Chemical Education in Japan Version 2

Chapter 7 CHEMICAL EDUCATION IN THE MOVING AGE
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7.1 INTRODUCTION

Since 1979 when the first version of this report was made, many new factors affecting chemical education have arisen which were unanticipated at that time. Each factor influences the process and practice of chemical education to a considerable extent. The following items are points to be discussed in connection with recent trends in chemical education in Japan.

(a) A Rapid Decrease of School-Age Children

(b) A Proposal for a New "Course of Study"

(c) From "Common Examination" to "Center Examination"

(d) New Trends in University Entrance Examinations

(e) Abolishment of General Education in the Universities

(f) "Three K's" and Science-Shunning in the Younger Generation

(g) A Rapid Increase in the Demand for Social Education

(h) Internationalization of Chemical Education at Various Stages

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7.2 RAPID DECREASE OF SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN

7.2.1 Elementary Schools


The number of childbirths had been increasing between 1969 and 1981. The number began to decrease, however, since 1982 (see Table 7.2.1).

Table 7.2.1  The number of elementary school students 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Year     total         1          2          3          4          5 
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  1981    11924653    1987310    2054749    2049753    2009931    1937349
  1982    11901520    1865573    1986535    2054040    2049188    2009184
  1983    11739452    1778059    1864555    1985899    2053519    2048514
  1984    11464221    1735943    1777291    1864041    1985443    2053072
  1985    11095372    1682671    1735138    1776714    1863572    1984684
  1986    10665404    1624306    1682005    1734818    1776383    1863332
  1987    10226323    1546854    1623840    1681758    1734500    1776149
  1988     9872520    1511632    1546097    1623340    1681384    1734123
  1989     9606627    1511870    1510986    1547727    1622878    1681105
  1990     9373295    1501786    1511292    1510705    1545557    1622848
  1991     9157429    1464220    1501615    1511532    1510968    1545888
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To keep pace with the decrease in the total number of students in elementary school, class size limits have been gradually changed from "50 students per class" to "40 students per class". According to this regulation, the maximum number of students in each class should be less than 40. If there are 41 students, two classes must be set up so that this regulation is maintained.

Table 7.2.2  The number of classes according to size 
             (elementary school)
-------------------------------------------------------
            20     21-30     31-40      41-     total
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  1990    45084    74786    184988    10568    315426
  1991    45498    80630    186288     1290    313707
-------------------------------------------------------

In some subjects, a "two teacher system" is being introduced. In this system two teachers are simultaneously in a classroom so that there should not be any student who fails to keep pace with the progress of the class as a whole (see Table 7.2.2).

The situation can be illustrated by the case of the academic year 1991. The number of students in the first year of primary school was 38,000 less than that of the previous school year. There were 700 more teachers than the previous school year. The ratio of female school teachers was 59.3% of the total number of teachers, and increased by 1.0% over the previous school year. The number of schools in outlying areas is 41 less than the previous school year, and data shows multi-grade classes are on the decrease, indicating that consolidation of districts is taking place.

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7.2.2 Lower Secondary Schools


The number of students of lower secondary schools has continuously been decreasing since 1988. The number of students in their first year of lower secondary school is 53,000 less than that of the previous school year. The number of teachers remained almost the same as the previous school year. The ratio of female school teachers was 37.3%, and increased 0.9% over the previous school year (see Table 7.2.3).

Table 7.2.3  The Number of Lower Secondary School Students
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  year     total       1st        2nd        3rd
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  1981    5299282    1886266    1853702    1559314
  1982    5623975    1884912    1885554    1853509
  1983    5706810    1936609    1884641    1885560
  1984    5828867    2008141    1936148    1884578
  1985    5990183    2047194    2007415    1935574
  1986    6105749    2051853    2046861    2007035
  1987    6081330    1983729    2051267    2046334
  1988    5896080    1862155    1983023    2050902
  1989    5619297    1775086    1861456    1982755
  1990    5369162    1733267    1774591    1861304
  1991    5188314    1680758    1733021    1774535
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7.3 A PROPOSAL FOR A NEW "COURSE OF STUDY".

The Course of Study(Shido Yoryo) has been revised almost every 7 years. As shown in the Fig. 2.3.1, the Committee recommended revising the Course of Study because it was inadequate to meet the changes in society; the plan was outdated. Actually, the Revised Edition of the Course of Study they were going to use in 1994 had first begun in 1976 with the originating committee (Kyouka Katei Shinngikai), but the social situation has rapidly changed since then: e.g., there was an imbalanced supply and demand for labor in the software business in the 1970-80's, but now there is overproduction of software developers. This indicates that in order to meet the principle of updating for societies changing needs, the Revised Edition of the Course of Study should be based upon very sophisticated perspectives of society, however, it is almost impossible to make an adequate forecast of society's needs, say 20 years from now. Therefore, the Committee merely analyzes the present trends or peculiarities of society, and the information from schools using the Course of Study, and trys to modify the difficulties in the new Course of Study.

The difficulties of the present stage in school education may be described in the following manner:

  1. Young students have no particular interest in the study of any subjects, because they are satisfied,

  2. Their characters are very "independent"- we call this "Individualization in their actions" (Koseika).

  3. The quality of young people varies depending upon their personalities, we call this "Variety in the Quality" (Tayo-ka).

What should be the philosophy of the New Course of Study, even though it will be used in the 21st century? No one can predict the social pattern or needs in the 21st century, but even so we must consider the frame of the Course of Study.

There is no such proposal by the official Committees in Monbusho yet, but the following thoughts are merely one private opinion on revising the latest Course of Study which will begin discussions in the near future.

  1. ) Class size should be decreased to 25 from the current 40.

  2. ) Course contents for each of the schools should be more flexible than current descriptions.

  3. ) As far as the science courses are concerned, there should be coexisting opportunities for taking either overview "Combined Science Courses" or more specialized "Separate Courses in Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Earth Sciences".

  4. ) Text books used in the upper secondary schools should be "Free from inspection by Monbusho".

These notes are relevant because they address several long-term issues.

  1. ) The birthrate in Japan is decreasing, and to keep teachers employed without firing them as unnecessary, the only method of assuring teachers of job safety is to decrease class sizes by half from the present. If teachers feel their position is inherently unstable, they will be distracted and ultimately less motivated to teach the course with the excellence or productive efforts these subjects demand. Increased job turnover as they leave seeking more stable employment would be detrimental to the teaching profession and students.

