特殊研究演習II[アジア・日本研究コース]

* Class schedules are subject to change depending on progress. Week 1: Course Guidance & Introduction Week 2: Multicultural Japan Zainichi Koreans and “Old Comers” Returnees “New Comers” – Recent Immigrants and Refugees International Students Week 3: Family Comparative Family Studies Transnational Networks of Migrants Week 4: Schools - Compulsory Education Educational Policies and Practices for immigrant children School Culture and Adaptation Academic Performance Week 5: Schools – High Schools Enrollment for Higher Education & Job-Hunting Week 6: Sense of Belonging Ethnic Identity International Comparison of National Identity Week 7: Labor Market – Job Hunting of the Second Generation of Immigrants Week 8: Integration of Second Generation of Immigrants Theoretical Understanding of Different Trajectories of the second generation of immigrants, Segmented Assimilation Week 9: Alternative Education 1 - NPOs and Local Community Guest Speaker: TBA Week 10: Alternative Education 2 - Ethnic Schools: The 2nd Generation of Brazilian Migrants Guest Speaker: TBA Week 11: Theoretical Understanding of Empowerment & Innovative Initiatives Multicultural Education and Culturally Relevant Teaching Privileges of the Majority, Whiteness studies and Japanese-ness Week 12: Wrap-Up & Preparation for Final Paper Week 13: No class meeting

Students are advised to complete the core readings before each session. Each class session consists of a short lecture on sociological concepts and theories, followed by intensive small-group and whole-class discussions. Students will be divided into small groups of 3–5 to discuss specific prompts related to the day's theme. After each class, students must submit a reflection comment. Interesting insights or common questions from the reflection comments will be picked up and addressed by the instructor at the beginning of the next class to facilitate a continuous dialogue within the large group.

Your final grade evaluation will be based on your (i) Reflection Paper (30%) and (ii) Final Paper (70%). (1) Reflection Comments: 30% Students are required to submit a reflection comment via the Learning Management System (UTOL) after each session from Week 2 to Week 11 (3 points × 10 times = 30 points). • Full credit (3 pts): Submitted by the deadline (typically Friday night) with meaningful content including personal insights and application of sociological concepts. • Half credit (1.5 pts): Late submission (within one week). • No credit (0 pts): No submission, blank submissions, or submissions consisting only of keywords. Comments must demonstrate your understanding of the lecture and readings; low-effort posts will not be counted toward your grade. (ii) Final Paper, 70%, Deadline for the 4th-year students, 23:59, 20 January 2027, and for the other students, 23:59, 30 January 2027. A list of the essay questions will be shared during the semester. Choose a question and provide your analyses based on the knowledge that you learn from this course and the relevant literature. The word limit is 2,000 words excluding references.

Please attend the course guidance in Week1, if you consider taking this course. This course is conducted in English and is designed to deepen students’ understanding of comparative education through collaborative learning with peers from diverse backgrounds. Students not affiliated with PEAK are more than welcomed to participate in this course, too. To support students who feel less confident in English, supplementary materials (e.g., key terms, discussion prompts, and useful expressions) will be provided. If you are not confident about taking the course in English and have questions before the guidance, please feel free to contact the instructor by e-mail in Japanese. （PEAKに所属していない方の受講も大歓迎です。受講についてガイダンス前にご質問のある方は、講師まで英語または日本語でご相談ください。）

Reading Assignments will be distributed online. You can access them from UTOL. Main Reference: Okano, K. H. (2021). Education and social justice in Japan. Routledge. Tsuneyoshi, R. (Ed.). (2017). Globalization and Japanese Exceptionalism in Education: Insiders' Views Into a Changing System. Routledge. Yonezawa, A., Kitamura, Y., Yamamoto, B., & Tokunaga, T. (Eds.). (2018). Japanese education in a global age: Sociological reflections and future directions. Springer.