Educational Crossroads: Leaving Primary School in Japan and TT

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As I prepare to say goodbye to Japan after five enriching years, my thoughts gravitate towards the diverse education systems that have shaped the young minds I've encountered. One striking contrast emerges when comparing the experiences of my Japanese 6th graders embarking on their secondary school journey with the realities faced by their counterparts in Trinidad and Tobago (TT).


In Japan, the transition to secondary school is marked by considerations of sports offerings, location, and a desire for a change of pace. Many of my kids chose schools because they offered baseball or they had a strong tennis team.  Conversations with Japanese students revealed a sense of relaxation and a lack of the overwhelming pressure associated with decisions that seem to shape their entire future. This stands in stark contrast to the scenario in TT, where students navigate a system heavily influenced by the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA). Our students are choosing schools as we truly believe, for good reason, that these choices will impact the next 60 years of your life!


In TT, the pursuit of success in the SEA becomes a focal point, leading many students to specialized lessons designed to teach-to-the-test and secure favorable results. The pressure intensifies as early as Standard 3, with children cramming for tests in narrow subject areas until Standard 5. It becomes a cycle that raises concerns about the broader impact on the well-being of these children.


The unintended consequences are evident, from a growing obesity problem to various social issues that surface as childhood years are dominated by test preparation. Imagine if we spent some of this "lessons" time exploring their passions in sports, science, the arts, etc. Imagine if we used a quarter of this lessons time on character development and other socially rich activities.


Of course, parents invest considerable effort into SEA preparation, knowing that the secondary school their child "passes for" correlates directly with the quality of teaching, effort, and guidance they will receive in the coming 5-7 years.


This system, a relic of our colonial past, is often described as cruel, unjust, unfair, and archaic. The SEA becomes a defining factor that shapes not only educational trajectories but also the socio-economic landscape of young lives. This was outdated in 2001 when Common Entrance was changed to SEA and as time goes on, it becomes more and more ridiculous that we are still holding onto this system. 


This reflection prompts a consideration of the broader implications of standardized testing, encouraging us to question whether such systems truly foster holistic development or inadvertently contribute to a stressful and inequitable educational environment. As we bid farewell to relics of the past, let's envision a future where education liberates, inspires, and nurtures the diverse talents of each child, unburdened by the weight of a single exam one does at 11 years old. 


*This post is not to insinuate that the Japanese education system is unproblematic as anyone who knows anything about Japan knows that this is not the case at all. The purpose of this post is to draw comparisons between how the transition from primary school to secondary is handled in both countries and to advocate for our kids, and all of us by extension. 

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