  2. ) The course contents designated in the present Course of Study are so detailed that teachers cannot introduce original ideas but must keep pace to follow the course contents. If these restrictions are reduced, teachers will be able to teach the courses with their own ideas. This change should be followed by Monbusho halting the inspection and control over text books, as mentioned in Ch. 7.3.

  3. ) The Science Course is divided into four fields, i.e. Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Earth Sciences. However, this categorization based upon academic background should be neglected in school education, because for the general public, the aim of studying science is merely to investigate and understand nature, not to follow the historical improvements in each subject. However, there are strong demands to have successors in the field of science and technology to support the nation, and it is necessary to train capable young students to be specialists in the field of natural science. So, the course contents of the science courses should be divided into two, the first for the general public - only the combined science course would be required, and secondly to include very sophisticated contents for students who wish to enter the field as a professional, but no detailed descriptions in the Course of Study - just allow teachers to freely teach science as they see best.
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7.4 FROM "COMMON EXAMINATION" TO "CENTER EXAMINATION"

Both examinations are different from other university entrance examinations because these two are organized and carried out by the government institution established for this purpose. All applicants to national and most prefectural universities are required to take this examination as a prerequisite.

Recently some private universities have tried to use this examination as a part of their own entrance examination. The following information contains a brief chronological history of the two examinations.

(a) The 1979 Reforms

The preliminary standard college entrance examination started as a part of the screening process to state and public universities. The most characteristic point associated with this system is that the examination is to be carried out by the government institution rather than by individual universities. It originally covered seven core subjects from major fields, and has a moderate level of difficulty in problems because the purpose of this common examination is to determine if the applicant has an adequate academic background as a upper secondary school graduate. The second (final) examination was prepared and implemented under the separate authority of each university because it reflects each school's unique focus.

After World War II, state universities were split into two groups, the first group setting earlier test dates and the second later dates. Both the first and second examinations were made up by each university and applicants who failed to make their way to a first-group university still had another chance to get into a second-group university.

This system, however, led to fierce competition among the students who hoped to get into so-called big-name universities. The introduction of the uniform examination system was expected to make a major step forward in setting the Japanese educational system back on to the right track.

However, new problems emerged. Since the uniform examination was scheduled in January, rather early at best, classroom teaching and extra-curricular activities in many upper secondary schools were neglected so that students could have more time to prepare for the uniform and separate university entrance examinations.

(b) The 1987 Reforms

The number of subjects was reduced from seven to five, a perfect match to the number of the major fields. Then, the grouping strategy was adopted again, groups A and B this time, to give students more than one opportunity to enter state universities. (table 7.4.1)

At the same time, due to schools beginning to base the first stage selection process on the scores obtained from the uniform examination, some students were not allowed to sit for the second stage. Despite this problem, this system was modified for the better.

(c) The 1989 Reforms

The uniform examination changed its shape into the university center-examination given by the National Center for University Entrance Examinations, which adopted a split screening system at its later stage. In this system, after the center examination two separate examinations were given by the same university, each examination having its quota of students to accept, and the students had only to pass either one of the two tests for admittance. The successful applicants on the first examination who cleared the necessary paper work automatically lost their right to take the second examination in order to give a better chance to the unsuccessful students on the first examination.

(d) The 1990 Reforms

The number of mandatory subjects on the center examination became flexible and each university could choose and designate fewer than five subjects as mandatory and notify the applicants of this beforehand. This change ushered in the participation of private institutions. The number of private universities joining in this examination is gradually increasing. From a broader perspective, the number of mandatory subjects is decreasing because students are being alienated by those universities who impose too great a work load upon them. 

Table 7.4.1  Outline of Screening tests given by private colleges*1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
  item                          1992 *2                 1993 *2
                          college   department    college   department
------------------------------------------------------------------------
  essay test                108        154          111       157
  interview                 132        196          131       183
  skill test                 67         74           67        74
  enrollment by 
         recommendation     364        789          366       798
  secondary recruiting      149        229          148       230
  2nd stage examination      32         39           32        40
  local examination          19         93           23       105
  Center Test *3             32         46           56        85
------------------------------------------------------------------------
*1total number of colleges & departments surveyed
         1992:     383 colleges,  897 departments
         1993:     389 colleges,  914 departments
*2 academic year starts from April 1 and ends on March 31, the next year.
*3 examinations given by National Center for University Entrance Examination

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7.5 NEW TRENDS IN UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS

Currently about 40% of people in the 18-19 age group are attending universities. Japan is a society where education counts. So everybody wants to graduate from a university with high prestige, to get a better job. Generally, the number of students who drop out during their studies in a university is small. This is because there are no social mechanisms which accept those who have dropped out. Universities are obliged to send out basically all students which they accept into the society as graduates. This has given rise to a situation referred to as: "Japanese universities are difficult to enter, but easy to graduate from." As a result, competition in the entrance examinations tends to be severe. This has been the tradition. A similar tradition seems to prevail as well in China, Korea and Taiwan.

The capacity of universities is 0.6 million students per year. Most people try to take the entrance examinations of a few universities in parallel which they believe to be of the appropriate grade of difficulty. The number of people who take registered university entrance examinations each year amounts to 4 million. The actual number of people who try to enter a university is not exactly known, but estimated to be 1.1 million per annum. The estimation is difficult, because those who have failed (who are called Ronin--i.e., jobless Samurais) may try again the next year. There is no military service in Japan, so in principle one can try many years until one finally succeeds. In reality, however, many people consider years spent as a Ronin meaningless when it exceeds two years.

In 1979 the Ministry of Education and Culture started a unified national examination, called the "Common Examination" for those who wish to enter national universities. The result was generally used as a first step screening, the threshold depending on the "grade of difficulty" of a specific university. The system has been modified since 1990 so that universities may more freely use the system, for example, universities may use all, or a part of, the subjects tested. Private universities are also encouraged to join and make use of this examination. It is administered by the University Entrance Examination Center and is called the Center Examination.

Japan's population is becoming rapidly older. The fraction of people beyond 65 of age is growing rapidly, thanks to the advance of medical and social care in the last 20-30 years. A low birth rate is pulling down the percentage of young people so that the expected number of students will soon decrease rapidly.

