How kids spend their holiday in Japan Germany

☀️The summer #holidays are fast approaching! Having been raised in #Japan and having raised a child myself in #Germany, I have become aware of the great differences in education between the two countries. One particular thing that appalled me at first here in Germany is a total absence of homework during school holidays.

The philosophy here is clear: holidays are there for kids to take a rest and not to slave away on their school work. This is placed in stark contrast to the mountain of homework that is given to pupils at the end of the school term in Japan.

At least in my old days there, children were encouraged to maintain a regular life rhythm (規則正しい生活をしましょう) – even during the summer holidays. Hence, children are sent for collective stretching exercises early in the morning (ラジオ体操) and are supposed to keep a diary (夏休みの日記).

Honestly, nobody cares about how your kids spend their holidays in Germany. After all, it is an individualist society.

I cannot tell which method is better. German parents are pretty stressed in having to organize out-of-school activities to keep their kids busy. In this respect, Japanese parents are lucky to have the club activities (部活/Bukatsu) offered by high schools, even during the summer break.

I am now about to take my summer leave . Which of the two methods am I choosing for my time off? I’m taking the best of the both worlds!

Following the liberal attitude of German schools, I will take a rest from posting on my blog.😉

But certain Japanese traits within me tell me not to be totally idle.
Therefore, I am planning to do some private research on cultural issues on site in Japan (this is called 自由研究, i.e. a summer research assignment on a free subject) to gather inspiration for my post-holiday online posts.

Who knows? I may be able to share the results of my research with my online community when I am back. Till then, take care!

#absencenotice #TranslationServiceArai #CulturalUnderstanding #Japan #Germany