Black kosoku, or black school rules, are a common thing in
Japanese middle and high schools. The “black” in the name is the same “black”
used to describe black companies, which are companies that have no regard for
their workers’ wellbeing. Similarly, many people view black kosoku as stripping
students of their human rights. Some example of black kosoku rules include
forcing female students to wear only white underwear and not allowing students
to wear scarves, even when it is cold. For example, if schools were to enforce
the former rule, that would require teachers to check students’ underwear,
violating the privacy of the students.
Japanese schools have such stringent rules because of a “drastic
increase in juvenile delinquency and violence against teachers in the early
1980s.” Limiting students’ freedoms seemed like the best way to curb delinquent
behavior. For Japanese schools, orderliness in classrooms is important, and any
individuality might cause disorderliness.
Many school boards are in the process of reviewing their kosoku
and eliminating the rules that are the blackest. The boards of education of Gifu
Prefecture, Osaka Prefecture, and Setagaya Ward in Tokyo have all made changes
or have started making changes to their school rules.
Unlike previous news articles that we have read for class, the
change that Japanese schools are going through is not caused by a new government
policy or the desire to conform to the rest of the world so as not to be seen
as “behind on the times”, but rather the movement is fueled by Japan’s own
citizens. In a tweet by middle school teacher @barbeejill3, previously known
for critiquing black kosoku, students in a school assembly hall are shown
kneeling seiza style and bowing to their teachers while a teacher looking
onward in the background stands over them. User @barbeejill3 was tipped off on
this school policy by an anonymous high school student. One commenter remarks, “先生というのはどこか一般常識を超えてるところがある”,
or “Some teachers are beyond common sense.” Another commenter notes that “あえて鵜呑みにするとして、礼儀作法を教えるなら教師は前に「立つ」のでなく同じ正座であるべきでは,” or, “If you to teach ceremonial manners, then teachers
shouldn’t “stand” before (the kneeling students) but should be in the same
position.” The netizens’ comments mostly critique the black kosoku, saying that
this photo looks more like the students are prostrating themselves to the
teachers.
Not only are students angry about black
kosoku, but educators such as @barbeejill3, Professor Ryo Uchida of Nagoya
University, and Yuji Aoki of the Setagaya Education Board are also disgusted by
black kosoku and want to change them because of their personal beliefs. The black kosoku situation is much
different from the bullying situation that we read about previously; this time,
the teachers themselves are enacting change because they see the injustice, not because of policies passed by the national government.
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