To cope with this trend universities are trying all kinds of tactics to attract students and to survive. Most private universities require only one subject in natural science (among physics, chemistry, biology, and geoscience) in their entrance examinations, while most national (government-owned) universities require two subjects, e.g., chemistry and biology. Many universities are restructuring their faculties and departments to meet new government regulations which allow universities more freedom in planning their curriculum. The style of entrance examinations is also changing. A considerable percentage (estimated to be 40%) of students are admitted through recommendation of upper secondary schools, according to their school records. There is also a capacity for a limited number of students who graduated from (or were attending) upper secondary school in a foreign country. This category has been encouraged by the government in order to give support to those business people who stay abroad with their families. The Ministry of Education and Culture is also encouraging universities to accept people as students who are currently working, as an effort to establish a life-long education. They are selected by separate standards.

Corresponding to this variety of channels leading to scholarship in a university, the style of entrance examinations itself is also changing. It is now more common to require applicants to write a short essay on a given topic. Questions requiring descriptive answers are much more common than ever. Some universities have begun recruiting students having certain special abilities or achievements, not directly related to grades. One rather extreme example: one of the faculties of Shinshu University in Nagano has admitted a student recognizing that he was a Karate champion.

These are all indications of changing attitudes in the public towards university entrance examinations. Formerly it was a firm belief that all problems in the entrance examinations should be objective. Strictly objective, in order to be fair. Only problems which could be judged with a single correct answer, up to a point, were employed. "Loose" or "interpretive" questions like requiring essays were not to be considered, the grading is more difficult to justify and possibly unfair.

The Chemical Society of Japan started a committee in 1987 to improve the quality of entrance examination questions. All committee members are university professors. The committee is issuing comments and recommendations every year on "Chemistry and Industry" and "Chemistry and Education", both regular publications of the Society, which may correspond to the American Chemical Society(ACS)'s Chemical & Engineering News(C&EN) and Journal of Chemical Education.

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7.6 ABOLISHMENT OF GENERAL EDUCATION--FUNDAMENTALIZATION (TAIKO-KA)

7.6.1 Introduction

As far as attempts to reform higher (tertiary) education after World War II are concerned, the most characteristic is the abolishment of the Imperial University System and establishment of a general education curriculum. At first glance it may seem that the two reformations are unconnected. The truth is that there is a very strong relationship between these two significant changes. The reason for abolishing the former Imperial University System was to change the role of (Imperial) Universities from being the exclusive organization responsible for cultivating high government officials. In establishing the General Education System, the importance of general education vs. specialized education (senmon kyoiku) was also stressed. In general, the university became much more democratized. This system has been maintained without any serious change over the last fifty years.

According to the general education system, the four year period of the university should be divided into two parts, the general education period and specialized education period, each for two years, though in practice only the first year is spent on general education. During the general education period it is expected that students should learn a variety of subjects including foreign languages and gymnastics. In general education, all science/technology majors must attend lectures from the field of social sciences and arts, and in a similar manner, all arts and social science students must attend lectures in the natural sciences and/or mathematics areas. The idea of general education, which was in fact imported from the United States, was eagerly received by the Japanese. The idea of general education is, in a sense, similar to the earlier idea of "Higher School" before World War II. The old high school system was a product of German influence that prevailed until 1945.

Most universities, particularly national universities, have a Department of General Education(Kyoyo-bu). Usually these are not the faculty (or college) of general education. Many universities were newly formed in response to the changes in the educational system after the war, and these new universities often did not have a campus large enough to accommodate all departments. Therefore, in many universities the newly-created Department of General Education was frequently located on a different campus entirely. This was one of the reasons why the Department of General Education often failed to receive sufficient support from the government or from the university.

Many new universities that were established just after the war did not have a campus large enough to accommodate all the faculties. In many cases, a separate campus was assigned to the department of general education. One example is the University of Tokyo. In this university, all faculties are on the traditional main campus in the Hongo area while the College of General Education was located in the Komaba area where Dai-ichi Koto Gakko (1st High School in the old system) was formerly located. In fact, Dai-ichi Koto Gakko was merged into the University of Tokyo. The situation of the University of Tokyo was slightly different from the other national universities in that the section of general education is an independent College (or rather, Faculty). This is a crucial point in the university administration since "the university autonomy" is generally believed to be based on the self governing, independent faculties.

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7.6.2 Deterioration of General Education


The idea behind general education is excellent in that one can learn subjects which are not necessarily one's major subject. By this one can expect to widen one's scope and appreciation for diverse aspects of life. The truth is, however, not so ideal. Chemistry for arts/social science students, for instance, is considerably different from that taught to science/technology students. The former tends to be qualitative stories. It can be said that chemistry for arts/social science students cannot be so systematic because the time needed to lay the necessary groundwork for comprehending detail is not available. Breadth is favored over depth. Much the same is true for arts/social science subjects for science/technology students. Such lectures are often held in a very large hall which can accommodate more than 500 students.

Briefly, the general education at the Department of General Education is gradually deteriorating. In many universities, the decrease in morale of students has become quite noticeable. To many students, the period of general education has become a kind of unavoidably necessary evil to be suffered through. So, the most important thing to them is to pass through this stage with the least effort possible. The original idea that the Department of General Education should be an exciting place giving students the opportunity to cultivate life-long interests outside of ones specialty areas seems to have regrettably died away.

This situation necessarily creates various opinions opposed to the regulations ordering universities to maintain general education departments. Opinion against the government policy can roughly be divided into two categories. One opinion insists that general education is not necessary for a university education, instead, students should begin their specialized training as soon as possible. Another opinion takes offense at the regulation of curriculum in the university in general. This opinion argues that the content of university education should not be regulated by the government; each university can, or rather, should have its own system including their best judgment as to the extent of necessary general education. Under these circumstances, the government decided to revise the official requirements for inauguration of a new university.

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7.6.3 Revision of University Establishment Standards (Daigaku Setti Kijyun)


In 1987 Monbusho established a committee specifically organized to make proposals to the Minister of Education. The committee is called the "Committee on Universities." This committee is different from the Central Education Committee (Chuo Kyoiku Shingikai). Since 1988, this new committee eagerly began discussions, and in 1991 a recommendation was submitted to the Minister, entitled "On the improvement of the Universities." On the basis of this recommendation Monbusho revised a series of laws and regulations including the official requirements for creating a new university.

As a result, fundamentalization (Taiko-ka) or liberalization of university curriculum was proposed. According to the new standard, the differentiation between general and specialized education was abolished, and student requirements were substantially reduced. It is now required that universities should set their own requirements for necessary hours of each of previously compulsory general education subjects, e.g., foreign language, arts subjects, social and natural sciences and gymnastics/health education. Briefly, each university is now allowed not only to organize its own curriculum, but also to organize their educational system as a whole.

