# International vs Japanese school



## ninasw

Hello.

We might be moving to Tokyo later this year and before making our decision, we are looking at schools for our children. We have a 5 year old and a 2 year old.

For our 5 year old we are looking at ASIJ and Nishimachi. Sadly ASIJ is so far out and Nishimachi is so strict on cut off dates for eligibility to elementary school grades that my daughter would have to repeat Kindergarten.

Separately, we are considering the idea of putting our children in a Japanese school, based on our research some expat families have done so. The question is, which are the good schools that are Japanese speaking but are used to dealing with non-Japanese speaking parents?

Any relevant suggestion would be really helpful, 'specially if you've experienced putting your non-Japanese speaking children in a Japanese school.

Thank you in advance.


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## larabell

For what it's worth, both of our kids attend regular public school and they're doing fine. But they were also in public day-care since 6-mo-old so that makes a difference. If you decide to put your kids in a Japanese-only school, you're probably going to want your 5-yr-old to start with a year of Kindergarten anyway, even if it's a repeat -- unless, of course, she's already fluent in Japanese. The 2-yr-old should have plenty of time to pick up the spoken language before having to start learning how to read-and-write Japanese.

Public schools don't offer much in the way of foreign language accommodations. Parents are expected not only to be able to attend meetings in Japanese and read the notices the kids bring home but they're also required to be at least moderately active in the PTA. In our area, the PTA has a point system for participation and you must accumulate a minimum number of points in order for your kid to graduate (though I don't know how strictly that's enforced).

You're probably better off with an International school. There are plenty of threads on this forum discussing the pros and cons of the various choices. I have never heard of a Japanese private school specifically aimed at non-Japanese students. I wouldn't think there would be much interest in the ex-pat community for that kind of school.

One other thing... you didn't mention if your move was permanent or temporary. If you're only going to be here for a couple years, keeping your kids in an English-based curriculum should make the reverse transition a lot easier when you go back home.


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## ASIJ

*American School*

Thank you for considering The American School in Japan. Although you may be initially concerned about the location of ASIJ and the bus ride to school, our families find the bus service to be very convenient, safe and reliable and well worth while in order to access our outstanding programs and facilities. 

Our admissions office would be happy to talk to you about whether ASIJ might be a good fit for your family. They can also put you in touch with current families at ASIJ who would be happy to talk to you about what it is like to go to school here. 

Their email is [email protected] Tel: (+81) (0)422-3453 ext 720.

Matt Wilce
ASIJ Director of Communications


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## mayumi1331

International schools in Japan are very expensive, but if your husband's employer would pay for it then your kids should go there. My husband and I have been living in Japan for 6 years now and our daughter joined us 2 years ago. Prior to that, she lived in the Phils and didn't know any Nihongo at all. She started 1st grade in a public school near our house and I'm happy to say that after 2 years, she can speak Nihongo more fluently than me or my husband. She has adjusted well to the environment and has gained lots of friends. 

As for PTA meeting/activities, sad to say that they are all conducted in Nihongo. I can't speak the language that well, but I still attend meetings. I get the handouts and have my husband/someone translate them for me. I sometimes feel out of place but as what they say here: 'shouganai ne' (it can't be helped), especially if you don't speak their language. I'm friends with some moms and I'm studying the language so I can understand everything esp in PTA meetings.


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## Patch66

our son is half Japanese, we put him in public school in Tokyo for one year, sorry to say but elementary schools here are not that great from our experience, class size way over 30 children, very little discipline from teaching staff, bullying which goes unresolved, this is all in Minato Ku where public schools are supposed to be pretty good..., we bite the bullet and moved him to private school, hit the pocket hard as not expat but no other option....


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## mayumi1331

Patch66 said:


> our son is half Japanese, we put him in public school in Tokyo for one year, sorry to say but elementary schools here are not that great from our experience, class size way over 30 children, very little discipline from teaching staff, bullying which goes unresolved, this is all in Minato Ku where public schools are supposed to be pretty good..., we bite the bullet and moved him to private school, hit the pocket hard as not expat but no other option....



We live in one of Tokyo's suburbs and my daughter's class size is 32 which isn't bad for us. So far so good.


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## yokohamite

Our daughter was in Japanese kindergarten (age 4-6) and then started at the local public school. The first two years there were fine--great teacher. The third year was horrible: terrible teacher (the other mothers warned me not to challenge her in any way, because she would take it out on my daughter), bullying, head teacher for the grade and principal aware of the problem but unable to do anything. 

We moved her to YIS, where she thrived. 

So our experience was mixed. (And I speak Japanese fairly well.) I would not condemn all Japanese public schools but think the international schools are a better choice, if you can afford it.


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