This paper aims to review how the transition of the national liability system regarding teaching materials expenses is related to the system of school budgets and home economics education (HEE) in lower secondary schools, and to clarify some hidden issues in the changing process from the Industry Education Promotion Law (IEPL) to the application of the standard of teaching materials. The research method employed is a historical inquiry of primary source regarding educational budgets for facilities, equipment and materials.
  In the first period (1952-1978), the budget for HEE in lower secondary schools was heavily subsidized by IEPL. However, in the second period (1979-1987) when the “new standard of teaching materials” became effective, HEE was regressively applied to “the minimum level”.

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  This study aimed to understand the educational conditions and the educational and social significance of knitting schools established in the late 1950s in Japan, with a focus on Kochi Prefecture. We examined two schools there, Yoei and Fuji. We found that knitting schools were most popular in Kochi in the late 1950s, about 10 years later than the heyday of dressmaking schools. The popularity of knitting schools came as a result of the spread of home knitting machines. The earlier established knitting schools played a role in training teachers to teach at knitting schools which would open later. These schools in turn contributed to the progress of knitting culture in the region. Yoei Knitting School offered a correspondence course. Fuji Knitting School responded to the social needs by offering various educational courses. These schools fulfilled the needs of hobbyists, homemakers and people looking to make some extra money on the side.

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  Kyôhei (1756-1834) and Shunsui (1746-1816) were the youngest and eldest brothers in the Rai family, both Confucians of the Hiroshima feudal clan in the later Edo era. Kyôhei started to perform Confucian seasonal rites at his own house in 1820; this was four years after the death of Shunsui, the wife of Kyôhei and their second son also being dead at that time. Kyôhei followed the rites procedure conducted by Shunsui. This means that Kyôhei established his own Confucian house separately from that of Shunsui as a branch family, the rites being held ten times in the spring and seven times in the autumn until 1837. There were subsequently two separate Confucian seasonal rites, at the late Shunsui's and Kyôhei's houses, the family members each performing two rites. This created greater exchange and brought about closer bonds in the whole Rai family. The bonds forged between the two successors, Yoichi (the grandson of Shunsui) and Saichirô (the first son of Kyôhei), were particularly important to maintain the family prosperity. The family members of the late Shunsui, as well as their attendants, servants, and close acquaintances joined in the feasts after conducting the rites. Baishi, the widow of Shunsui, provided such ingredients as icefish, ayu (sweet fish), and sweets as offerings for Kyôhei. Two types of fish were designated as offerings by Shunsui, while sweets were mostly provided among the offerings from Baishi.

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  Disadvantaged shoppers have limited access to the provision of daily groceries because of health-related issues. We compared access to groceries with the health-related quality of life (QOL) for 218 women aged 60 or over. Health-related QOL was evaluated by using the MOS 36-item Short-form Health Survey. The participants were classified into two groups based on their awareness of shopping disability, and a multiple-regression analysis was used to identify the relationship between the health-related QOL scores after adjusting for age. Overall, 12.8％ of the participants felt disadvantaged. The participants aged 75 or over were significantly more likely to feel disadvantaged (p＜0.01) than those who had access to groceries within 500 m, who did not feel disadvantaged (p＜0.01) ; those who could drive also did not feel disadvantaged (p＝0.03). The most common method reported for reaching the nearest store was by foot. Those participants who felt disadvantaged had a significantly low body pain score (p＝0.025). We found, after age adjustment, that body pain might have obstructed the disadvantaged participants from obtaining groceries.

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