It is too early to estimate the impact of this innovation. It is certain, however, that universities are now not required to have the Department of General Education and are also not required to abolish it. Consequently, certain opinions have gradually become popular, for example: "Now that it is not obligatory to have Kyoyo-bu, why should we not abolish it? With this facility including personnel, we can do better things, can't we?"

In fact, universities did not quickly react in that few universities abolished the general education and Kyoyo-bu immediately. There are many reasons for that. One very realistic reason is that it is difficult to make an immediate and drastic change of curriculum in a short time. This necessarily involves problems of displacing teaching staff. Since Monbu-sho does not intend to increase the number of teaching staff, this innovation in curriculum must be realized with the current staff available. As a matter of fact how to handle the current teaching staff of Kyoyo-bu is another serious issue.

Under such circumstances many if not all universities initiated projects to reform Kyoyo-bu into a new faculty where most teaching staff in the existing Kyoyo-bu will belong. Briefly, the strategy is a so-called "scrap and rebuild" plan. The idea is realistic but there are many problems or difficulties in practice. First, Monbu-sho will not approve of such plans unless the university can submit a productive plan which fully justifies the budgeted reconstruction work. Among the national universities which initiated efforts to attempt the difficult problem of reformation of Kyoyo-bu rather early, Kyoto University and Kobe University, both located in the Kansai area, obtained reasonable success. Kobe University will be given as an example.

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7.6.4 Kobe University; Reconstruction Efforts


In Kobe University, an attempt to improve university education, mostly the general education, was initiated as early as 1969. In fact, this kind of effort was started nationwide immediately following the calm after the storm of student protests and activity of the late 1960's. In Kobe University, however, this effort was continued even after most attempts in other universities ended with little success. In 1981, a new plan of reformation was drawn. The essence of this plan was reformation of general education to create a new core-curriculum as the kernel of general education and to make a new faculty (based on Dai-Koza or expanded Koza) out of the existing Kyoyo-bu.

The administrative staff at Kobe University spent a lot of energy in brushing up the plan and by 1984 they submitted a budget request (Gaisan Yokyu) for these planned changes . Finally, Monbu-sho budgeted enough for a preliminary survey of this plan to Kobe University for a four-year period, i.e., from 1988 to 1991. Meanwhile, the idea to fundamentalize university education gradually brewed and developed. In this sense, the plan of Kobe University is very timely. Following this budget for a preliminary survey, Monbu-sho granted the funds to complete the entire plan in reality. Accordingly, Kyoyo-bu of Kobe University was abolished in October 1992, and instead two new faculties were formed.

The essential change of the educational/administrative structure can be summarized as below.

  1. ) Abolishment of Kyoyo-bu and reformation of the faculty of education.

  2. ) Inauguration of a new faculty, the "Faculty of International Culture." The members of this faculty are mostly the previous members of Kyoyo-bu and some from the faculty of education.

  3. ) Inauguration of a new faculty, the "Faculty of Developing Science." The members of this faculty are mostly the previous members of the faculty of education and some from Kyoyo-bu.

  4. ) Transfer of a part of the teaching staff of Kyoyo-bu to other faculties, e.g., faculties of arts, science, engineering, agriculture, economy and law, and in addition, the research center for university education.

Such innovations in structure must accompany an innovation in education. The essential part of this innovation should be the education of non-specialty fields. The education of specialty fields is in a sense simple since there is some kind of agreement concerning the amount and choice of materials to be taught. On the other hand, general education, or the non-specialty area education is difficult because it is impossible to reach a consensus as to the amount and choice of materials to be taught.

Kobe University opened a new series of lectures, Kyoyo-Genron (core curriculum for general education) for three major fields of study, e.g., arts, social and natural sciences. For each field, three themes are chosen, for each of which 3 or 4 lectures are set up. By choosing these lectures appropriately, students are expected to develop themselves in a well-balanced manner. The point is that these core-curriculum lectures will be studied after a portion of the specialized education is completed, or in other words, at the second or third year (sophomore or junior in the American system). This is better in that students can have a greater motivation to study non-specialized subjects since they have already at least in part established their intellectual framework as a specialist. In the general education, the biggest problem has been that, for instance, students of social science can seldom find any motivation to learn chemistry. If a student of social science is interested in the social aspects of environmental issues, chemistry would not be irrelevant.

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7.6.5 Abolishment of Kyoyo-bu and Chemical Education


At this early stage it is difficult to evaluate the innovation efforts under way at Kobe University and other national universities. It is possible, however, to assess the effect on chemical education. It seems that even at universities where the conventional general education is maintained, they are now being washed by the current waves of innovation in general education curriculum. As a result, in many universities the course name "chemistry" has disappeared from the list of lectures given to the first and second year students. As a matter of fact, this does not necessarily mean that chemistry is not taught. Chemistry is not taught as such, but disguised under the names of materials science, or general natural science. It may be argued that the naming is not important; what is of concern is whether chemistry is to be taught at all. There is, however, a different view to the effect that it is a form of quiet suicide for chemistry if it loses its reserved place in the lecture lists. It would be difficult for people to appreciate the importance of chemistry as a distinct discipline of science if it is swallowed by other courses.

In conclusion it seems that the abolishment of Kyoyo-bu has a negative influence on chemical education as far as the amount of chemistry taught (or the number of students who study chemistry) at the university level. The only possible way to overcome this loss is to improve the quality of chemical education. How can this goal be achieved? It is our continuing responsibility to solve this problem.

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7.7 "3K-" AND SCIENCE-SHUNNING IN THE YOUNGER GENERATION

3K is an abbreviation of a set of three adjectives, "Kitanai" (Dirty), "Kitsui (Difficult), and "Kiken" (Dangerous), similar to 3D in English, which has ironically been given to chemistry, when its image was blackened by environmental crises. The letter K also stands for the Japanese adjective, "Kusai", meaning bad-smelling. As well as in the major countries it seems to be a general trend that people are distancing themselves from chemistry and chemical substances due to the prevailing effects of pollution, harmful drugs and substances.

Recently, through many journalistic media, we often encounter the term "chemical substance". However, it is usually meant as a synonym for either "poisonous substance" or "harmful substance". To counter this growing pejorative usage of the term, all chemists should stress that our entire universe is composed of only chemical substances, and, that harmful chemical substances are harmful if and only if people do not know how to use them properly.

