, you may be thinking in your head how science must have played a dominating factor in the education of Japanese children. The truth is to the contrary. While the Japanese seek to stimulate young minds with science and technology, a large chunk of the curriculum is devoted to art and not science. The reason for this is simple. The Japanese believe that having a creative imagination is the key to becoming the next great engineer or master designer of technology. They also believe that exposing their youths to the arts is a great way to stimulate and promote one’s imagination and visual insights.
Consequently, the first thing Japanese children learn in school is how to draw. They are encouraged to draw anything their imagination can come up with. Some draw mountains and grass fields. Others draw cartoon characters and robots. These drawings may look innocent and insignificant; the truth is that many of them have the potential to become the engine that drives future innovation and technology.
In the 1960s and 1970s, there was a series of manga (Japanese comics) depicting the development of highly intelligent robots that could be used in both warfare and civilian tasks. The idea was well-received at the time generating a strong fascination with robots and smart technologies among Japanese kids. Today, Japan leads the world in robotics having more than half of the world’s active industrial robots.
Another form of arts that Japanese children are being exposed to is origami–the Japanese art of paper folding. Virtually everyone who lives in Japan is skilled at this art form. While most outsiders admire origami for its unique craft, they often overlook how much geometry and analytical skills are involved in implementing such an art.
Origami demands a great deal of details and meticulousness from the artist. Let face it, to turn a plain sheet of paper into something so lively and realistic is never an ordinary task. Having exposed to this amazing art, Japanese children are trained to think critically; they also accumulate the valuable lessons of craftsmanship.
I want your opinion. Which school subject do you believe is the most important and why? Mathematics? Science? Language? Art? History? Physical Education (Sports)?
[Simon N.]
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I don’t know if I could label one subject as most important; I think it depends on what we’re weighing its import to.
For instance, I agree with the Japanese philosophy of nurturing both imagination and critical thinking skills; I believe equal exercise of both right- and left-brain hemispheres will result in more creative, original thinkers, and stronger critical thinking. They go hand in hand.
Therefore, while sciences, such as mathematics and physics, chemistry, biology and such are all critical, I believe balancing this with creative exercises for the right brain — the development of which generally stops at about age nine here in the US — should be given equal weight.
*Whew!* That’s a lot just to say balance is key.
Balance is definitely the key. It is sad to hear that many schools in the U.S. are cutting funding for art and athletics. Children should be exposed to all sorts of things (the good ones of course).
Interesting entry, as always. I love Japan. I’m dying to go there!
As to your question, I believe that the point of going to school is becoming well-rounded. Thus, none of the subjects are more important than the other, and the students themselves choose which area their interests lie in and thus pursue them.
Unfortunately, many students have no control over their destiny. They tend to pursue interests that others believe best fit them.
I would choose Mathematics, Science and Physical Education, but the others are necessary too!
I see. You must be very good with technology and are quite an athlete. Am I right?
I’m okay with technology, but haven’t contributed anything
to a scientific or a technological field, so far at least 
I’m not an athlete, though 
Physical Education is deliberately ignored in my part of the world and that’s why I want it to be given priority. A sound mind performs much better when it resides in a sound body! 
“A sound mind performs much better when it resides in a sound body!”
You got it right.
xaevryn
I know this argument first hand. A lot of the art departments at my school have been suffering as we add more engineering and programming courses. I go to a relatively small high school (900 students throughout four grade levels) so funding can be a little tight. As it is now, the music and visual art departments have to raise almost all of their own funds or run out of materials by the end of the semester. Since I’m heavily involved in both, it can get a little crazy sometimes.
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CuriousC
This is a fascinating post. I believe that Americans are confused somehow in thinking that engineering and the arts are OPPOSITEs. And, I’ve heard too many stories about childhood art classes being scary rigid and anything BUT creative.
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Naomi
I think the Japanese have a very good point there! Without creativity, all you can do is add timeworn solutions to new problems, whether they fit properly or not. And as someone who’s been working in the IT industry for years… this happens ALL the time. Sigh.
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kimiam
I had a Japanese student who could render anything using very simple lines. I don’t know if she was exposed to sumi-e or tangrams or not. I found it fascinating, the simplicity and excellence of her designs at age 4.
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Yuriko
I love both science and technology as well as the arts… being of Japanese descent, I guess it wasn’t very hard to see the crafts around. Since I was third generation, however, it wasn’t such a big thing that I needed to learn. I really didn’t want to learn much of my culture because most of my friends were not Japanese. And I felt that I would be alienating them (I guess — how would I know? I was a kid!).
I have since learned a little about origami, but I think it’s becoming a lost art. I do plan on ensuring my children will learn more about the Japanese culture. I just hope I won’t get much resistance.
I also think that being able to draw and play is a big thing for kids.. and when I say play, I don’t mean video games or watching tv. I mean playing outside with other kids, using tree branches, boxes, and anything else they could find – and more importantly, their brains and imagination. Or even playing with other kids and playing a board game — not the newer games where you don’t have to use your imagination.. but older ones like chutes and ladders, sorry, monopoly (not electronic), clue, and life.
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MadSilence
Two additional items of interest:
Carnegie Melon Student Develops First Origami-Folding Robot
http://www.newmaterials.com/news/6790.asp
And, from the September 2007 issue of Critical Asian Studies:
Japan accounts for nearly 52 percent of the world’s share of operational robots and leads the postindustrial world in the development of humanoid robots designed and marketed specifically to enhance and augment human society. Innovation 25, Prime Minister Abe’s visionary blueprint for remaking Japanese society by 2025, with the aim of reversing the declining birthrate and accommodating the rapidly aging population, emphasizes the central role that household robots will play in stabilizing core institutions, like the family.