A decidedly non-militaristic like place for kids here in Niigata, Japan: the (non-school) play center and library in Shibata.
I'm a special guest at the kindergartens here in Japan. Once a week I show up, play, and do a little mini-lesson, teaching some very basic concept, phrase, or grammar. My lessons typically last only fifteen minutes.
For the rest of the 3 hours, I am a punching bag. The kids love me, and all want my attention at the same time. While I love the kids as well, not having appropriate boundaries as far as hitting, punching, and climbing becomes a bit much. Today was one of the worst ones yet.
When it is just me and my son, this kind of rough housing can be fun. When it is 100 kids all trying to climb on you, punch you in the ass, take your keys, touch your beard, and kick you in the balls, it becomes overwhelming. They don't act this way to the foreign female teachers. They seem to really miss a strong male presence in their lives.
As much as I try to make the boundaries and explain that I cannot entertain everyone at once, and if they hit me hard and will not stop I won't play with them, it just continues. It struck me today. They are like fucking retarded animals. This is a kid farm.
Little soldiers.
Some preschools/kindergartens here in Japan actually include military marches and stances such as attention and "at ease." This isn't the main factor that alarms me, though. What alarms me is the programming.
From the age of one they are taught to follow orders without question, report any other kids who are "breaking the rules," and to make fun of and ostracize those who do not "fall in line," and compete tooth and nail for the teacher's (authority figure's) attention. This is essentially the same system in all public schools across the world.
What the kids need is love, and individual attention. When no one notices them, and all valuable resources are severely limited, they learn that to get what they want they must use force. They become frustrated internally from not being heard. They are essentially just an animal to be managed by the severely understaffed school, and so they learn to act as such. Mommy and Daddy are always busy, because they are in a shitty school of their own, run by the state.
My son, the preschool dropout.
I look at my son who no longer attends such as school, and the difference in maturity level is striking. My son doesn't have to punch someone in the crotch to get their attention. He can talk with adults. He is not competing for love.
When we feel overwhelmed, we lose our true north, and go into survival mode. After about 10 kids yelling at me and calling me "old man" today, one girl throwing a plastic shovel-full of sand in my face, and numerous kids poking me in the ass crack and crotch (a phenomenon here in Japan--giggled at by adults and children alike--called the "kancho") I was about to lose it.
Two tiny little girls yelled "old man!" again while I was on my way to the bathroom. I had decided I had had enough. I stopped them.
"Do you know my name?" I asked, frustrated.
"Old man!" they giggled.
I had to step back and realize the nature of my expectation. They should know my name by now, but to them I am just a once weekly entertainment gag presented by their school. A chance to blow off steam and laugh. They are just treated like little animals, so they fill the role.
Anyway, looked at another way, it really is just normal kid stuff a lot of times, too. Fun.
The problem is the expectations placed on teachers to be able to respond to hundreds of these types of fun prompts and calls for attention simultaneously. This is why "educators" are burned out. The family has been taken apart. Armies of kids were never meant to be managed by ten or so adults. The state has broken up the family, for all practical intents and purposes.
The "grown-up" world.
Now look at frustrated adults in the statist school of: wake up, force feed, make a meager buck, barely survive, then pay said meager buck to the state. They are the same. Give them an enemy. Tell them the Afghanis are taking the best toys. Now a punch turns into a drone. A scream turns into a propagandized media campaign for war. The grown up kids of today still worship the teacher. Now teacher is called "president," "officer," "judge," or "pastor."
So, what did I realize today, in a nutshell?
Until individuality is respected, the world will remain a violent farm for frustrated retards in human bodies.
Until the family is respected, and males are a presence in their children's lives as well as moms are, children will continue to grow up maladjusted.
Until school is non-compulsory, non-coercive, non-propagandisitic, and allows for and encourages independent thought, action, and creation, children will continue to grow up to be propagandized cheerleaders for war.
~KafkA
Graham Smith is a Voluntaryist activist, creator, and peaceful parent residing in Niigata City, Japan. Graham runs the "Voluntary Japan" online initiative with a presence here on Steem, as well as Facebook and Twitter. (Hit me up so I can stop talking about myself in the third person!)
Quite so. Modern schools are antithetical to education and personal development, instead fostering antisocial behavior. Yet people continue to say homeschooled kids are "unsocialized."
Yep.
unfortunately, so true :(
I don't think the idea is education so much as institutionalization. If it was at all feasible, I would choose homeschooling for my kids.
Right. That is basically what I mean.
kek :D
possibly appropriate
Great post, man. It's the same here and it gets even worse in school - kids have no respect for the teachers and each other. During the last few months or so, 2 children died (and more were injured) in different schools after being in fights with another classmate. It's insane.
Upvoted, resteemed and followed.
Thank you man. Followed back. It really is a fucking shame, isn't it? Super sorry to hear about those kids. Was that near where you live?
It's scary man, and I was honestly surprised to read such thing about Japan... They weren't close to where I live.
The middle and high schools are where the really bad psychological bullying happen here. Japan's generally a peaceful place, but there are lots of shame/ostracism games.
the tendencies of schools you talk about are mostly true, but those aspects are really amplified by Japanese culture.
The "in" group is very important to them; shame, not guilt is the "method" of compliance. It might not seem like at times (the endless fads, for example), but it is a very monocultural country.
However that might be, I love Japan and it's folks
I agree with all of this.
Thanks, as always @abit, for flagging this post and knocking it back down to where you feel it belongs. 💩💩💩✌🏽
Japan is a totally different culture. It functions on inclusivity and special norms that westerners are not quite accustomed.
The militaristic-style way is pretty much a way to conform. I imagine you moved to Japan either for a job, love or fascination for the culture, all of which are culturally ingrained to us since kindergarten.
The japanese use titles for most things like kun, chian, sensei etc. They are not trying to undermine you. It is their culture.
You've been there for quite a while now. How the heck you are still struggling with the culture?
Lol. Bro, I've been here for seven years. It's my home. I love it. I was pretty clear I was referencing statist indoctrination in general. In some ways it is better, and in some ways it is worse in Japan.
Where did you get the idea that I thought 先生, くん, and ちゃん, were terms used to "undermine" anything?
Even in terms of indoctrination though. Consider how more "free" American kids are and how much more "militaristic" Japanese are. Yet, through this kind of discipline they excel academically. Their American counterparts that pride themselves in regards to freedom and homeschooling, such balls in every way possible.
You seem frustrated in your post. It might just be me though.
I think in many ways the culture in Japan is much more free than in the states, ironically, regarding body image, alcohol, and sex.
I was definitely frustrated! No question. Still am! And well I should be!
This is what I mean. Frustration stems from luck of understanding. If you understand why and how something operates then you don't get easily frustrated.
Dude. Frustration sometimes stems from understanding that something is broken. Never asked for your diagnosis. Come to Japan. See what's up. Go to any public school and work there in the states. See what's up.
Why is it broken? It's their culture.
I visited Japan 2 times and lived for 6 months. It's fine. You can't have your cake and eat it too. They offered you job, a life. Respect their ways or GTFO. is that simple.
That's what I call free association.