A steadily decreasing popularity is not only the case with chemistry. Physics is suffering even worse. On general principles, the younger generation is shunning science from false pride and ignorance. Several reasons are given. One may argue that learning and engaging in science has been to follow a false goddess, a siren leading the voyagers to destruction. Others may say that science and people in science may be clever, but not smart; discovery is the joy of the gifted, yet abdicating responsibility for the eventual misuse by others less principled. Though one cannot easily change the direction of the nose of a gigantic elephant, we can train a kid elephant properly if we truly desire and endeavor to do so.
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7.8 A RAPID INCREASE IN THE DEMAND FOR SOCIAL EDUCATION

7.8.1 Researchers and Managers in Enterprise

The progress of science, and chemistry in particular, is so rapid that people working for the chemical industry or related field is forced to notice their knowledge and experience tend to be quickly obsolete and to feel that an opportunity to update their knowledge of chemistry is essential. This kind of shortage is particularly strongly felt when their companies try to expand their scope to wider field.

It is possible for companies to organize seminars or lectures by appropriate researchers or professors for their employees who want to increase and to refresh their knowledge. This has been the case with most big companies.

On the other hand, relevant professional societies(e.g., the Chemical Society of Japan) organize seminars for the benefit of members(both individual and organization) on some special topics which have large demand .In most cases the companies encourage their employees to attend to the seminar by paying the fee and allowing leave to attend the seminar. Such seminars are in part a service of the society to its members and in part will be one of the financial sources for the society if they can attract many participants.

Recently, some universities accept researchers working in companies as graduate students. Depending on the contract between the company and the supervisor, the graduate student does research and study either on full time or part time basis.

It must be added that this kind of refresher education is particularly strongly supported by Monbusho. Usually an additional number of admissions(Shakaijin Waku) is allowed by Monbusho.

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7.8.2 Teachers of Lower and Upper Secondary Schools

Recently, in Japan it is a serious problem that the young pupil comes dislike science including chemistry. It is very important that the teachers show pupils the charm of science, especially chemistry. For this purpose, the teachers must be informed of the fresh news of chemistry and chemical industries.

There are many societies of lower and upper secondary school teachers teaching science subjects These societies held annual meeting in which many lectures and presentations on the fresh news, the teaching methods, etc, are given(see Ch 7.10).

In addition to the activities of these societies, there is in each prefecture, the Center of Education which also provides opportunities for the recurrent education of teachers. There are some national universities which accept the teachers with the recurrent education program(see Ch. 4.6). It must be admitted, however, that only a small part of teachers can utilize such chance and program, because most teachers have rather severe teaching duty in their school. It is to be desired that the teachers have time enough to improve their knowledge and teaching technique through the support from the government. According to the survey of school teachers' opinion, it is rather difficult for them to acquire information concerning the progress of industry. though children might be interested in newest findings and products of chemical industries. The Chemical Society of Japan organizes seminars for teachers every year to provide them with newest information.

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7.8.3 The General Public

Recently, the environmental issue has become a great concern of many people, and the trouble is that there are many people who believe that chemistry is the sole destroyer of the environment. This is one of the causes of the anti-science attitude among the young generation(see Ch. 7.7).

If citizens have a more appropriate knowledge of chemistry, anti-science attitude will decrease if not disappear among citizens. Such a knowledge will be of some help for citizens to spend a safer life.

Some universities organize extension lectures on chemistry and chemical industries. The Chemical Society of Japan(CSJ) also organizes seminars for citizens. Though only a small part of people can attend such seminars, such an effort will eventually be meaningful. The number of seminars for citizens will and must increase in accordance with the increase of environmental problems

From the viewpoint of the future of chemistry, it is very important that boys and girls motivated for chemistry would be interested in chemistry. Some universities held seminars open to students of lower and upper secondary schools the summer season. These are sometimes called "Open University" or "One-day Admission for Experience". CSJ has supported these programs and sent professors to the lower and higher secondary schools for lectures and demonstrations for more than 10 years.
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7.9 INTERNATIONALIZATION OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION AT VARIOUS STAGES.

The term "internationalization" encompasses the concept of having a broader, more international viewpoint, and also to have the ability to exchange information internationally. This expression was never used in the western developing countries, because they were in a completely different situation from that of Japan, i.e. as mentioned in chapter 1 of this text, Japan consists of four rather geographically isolated islands which resulted in little to no connection with other nations or awareness of historical events. Moreover, the Tokugawa government deliberately closed our door to other nations for about 150 years. This national policy was effectively to "Close our ears to the noise from outside", but since we opened our door following the Meiji Restoration, national policy suddenly changed to "actively seek out knowledge of the Western Countries, and to catch up as soon as possible." This policy met with the approval of the people, who sensed the value of modernizing. Japanese were eager to hear and learn about Western culture, and with few critical assessments, people respected virtually all facets of the various Western cultures, and tried to emulate their final results. This tradition was followed until quite recently, however, since the Japanese economy spectacularly recovered from the war in the 1970's, many Western countries began looking more critically at Japan as a closed and secretive society. Consequently, certain Japanese leaders proposed that "we should be more international". This is the origin of the term "Internationalization", which perhaps may sound quite unusual to many Western people who have always been more aware of Western world history and events.

Take as one example the case of science education using the term "Internationalization". Since the Meiji Restoration, many teachers attempted to translate Western books. "Seimi Kaiso", translated by Ryo-an Udagawa, was the first Chemistry text book used in Japan and was originally written by a Dutch chemist. Many capable young Japanese were selected to go overseas and study natural science in Europe. Some examples are given in Table 7.9.1 The following names are mostly chemists, but there are many others in various scientific fields. When they returned home, they began working in the Imperial Universities (Old School System), and taught many young students who later went on to become leaders in their fields.

