Social skills encouraged at primary schools
Tomonori Takenouchi Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
On one day last month, one class of second graders at Ryosei Primary School in Ayase, Kanagawa Prefecture, tried their hands at a "question game" to learn how to talk with friends.
They were divided into four seven-member groups before sitting in a circle. To one respondent, other members of the group took turns asking one question each, such as "What did you eat for breakfast?" and "Who is your favorite comedian?"
The students were encouraged to speak loudly when asking questions or, when answering them to, maintain eye contact with the classmate they were speaking to. The main aim of the game was to help them realize that responding with such phrases as "Oh, I see" and nodding sympathetically could make others feel comfortable about their talking.
This was an example of teaching "social skills" at an increasing number of primary and middle schools, which find it necessary to teach such techniques aimed at developing smooth human relationships to today's children, because many of them have not developed communication skills that used to be learned naturally, through playing in groups during early childhood.
In Ayase, three primary and two middle schools have been studying how to teach social skills for three years since the 2006 school year, including Ryosei. one example is to first let the students consider various situations, such as:
-- When there are two opposing groups--those who want to play soccer and those who don't.
-- When you feel stressed.
Then the students are encouraged to think of how to express their own opinions or feelings to others.
So far, social skills were often taught to children with developmental disorders, but Tae Komatsu, a teachers' consultant at the Ayase Municipal Board of Education, pointed out that it is now necessary to teach such skills even to children without such symptoms.
"More and more of them often show that they cannot establish sufficient human relationships because they fail to learn that during their early days," she said.
Meanwhile, Toyama Prefecture introduced social skills to some of its primary and middle schools for three years since the 2002 school year. The experiment found that such lessons did work for some students who had difficulties in getting along with others in group settings. They became able to take the initiative in joining in circles of friends and pose questions by taking into account others' situation.
Now, the prefecture offers teachers about 30 workshops per year on social skills teaching.
The board of education of Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, offers another example of introducing social skills into school education. Such techniques are dealt with in "Shimin-ka" (Class for Citizens), which was implemented in the 2006 school year by the board as a mandatory subject for the local primary and middle schools.
"We take a practical approach by which our students can learn how to get along with their friends," said Masashi Takibuchi, a teachers' consultant at the board.
Yayoi Watanabe, professor of developmental psychology at Hosei University, pointed out that individual personalities are often regarded as a cause of trouble in associating with others.
"However, it's often the case that children just don't know how to express their own opinions and feelings," the professor said. "Learning social skills is a starting point for them to learn that. I suppose more and more schools will introduce these skills to their classes."
(Dec. 6, 2007)