This paper attempts to identify what pedagogy can do to improve educational practice and to re-examine the identity of the field of education. Until now, pedagogy has been abstract and speculative; however, pedagogy has recently been criticized because it does not reflect today's educational reality or educational practices. Donald Shon has asserted the importance of reconstructing pedagogy theory by confronting educational reality and reflecting on it. Thus he has proposed the concept of a "reflective practitioner." The words "reflective practice" result from John Dewy's "reflective thinking." Shon proposed the "Reflective Practitioner" based on the theory of "reflection in action." "Reflection in action" is the concept of forming a new pedagogical theory after assessing the current educational practices and reality. This paper paaserts the importance of the cycle of <practice-reflection-recomposition>. This paper introduces two case studies carried out at the University of Fukui. These two case studies illustrate the cycle of learning through <practice-reflection-recomposition>. One case study is the "Inquiry-Network" utilized at the faculty level and the other case study involves the "Course of School-Reform" in the Graduate School of Education. The "Inquiry-Network" is the program whereby 150 university students in the integrated-learning program work with about 300 elementary school children over a period of eight months. The "Inquiry-Network" has nine themes, or areas of study. For example, in one group titled "cooking" (mogumogu), students are challenged to cook a variety of menus with the children. Through the practice of failure and reflection on what they have prepared, the children grow up learning how to cook wonderful meals. Another "puppet show" group has children make dolls, write original plays, and perform them. The aim of the other case study, the "Course of School-Reform", is to close the gap between school teachers and the teachers who train them. The seminar is not carried out at the university but is performed in the schools where the teachers work. Traditionally graduate students spend time away from the university teaching in schools. This course is modeled on the "PDS" (Professional Development School). The above two case studies illustrate the importance of learning through re-evaluation <practice-reflection-recompositio>, thereby constructing a new learning style that better reflects the needs of today's students. This paper shows, through the examination of the two case studies, the importance of improving educational practice and re-examining the identity of the field of education.

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Recently, the "Brain Training" boom is sweeping over Japan. It is believed that calculation and reading aloud activates the frontal lobes, and these train the brain. The initial hint of this idea was derived from extensive activation of the frontal lobes during a serial calculation task. However, frontal "activation" induced by a calculation task simply means that there is increased cerebral blood flow. It does not imply that calculation is "good for the brain." We should be mindful of past fads in Japan, in which people believed that glutamate "excites" the brain and they added sodium glutamate to rice, to excite the brain. Frontal activation caused by serial calculation is affected by many factors such as focused attention, emotions, or stress. Any cognitive training can cause the improvement of performance, but it does not mean that such training enhances all aspects of cognitive functions. Discussion between the two communities of brain science and educational science would do much to address these issues.

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This study was undertaken to consider a method that could be shared to bridge the gap between brain science and curriculum study. Recently, brain science has begun to reveal natural human learning processes and aspects of the development of those processes. The main theme of curriculum study is how to develop school curricula, and the effect of those curricula on the learning mechanism. Thus, it would be natural to assume that findings of brain science might have an impact on school curricula. However, due to the lack of a common language and a common vocabulary, a suitable dialogue between the two fields has not been established. To solve this problem, first of all, we pointed out that there are differences between the usage of concepts in brain science and education. "Objects" to explain changes especially valued for learning are different depending on the researcher's standpoint. Examples are (1) gene, (2) neuron and chemistry, (3) cognition, (4) behavior, and (5) society and culture. Educational researchers and curriculum researchers commonly tend to depend on the standpoint of (5); however, they should use the language of (3) to "bridge" with the field of brain science. Next, we proposed a method to apply findings of brain science, referring especially to special education programs which have already applied findings of brain science, as a way to understand students' educational needs by seessment and planning individualized education programs. In view of the brain mechanism, each child shows "cognitive strength" and "cognitive weakness" in various domains. Therefore, school curricula are needed to plan for enhancing child's learning based on their educational needs that could be understood by cognitive neuropsychological and behavioral assessments. Finally, we found that interactions between the "planned" curriculum and "experienced" curriculum must be analyzed to formulate children's cognitive profiles. It is named curriculum assessment. Based on these results, we suggest three conditions to conduct surveys within a framework for assessment: (1) Understand students' educational needs as gaps between the actual conditions and educational objectives. Assess curricula based on the potential to meet those needs. They must be assessed by using the framework based on "evidence" of findings from psychology and brain science and using quantative research methods and qualitative research methods together if necessary. (2) Focus on children who show outstanding performances in some domains because such children show visible educational needs, and differences between learning environments cleary influence the quality of their performance. (3) Set the appropriate time duration for survey periods to take assessments. It is useful to focus on the period of transition between developmental stages to rethink curriculum development. In addition, there is a strategy to support student's "cognitive strength" and "cognitive weakness" by conducting a retroactive survey of children's learning experiences which reveal traces of their development.