Table 7.9.1  Examples of Japanese Chemists  Studied Abroad
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Name                           Specialty                 Supervisor or country studied abroad
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Kikunae Ikeda (1864-1936)      physical chemistry        Wilhelm Ostwald
  Mitsuru Kuhara (1855-1919)     organic chemistry         U.S.A
  Naokichi Matsui (1857-1911)    physiology                U.S.A.
  Nagayoshi Nagai (1845-1929)    organic chemistry         A. W. Hofmann
  Joji Sakurai (1858-1939)       physical chemistry        A. W. Williamson
  Yuji Shibata (1882-1980)       inorganic chemistry       Alfred Werner
  Umetaro Suzuki (1874-1950)     agricultural chemistry    Emil Fischer
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Following the interruption in news and current developments in their profession because of World War II, many people tried to go abroad to learn modern science, in particular to the United States. The U.S. government willingly supported such young scholars visiting and staying in the US, for example through the GARIOA(Government and Relief in Occupied Area) and Fulbright programs. Young scientists learned modern techniques of science and technology from the U.S., and upon returning home, they brought with them research methods and mass production techniques learned from the U.S.. As a result, the scientific and technological standards were competitive with other developing counties in the 1970's.

Take another example from education. At the turn of the century, Japan adopted a European-model educational system, used until the end of the World War II. Elementary school was compulsory up to the age of 11 (4th grade), and some Imperial Universities were built. It should be mentioned here that in addition to these Imperial Universities, the Institute of Technology was also launched at that time for practical training, conceptually independent from the consciously imitated European system. The curriculum used in schools was also copied from Western schools; for example, the music course was almost identical to that used in Germany, so most Japanese children were able to sing Schubert's songs such as "Heidenršslein" and "Lindenbaum" in Japanese. The upper secondary school text books were based upon the Course of Study, as explained in Chapter 2, but the results of certain projects by other countries, such as CBA(Chemical Bond Approach) and CHEMS from the U.S., and the U.K.'s Nuffield Chemistry were incorporated when the Course of Study was planned. This means we largely absorbed the scientific cultures from those developing countries, and consciously accepted the merging of that culture into Japanese culture.

Because our nation's economy grew so rapidly, however, and the export income produced large trade surpluses with other countries, many nations overseas wished to study the reasons behind the "Japanese Economic Miracle", however, few systematic explanations of the Japanese situation existed, only cursory newspaper articles inadequately addressing the complex history and evolution of the economic growth. In other words, we absorbed information from other countries, but never concerned ourselves with broadcasting our situation to the world at large, hence certain misunderstandings inevitably arose concerning the Japanese. To take just one example, some hold the impression that the Japanese are essentially a selfish and insular people, unconcerned with the outside world. Because of these impressions held by people outside Japan, the first International Symposium was held in Tokyo in 1962, titled the "International Symposium on Molecular Spectroscopy". Several hundred overseas participants attended, which allowed us to introduce Japan, and Japanese culture, in addition to demonstrating the quality of Japanese chemistry.

Since 1962, we have held almost yearly international conferences in chemistry, but not for chemical education, except for small discussion group meetings with certain educators visiting Japan (for example, Professors G. Pimentel, R. Brasted and M. Gardner.).

The Bi-National Seminar on Chemical Education was held between the U.S. and Japan in 1977 and 1979, in addition, Chemical Education Sessions were conducted in the Pacific-Rim Conferences held in Hawaii. Chemical educators, mostly from the U.S., were pleased to learn about Japanese chemical education during their stays in Japan, and those impressions were discussed at other opportunities such as the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry/Committee on teaching of Chemistry(IUPAC/CTC) meetings.

Many overseas colleagues visiting Japan have requested more news concerning chemical education. Since the first Japanese educators were invited to the International Conference on Chemical Education(ICCE) organized by IUPAC/CTC, greater international exchange of information has occurred. In 1985, Tokyo had the opportunity to host the 8th ICCE meeting. In the beginning, Japanese school teachers had few chances to meet and discuss chemical education with foreign teachers, perhaps at first being reluctant to attend the conference. However, interest has steadily improved since then, and the number of educators attending from Japan since the 1985 ICCE has increased yearly. Some teachers since then have visited other Western countries on their own initiative to learn more about international chemical education.

As a result of these activities, it can be said that overseas colleagues today have a greater appreciation and understanding for the current state of Japan's chemical education, which continues to become more "International".
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7.10 RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN CHEMICAL EDUCATION

7.10.1 Researchers, Research Groups and Publications

There are many reports on chemical education by university professors and school teachers of the pre-university levels. These reports are presented at meetings and published in the journals and bulletins of their academic or professional societies. Though there are also voluntary groups consisting of school teachers, reports by teachers of these groups are not necessarily widely circulated. The research groups usually consist of teachers from outlying areas or individual prefectures.

In addition, some research institutions belong to the government or local governments, for example, a "National Institute of Educational Research (NIER)" and a "Prefectural Educational Center" are located in each prefecture. Permanently staffed, they help to coordinate research groups carrying out projects under the guidance of supervisors who are usually senior teachers in the pre-university schools (though sometimes they are university professors).

In Table 7.10.1, The academic societies related to science education and their activities are given, and information concerning meetings and periodicals is indicated.

Research results are orally presented at meetings and published in bulletins or journals. These reports are not circulated nation wide, but they are used to evaluate and modify the teaching of chemical education, especially when revising the Course of Study, for most influential leaders refer to these results during the revision process both formally and informally. These activities have the power of encouraging teachers to improve their teaching activities, because their research might be assessed by senior teachers and may provide an opportunity for promotion to a higher status, and sometimes leads to awards by foundations, newspapers, and by the Ministry of Education.

Table 7.10.1  Academic Societies and Their Meetings and Periodicals 
  (a) Societies and Meetings
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Society       Meetings                              Members' Qualification     
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  The Chemical Society of Japan  (Teaching member)
                Annual Meeting , Chapter Meetings     (Univ.,Coll., U.Sec., L.Sec., Prim.)
                Regional Meetings,

  Japan Society for Science Education 
                Annual Meeting, Chapter Meetings,     Univ.,Coll., U.Sec., L.Sec., Prim.

  Society of Japan Science Teaching 
                Annual Meeting                        Univ., Coll., U.Sec.,L.Sec., Prim.

  Japan Society of Physical and Chemical Education 
                Annual Meeting, Regional Meetings,    U.Sec.
                Prefectural Meetings
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  (b) Periodicals
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Society                                    Name*1                      anuual Issue
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  The Chemical Society of Japan          Kagaku to Kyoiku                          12
                                         (Chemistry and Education)
  Japan Society for Science Education    Kagaku kyouiku Kenkyu                      4
                                         (Research of Science Education), 
                                         Journal of Science Education in Japan    1*2
  Society of Japan Science Teaching      Kenkyu Kiyo                                2
                                         (Bulletin of Society of Japan Science                                         Teaching)
                                         Rika no Kyoiku                            12
                                         (Science Education Monthly)
  Japan Society of Physical and          Kenkyu Kiyo                                1
                   Chemical Education    (Bulletin of this Society)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*1 The name in italics is the Japanese,  with English translation in parentheses.
*2 issue every year .  This is the English edition.


