Graduation, Part 1: Who Cares

As the school year comes to a close (school in Japan ends in March and the new academic year starts in April), I’m becoming more and more interested in how Japan celebrates graduation. And yes, this is mostly because I am watching the events unfold at my school.

I’m still trying to figure out if graduation is a big deal in Japan. I know in Canada, or at least in my family, high school graduation is a pretty big deal. While the ceremonies are long and tedious, they are attended by many family members to help support the new graduate. But in Japan, the graduation ceremonies are held on a weekday, during school hours, and are maybe attended by the student’s mother. This lack of family support is why I don’t think they’re such a big deal.

But on the other hand, the ceremony does last 8 hours, there is a lot of prep work beforehand, and the younger students even put on a fun assembly for the graduating class prior to the graduation ceremony. And this is just for a junior high school graduation.

Then again, graduating from junior high might be as far as some of these students get. Not to say that any of my students are so dumb and apathetic that they won’t be able to make it through high school, but I’m referring to the fact that high school in Japan isn’t compulsory. I know a bunch of people I went to high school with (you know who you are) would have loved the option to get out of more schooling, but even though they don’t have to go to high school 94% of Japanese students do go on.

Is graduation a big deal in Japan? From the point of view of the school and the students, it is a very big deal. Last week I enjoyed a four hour assembly that featured the first year (grade 7) and second year (grade 8) students, as well as the teachers, dancing and acting in silly skits for the third year (grade 9) students. They sang, they danced, they bopped each other on the head, they fought evil and they never stopped saying “thank you,” to the third years. It was funny and a little sad at the same time.

So while the graduation may not be a big enough deal to get Dad or the grandparents to attend, it is a big deal. They just express it in different ways.