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The Japanese teacher community has developed a "limited collegiality" unique to Japan, which means that they avoid intruding on other teachers' privacy and are unwilling to engage in an open dialogue regarding their teaching practice. In the context of privatization and the culture of teaching this allows for a "class kingdom." This collegiality does not always work in favor of schools which are required to practice autonomous and voluntary school management. The absence of collaboration allows teachers - as individuals - to work in a comfortable and unquestioned manner. Due to this lack of collaboration and exchange of opinions, teachers have not grasped the seriousness of the problem. In this paper, we are going to explore the issue regarding the future of collegiality in the culture of teaching in Japan pertaining to the clinical sociology of schooling. We will study Interdisciplinary Team Care as it is practiced in the medical field as a style of collegiality for teachers that forms the basis for autonomous and voluntary school management. We will also address the idea of a "team" regarding collegiality. The term "team" consists of individual specialization as a main structural principle and flexibility as a chief structural characteristic. Utilizing "teams" will present the possibility for a new collaborative collegiality to teachers in Japan. Japanese teachers have embodied the unique characteristic of "grouping orientation" in the history of schooling for over 100 years. In this paper, we are going to discuss some projects which the present schools are practicing as examples of education via a "team".

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In this paper, the author considers the meaning of the type of "Lesson Analysis" (jugyou bunseki) which was proposed by Takayasu Shigematsu (1961) as a Japanese study on educational practice. Based on the method of this analysis and "relational structure of the pedagogical factors" by Yutaka Hibi et al. (1989), the issues of the method for describing the theoretical structure of the learning process in the classroom are discussed. Lesson analysis is preferred for constructing academic theories of education, where lesson study (jugyou kenkyu) tends to provide an opportunity for improving the classroom lessons and contributing toward teachers' professional development in the school. In Shigematsu's lesson analysis, researchers use audio and visual data and collect various data related to children's learning process such as compositions, notebooks, and other products. These data are analyzed qualitatively and the theoretical findings are produced which can provide an explanation for the whole events observed in the classroom using a hermeneutic approach. To produce an theory through lesson analysis, the method of this research has to meet five conditions: 1) constructing face-based theory, 2) making theory relevant for educational practice, 3) constructing theory with adaptability, 4) clarifying the children's thinking process, 5) and taking a dynamic and relativistic approach. Studies on the relational structure of pedagogical factors have been conducted since the 1980's in the division of education methods in Nagoya University. In these studies the facts and events that were observed or recorded in the classroom were theoretically reconstructed as pedagogical factors within the relational structure. It is further confirmed that they must meet the five conditions. But the process of the analysis requires the researcher's interpretation to find conceptual knowledge in researching children's lived experiences. Therefore, it is difficult to produce theoretical structures based on empirical evidence. For this purpose, a new method for describing the relational structure must be developed.

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Reconsideration of school-centered education is necessary as the field of education continues to expand and diversity. Research in to specific areas within education now calls for a need for research to be conducted from a comprehensive and overall perspective. Educational research must consider the definition of formal education as well as adult and community education and the issues related to the ideal development of education. In this paper, the author proposes several issues of educational research based on his experiences in adult and community education. First, the author examines cases where a zest for life and learning is fostered in the community through the creation of learning environments by the learners who reside there. The author examines "Kyodo-Gakushu" (conjoint learning) using an example of a special women's class and small voluntary study groups established by a municipal government. Next, the author considers the meaning of educational practices and educational issues based on local group activities throughout Japan. Thirdly, the author takes the example of educational practices in a community where residents and continuing education specialists cooperated over a period of time to expand educational opportunities in the community and become active in local school education. Fourth, the author examines practical research of formal education and adult and community education from the perspective of lifelong education and proposes the issues that need to be considered in educational research. The author concludes that (a) we should expand our view of education to include adults and senior citizens as objects and subjects of education, although we tend to consider education as a process of old teaching young. This point demands the reexamination of the definition of education/learning. (b) We should recognize that a wide variety of learning opportunities are now expanding in the family, the community, and the workplace and we need "education" to respect the self-directed learning found in these areas. (c) Since learning is a lifelong process, research to deepen our understanding of learners is necessary. The author proposes the need to invest more time to understand the interconnectedness of education and learning within individuals. In conclusion, the author outlines educational practices in Soka University that relate to educational research and teacher education.