Table 7.10.2  The number of presentations in Annual Meetings and the 
                       Number of Entries for Research Grants in 1993
----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Meeting or Award / Research Grant       total    concerning     %
                                                   chemistry
----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Japan Society for Science Education       92          8        8.7
  Society of Japan Science Teaching        177          9        5.1
  Japan Society of Physical and 
                   Chemical Education       89         53       59.5
  Toray Science Foundation Award           140         34       24.3
  Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research
            Stimulative? Research B *1
                 (Related to Sciences)     564        137       24.3
----------------------------------------------------------------------
*1 Sponsored by Ministry of Education, Science and Culture.
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7.10.2 Activity and Subjects of Research

The title of presentations given at meetings are classified in Table 7.10.2. Though many presentations relating to chemical education are given as shown in Table 7.10.2, the share of chemical education is not very large compared to the amounts from the entire field of science education. The number of publications and of applications for research grants also follows this same trend.

The activities of each society together with the titles of their reports will be explained below.

  1. ) Society of Japan Science Teaching (Rika Kyoiku Gakkai)

    This society consists of teachers at all levels; i.e., from primary school to university professors. The numbers of publications in annual meetings from '89 to '93 are shown in Table 7.10.3.

    Table 7.10.3  The Numbers of Presentations at the Annual 
  Meetings of the Society of Japan Science Teaching (1989~93)
---------------------------------------------------------------
  year                        '89    '90    '91    '92    '93
---------------------------------------------------------------
  Number of Presentations     168    221    192    217    177
  Related to chemistry.         6     14      5     10      9
---------------------------------------------------------------

    These presentations are mostly research results on science education in primary and lower secondary schools. The titles of these papers suggest classification in the following manner: 1) educational psychology, 2) evaluation, 3) teaching methods, and 4) teaching material development. Researches on science education for the lower grades of primary school and environmental education using the "Science, Technology and Society"(STS ) method are gradually increasing in accord with the revised Course of Study.

    This society publishes a bulletin twice yearly for members, and for all teachers a monthly magazine, named "Rika no Kyoiku" containing special topics and includes illustrations for teaching purposes.

  2. ) Japan Society of Physical and Chemical Education (Nihon Rikagaku Kyokai)

    This society is organized by the teachers of upper secondary schools. The total number of presentations in the last 5 annual meetings are shown in Table 7.10.4, including the number of presentations in different categories by content.

    Table 7.10.4  The Numbers of Presentations concerning Chemistry in The Annual Meetings of 
                           Japan Society of Physical and Chemical Education (1989~93) 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Year                                                    '89    '90    '91    '92    '93
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Total Number of Presentations                            39     36     38     46     42
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Development of Experimental Procedures                   22     17     12     16     14
  Development of Teaching Materials                         5      7      5      9      6
  Analysis of Questionnaire (Opinion of Teachers etc.)      3      6      2      2      3
  Computer Assisted Teaching                                3      4      8      8      8
  Audio Visual Application                                  1      -      1      1      -
  Improvement of Experimental Tool                          4      1      1      1      -
  Application of Teaching Methods to the Class              -      -      8      5      8
  Environmental Education                                   1      1      1      4      3
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As shown in Table 7.10.4, research on developing experiments and teaching materials are their primary interests. It can be said that reports on experiments related to daily life have increased in number, over the last few years. Since 1991, research on environmental education and the use of computers in science education has increased as well.

    Annual meetings for each prefectural branch were also held. In the Tokyo area meeting, on average 15 presentations each year are given. All subscribers to the "Kenkyu kiyo" publication receive copies of the main lectures presented during the annual meeting. Lectures are by invitation from the chairman of the session.

  3. ) The Chemical Society of Japan(CSJ)

    The numbers of presentations in annual meetings of the educational section in the past 5 years are shown in Table 7.10.5.

    Table 7.10.5  The Number of Reports at the Annual Meetings of CSJ in the Past 5 Years (1989~93)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Year                                                    '89    '90    '91    '92    '93
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Total Number of Presentations                            39     36     38     46     42
                                                           27     21     32     32     31
       (Poster Session)                                                       (12)    (11)
  Development of Experimental Procedures                    9      5     13     10      9
  Development of Teaching Materials                         5      5      9     12      8
  Analysis of Questionnaire (Opinion of Teachers etc.)      2      3      2      3      -
  Computer Assisted Teaching                                4      2      6      3      1
  Audio Visual Application                                  -      1      -      -      1
  Improvement of Experimental Tool                          1      1      -      -      2
  Application of Teaching Methods to the Class              4      4      -      2      8
  Environmental Education                                   -      -      1      -      1
  Chemical History                                          2      -      1      2      1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The occupations of the speakers are listed in Table 7.10.6. 
    Table 7.10.6  Speakers' Occupation at the Annual Meetings of CSJ in the 
Past 5 Years (1989~93)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
  Year                             '89    '90    '91    '92    '93
-------------------------------------------------------------------
  Universities, Colleges            13     13     20     19     18
  Upper Middle Schools               8      4     10     11     11
  Institutes, Educational Center     6      4      2      2      2
-------------------------------------------------------------------
    CSJ publishes a monthly bulletin, called "Kagaku to Kyoiku", containing articles, special topics and information on chemical education. In the last few years, the number of contributions and subscribers to this bulletin has increased, thus this bulletin is becoming more familiar to pre-university level teachers. One reason is more frequent publishing. Before 1992, it was issued every other month, but now monthly. The editorial board also began offering more articles written by pre-university teachers for that audience segment.

    Though activities of the main societies are summarized above, there are many other activities concerning chemical education as well. For example, prefectural educational centers have meetings and assist in teacher training, and offer some support for researchers. The Japan Society for Science Education also holds annual meetings, and publishes a bulletin called "The Journal of Science Education of Japan".

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7.10.3 Characteristics of Research Activity

The research activities on chemical education in Japan are characterized by the following points.

(point 1) It can be seen from Table 6 that the number of reports from university professors is almost the same as those written by pre-university teachers. Therefore, a larger part of the research in chemical education is conducted by elementary and secondary school teachers.

