沖縄における「同化」教育の論理と日本植民地教育政策研究 : 台湾領有前後の教師像の検討を中心に(IV 投稿論文)

抄録

The objective of the paper is to examine the logic behind the assimilation educational policy implemented in Okinawa by the Japanese government, from the standpoint of attributes deemed ideal in the teacher to teach in Okinawa. Through this analysis, the significance of Okinawa in Japan's colonial educational policy will be addressed. Past research on Japan's colonial educational policy has not fully investigated the correlation between the policy for Okinawa and the colonial educational policy in general. However, in light of the facts that Okinawa was one of Japan's less developed prefectures and that Okinawa was the test case for government before launching colonialism, with special interest in colonizing Taiwan, the correlation between the government's educational policy for Okinawa and the colonial educational policy is an important issue requiring prudent analysis. Scholars have shown that Japan's victory in the Sino-Japanese War is one of the catalysts for Okinawa to begin its assimilation. This view, however, lacks concrete evidence. I have explained in this paper that the primary cause for Okinawa's changes after the Sino-Japanese War was Japan's occupation of Taiwan with the intent of colonization. The attributes of "ideal teacher" to implement the government's educational policy were those required to disseminate highly civilized education-not simply to teach in a less developed prefecture that lagged behind in assimilating with the rest of Japan. In other words, the assimilation policy of the Japanese government was accelerated in Okinawa to demonstrate a marked difference between Japan and Taiwan, i.e., the "civilized nation" in contrast to the "uncivilized colony" according to the Japanese government. Most research and analysis on Japan's colonial educational policies show that the prototype of Japan's colonial educational policy was the policy carried out in Korea. Although educational policy implemented in Okinawa precceds all other colonial educational policies, it is normally not considered as the test case for colonial educational policy. The educational policy in Okinawa, however, is the earliest example of an assimilation policy. These findings imply that since the logic behind Okinawa's educational policy is closely correlated to the general colonial educational policy, Okinawa's case cannot be dismissed as insignificant. The same holds true for the educational policy developed by the government for Hokkaido-the "premodern colony" of Japan. The inclusion of the government's educational policies for the "premodern colonies"-Okinawa and Hokkaido-in the research framework of Japan's colonial educational policies would provide a broader and deeper understanding of the policies.