2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Is An Alternative Concept of Learning Driving East Asian Academic Achievement? Comparisons of PISA Performance with Implications for Policy Reforms
| Project/Area Number |
17K14019
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Research Field |
Sociology of education
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
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| Keywords | educational achievement / PISA / ontology / learning / East Asian education / high performance / self |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
This three year project sought to understand the underlying basis for East Asia's superior cognitive performance in international large-scale student learning assessments, in particular PISA. Since the 1960s when Japan first started participating in the IEA studies, then again in the new PISA exams, Japan and East Asia have consistently scored among the highest. Nevertheless, there has been a dearth of rigorous analysis of why this is the case. That is, most of the time this performance is understood as a result of Exam Hell, high levels of private tutoring, stress inducing competition, etc. During this three year project, I was able to eliminate most of the negative factors (stereotypes), calling attention to alternative approaches to learning (including underlying epistemic and ontological beliefs). Based on this it was found that curriculum, classroom practices, and even various aspects of policy reflect this alternative system. This cautions against hasty reforms.
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| Free Research Field |
教育社会学
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
The academic significance of this project are multiple. First and foremost, it provides a new perspective on student achievement in East Asia, especially Japan. By extension this challenges the normal portray of Japan as in deficit, instead arguing the case for difference and mutual learning.
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