(point 2) There is little research on the goals of scientific education or the educational method based upon the desired outcome.

(point 3) There are, however, many research reports concerning development of new experiments and new teaching materials to support the contents described in the Course of Study or textbooks certified by the Ministry of Education.

The reasons for these characteristics may be explained as follows.

(point 1) In spite of teachers' routinely difficult work, research activities are highly appreciated by elementary and secondary school teachers. They are faced daily with the difficulty of chemical education for their students who are not interested in science and chemistry. Under such a condition researches directed to solving such situations are highly expected and appreciated.[

(points 2 and 3) Teachers hesitate to conduct research on theory and method, because it might challenge the existing authoritative Course of Study, in the following manner: First, teachers are required to use the approved textbooks, which satisfy the contents of the Course of Study, as certified by the Ministry of Education. Second, the contents of the extremely important college entrance examination are also controlled by the Course of Study. Following the lead of the Ministry and working within the current system is generally a safer and wiser policy than open criticism of the system, even obliquely, by questioning the direction and content of approved policy. In the Japanese value system, flexibly cooperating and accepting the fact that one works with others is often more highly rewarded than advocating risky changes which might affect other people in the system.

To cultivate capable scientists, technologists and citizens, the theory of chemical education should be investigated by all teachers from the primary school level up to the university level. It also should be emphasized that greater communication between all researchers must be encouraged, for example, by focused discussion groups on nationwide computer networks.

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7.11 HISTORY AND ACTIVITIES OF THE CHEMICAL SOCIETY OF JAPAN

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7.12 "CHEMISTRY AND EDUCATION"

7.12.1 General

The Division of Chemical Education of the Chemical Society of Japan(CSJ), or rather, its predecessor, the Committee on Chemical Education, was founded in 1951. Soon after, a small pamphlet compiling the abstracts of papers presented at the annual symposium organized by the Committee of Chemical Education was issued. This pamphlet, entitled "Chemical Education Symposium(Kagaku Kyoiku Sinpoziumu)", was issued in nine volumes over the period ranging from March 1953 to February 1961.

In 1962, "Chemical Education Symposium" was reorganized into a journal "Chemical Education(Kagaku Kyoiku)" edited and published by CSJ. There were only two issues for 1961(i.e., vol. 10), but from 1962 the journal became quarterly. The journal was further expanded to bi-monthly from 1971(i.e., vol 19), and renamed as "Chemistry and Education(Kagaku to Kyoiku)" and from 1992(i.e., vol 40), it became monthly. This journal is directly edited and published by CSJ, and not by the Division of Chemical Education(again called the Committee on Chemical Education).

From its foundation, the purpose of the journal is to provide school teachers, particularly of upper secondary schools, with an opportunity to present the results of their study concerning chemical education, to refresh their knowledge on the newer development of chemistry and chemical technology, and to exchange information and viewpoints on chemistry and education. Some 5,000 copies were printed and distributed per month, and about 50 % of the subscribers are teachers of upper secondary schools.

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7.12.2 Types of Articles

Presently, articles appearing in the journal can be classified into seven categories.

  1. ) Reviews and Lectures Reviews or lectures on current topics which are very useful not only for upper secondary school chemistry teaching but also 1st and 2nd year college/university students. These articles are by invitation only(maximum length; 8 printed pages).

  2. ) Papers: Original papers, reports of new experiments/observations or new computer software which are expected to contribute to the progress of chemical education.(maximum length; 4 printed pages)

  3. ) Notes. In the same category as Papers but shorter accounts (maximum length; 2 printed pages)

  4. ) Periodic Table. News, new ideas, opinions, topics, etc on chemical education(maximum length; 2 printed pages)

  5. ) New Computer Software: Introduction of new computer software useful for chemical education(maximum length; 2 printed pages).

  6. ) From the Classroom Reports on effective teaching methods, demonstrations and experiments (maximum length; 2 printed pages)

  7. ) Reports from Primary and Secondary Schools Notes from primary and secondary school teachers(maximum length; 1 printed page)

  8. ) Miscellaneous Questions and Answers, Teaching Tips and Topics, Letters to the Editor, Announcements of Lectures, Symposia, etc.

All articles are examined by members of the editorial board and/or appropriate referees. In Table 7.12.1, the number of articles in each category is given.

Table 7.12.1
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Volume                            40 (1992)    41 (1993)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  [Research Reports]
  Full Paper                           25           20
  Note                                 21           15

  [Contributions]
  Short Articles                       21           14     Shuki-ritsu
  Computer Software Information         3            3     Software Shokai
  Pages for Elementary and 
       Secondary Education             30           37     Sho-Chu-Ko no Peji
  Practice Reports                      4            4     Kyoiku Jissen Rei
  A Handbook for Student Experiment
                   and Demonstration   21           10     Kagaku Jikken Tora-no-Maki

  [Articles on Request]
  Articles on Monthly Theme            59           54     Tokushu Kaisetsu
  Serial Lecture                       12           12     Rensai Koza (Kaisetsu)
  Others                               11           20     Wadai wo Saguru, Kaisetsu

  [Columns]
  Teaching Tips and Topics             23           23     Antena
  Q & A                                17           22     Okotae Shimasu
  Do-you-know-it?                       4            4     Gozonji Deska?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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7.12.3 "Chemistry and Education" Database

Abstracts of all the current titles published in "Chemistry and Education", together with their bibliographic data, have been compiled as a computer-readable database, with voluntary assistance of the editing board members.

This activity, started in 1992 under the leadership of the late Dr. Seiji Kozuka, has enhanced into a nationwide project of Chemical Education Database (CEDB), which is aimed at creation of an abstract database for all the back number titles of "Chemistry and Education(including "Chemical Education")", in addition to the coming ones. With the voluntary work of more than fifty teachers living in every district of Japan, and with the financial support by the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture through a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research, the database for back number titles to 1977 was completed in March 1994. The back numbers project will be completed by 1996.

One can obtain the compiled database materials on floppy diskettes (free of charge) from the Chemical Society of Japan or through the "Chemistry Forum (FCHEM)" of NIFTY-Serve--a commercial computer network host--together with a searching-displaying software which runs on personal computers. Thus, a teacher who uses a personal computer at school or at home can easily find articles of their interest in "Chemical Education". The database is also open to the users of NACSIS-IR, the database service presented by National Center for Science Information System.
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Chemical Education in Japan (1994)(Copy right 1994, The Chemical Society of Japan)