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Multicultural Practice for Cultural Heterogeneity and National Cultural Homogeneity: Immigrant Youth’s Experience in Osaka, Japan

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Multicultural Education in Glocal Perspectives

Abstract

The notion of multiculturalism has been discussed by scholars since the number of immigrant workers and residents increased in the 1980s in Japan. Compared to other countries, Japan is relatively homogeneous with a small portion of racial and ethnic minorities.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Kajita et al. (2005) cited in Kato (2008). Being aware of this trend, Kato (2008) suggests the limitations of policies of multiculturalism and coexistence (tabunka kyōsei) for assisting foreigners, and questions the notion from the perspective of “the person concerned” as an “individual,” and not as an object to be supported.

  2. 2.

    For example, in Aichi, the prefecture with the largest number (3057) of foreign nationals who required the language assistance (in 2008), three schools offered “special admission quota” for a couple of foreign nationals who had transferred to Japanese schools in the 4th grade and beyond (ijō) or before the 4th grade with special circumstances, and two schools offered the quota for 40 Chinese returnees (chūgoku kikokusha) who had transferred to Japanese schools in the 4th grade and beyond (ijō). In both quotas, interviews were offered in addition to reading (kokugo), math, and English, and kana reading (rubi-uchi) was added to all exam questions.

  3. 3.

    To kanji other than those they learned in elementary school.

  4. 4.

    Literally translated as follows: Students who returned or entered Japan, with his/her intention or one’s guardian’s intention to permanently stay in Japan (when the student transferred in the 1st grade).

  5. 5.

    Kim was not eligible for the special admission quota/course because she came to Japan in the 2nd grade.

  6. 6.

    When they took the entrance exam, the special measures were only for those who came to Japan in the 2nd grade and beyond. Kim qualified, but the other student did not.

  7. 7.

    There are some immigrant students working for nonprofits supporting foreign residents in Japan, but the number of these students remains small, reflecting a lack of these organizations.

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank my field site and the participants in my research who generously shared their experiences with me during my field research. The field research for this study was assisted by a grant from the Abe Fellowship Program administered by the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies in cooperation with and with funds provided by the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, USA

    Yuko Okubo

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  1. Yuko Okubo
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Correspondence to Yuko Okubo .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Education, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea (Republic of)

    Yun-Kyung Cha

  2. Institute of Education, University of London, London, United Kingdom

    Jagdish Gundara

  3. Department of Education, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea (Republic of)

    Seung-Hwan Ham

  4. University of Canberra, Canberra, Aust Capital Terr, Australia

    Moosung Lee

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Okubo, Y. (2017). Multicultural Practice for Cultural Heterogeneity and National Cultural Homogeneity: Immigrant Youth’s Experience in Osaka, Japan. In: Cha, YK., Gundara, J., Ham, SH., Lee, M. (eds) Multicultural Education in Glocal Perspectives. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2222-7_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2222-7_10

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