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This article explains current problems in international education ("education for international understanding") by analyzing certain significant connections between the major theories and practices now dominating the field. It also suggests a standard viewpoint necessary for the future development of international education. There have been three primary approaches to "education for international understanding" in Japan. One has sought to nurture national identity, while another promoted global understanding. A third emphasized multicultural coexistence and world citizenship. These three different approaches exist simultaneously, bringing confusion to the field without resolving any of the difficulties presented by each perspective. There are three resulting problems which are presented below. First, theories of international education differ greatly from actual practice. Theory takes so little notice of actual practice that educational institutions have had no choice but to follow the whims of shifting governmental policies and educational reforms. Second, because these different theories have infilterated educational institutions, actual practice there is confused. Educational practice for international education is simultaneously student-focused (for overseas students, returnees, and newcomers), field-focused (in multicultural studies, environmental studies, peace studies), and skills-focused (for communication, self-expression). Third, in actual practice, international education has focused inordinate attention on inculcating in students a specific set of individual skills. The introduction of "Integrated Studies" only further encouraged this trend. But international education cannot simply be reduced to a specific set of skills that have been deductively defined as necessary to be a member of the global community. In order to deal with these problems, we neet to construct a theoretical framework that will redirect the future practice of international education. What the field needs is one unified philosophy that combines theory with practice. I term this philosophy "multidimensionality." International education needs to foster the development of a "multidimensional identity" and "multidimentional intelligences". The field needs to train students in critical thinking. We need to develop in students the ability to connect and form relationship with diverse groups of people (interpersonal intelligence); we also need to train students in interactive problem solving.

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When we think of the challenges pedagogy (the science of education) faces today, it is important to research the role pedagogy has played, not only in the training of teachers and social education facilitators, but also in that of neighboring professions, such as social work, nursing, correctional education, medicine, etc. In Japanm the discussion about the importance of pedagogical education in the training of the social service profession and social workers has been neglected. The purpose of this study is to investigate the development of social pedagogue training and certification as well as the role that the fields of pedagogy and social pedagogy have played in Germany. In Germany, the training of the social pedagogue is assigned to two institutions of higher education, namely colleges for social pedagogy (Fachhochshule) and the faculties of education in universities. Therefore, in the first chapter, I give a historical survey of the development of the social pedagogue training system in colleges, and in the second chapter I consider the curriculum of social pedagogue training and the role of social pedagogy in universities. In the second chapter, I also examine the arguments of Mollenhauer, Giesecke, and Thiersch as important theories of social pedagogy. In conclusion, I note that: (1) In Germany there is a special qualification and training system for the social service profession, named social pedagogues. (2) Recently, integration of the training system for social pedagogues and social workers is being discussed as an important problem. (3) In the training of social pedagogues and social workers the field of pedagogy has played a very important role. Conversely, the development of social pedagogy has been a very important factor in the development of pedagogy.

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The Niirada branch school of Oku Senior High School is a senior high school for Lepers. This school was planned by the patient organization, the National Hansen's Disease Patient Association (following, the Zenkankyo), which played a central role in the Leprosy Prevention Law Revision Movement. The Niirada branch school of Oku Senior High School was established under the Leprosy Prevention Law, Article 14, Clause 2, as National Sanatorium Nagashima-Aisein on September 16^<th>, 1955. The purpose of this study is to consider the establishment process of the Niirada branch school based on Zenkankyo's senior high school plan and it's reversal through the analysis of influence from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Okayama Board of Education, and other parties. Because Zenkankyo's plan was not only part of the movement to establish senior high schools but also a democratization movement, the plan met resistance from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the other parties that wanted to maintain and reinforce a policy of forced isolation of Lepers. In short, Zenkankyo was forced to compromise and abandon its plans. From this perspective, it becomes clear why, despite the expectations of the students, segregated schooling and a culture of segregation developed for the Niirada branch school. The Niirada branch school was established in the tense atmosphere created by the confrontation between Zenkankyo and the Ministry of Health and Welfare as well as other parties. This conflict mirrored the conflict between Zenkankyo and the Ministry of Health and Welfare during the dynamic movement to revise the Leprosy Prevention Law. The reason for the abandonment of Zenkankyo's plan to establish a senior high school was the fact that the plan went far beyond the intentions of the Ministry of Health and Welfare which intended to continue the policy of forced isolation. The amendment of the policy of "education for patients" in the Leprosy Prevention Law seem to indicate progress in the effort to provide senior high school education, but the progress was limited by the fact that this policy was encompassed within the overall framework of the Leprosy Prevention Law and the policy of forced isolation.

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