Beginning Engineering Education At Age 15 - A Japanese Perspective

Japan has recently joined the countries participating in the CDIO Initiative with concerns related to the effects of an impending population crisis and increasing demands for internationalization from the Japanese government. Kanazawa Technical College (KTC) is a unique CDIO collaborator school with regards to its place within the educational structure of Japan. As a college of technology, KTC is a vocational school that students attend after graduating at the age of 15 from a lower-secondary junior high school. This vocational education includes standard subjects required of secondary schools in Japan in addition to the specialized subjects of a chosen field. Students graduate at the age of 20 with the equivalent of a two-year college degree in addition to completing their secondary education. This puts KTC in a key position as a preparatory school for young people seeking entrance into an engineering career. This report provides an introduction to vocational education in Japan within the context of the education system. Japan’s educational history and culture are discussed with an emphasis on students joining and graduating from colleges of technology. A look at the traditional views of secondary and higher education are presented as a precursor to modern educational reforms established within the last decade. This discussion elaborates the differences in preconceptions of higher education between Japan and Western culture. Presented in light of major economic and demographic changes, these differences are driving factors in modern educational reform. Finally, the preparatory education provided by KTC is described through concrete examples of courses in the Global Information Technology department. Students are introduced to engineering concepts in their first three years that are then built upon in their later years. These engineering courses are mapped to the preparatory proficiencies added to the CDIO Initiative in 2009. Discussion will focus on the implementation of project-based hands-on activities that provide introductory engineering activities for students aged 15 to 18 years old.