Private Academies of Chinese Learning in Meiji Japan: The Decline ...

THE LEGACY OF THE JUKU 231gratitude to one’s teachers, whether ancient sages orcontemporaries. Its motto is: “By taking up the spirit of HiroikeChikurō, following the rules of nature, studing the true principlesand practicing virtue, let us contribute to world peace and thehappiness of humankind.” 59Matsumae Shigeyoshi’s Bōsei gakujuku has also been revived.In 1976 a Matsumae Shigeyoshi youth judo juku was opened. In1983 the Bōsei lectures were started as a continuation ofMatsumae’s lecture activity. Bōsei gakujuku is part of TōkaiUniversity and offers continuing education. Although theacknowledged inspiration for Bōsei gakujuku is the Danish folkhigh school, the name still reminds us of its origins as aninformal study group in Matsumae Shigeyoshi’s home. 60 Theconnection between Tōkai University and the idea of the jukuwas drawn more explicitly in 1971, when the journal of the TōkaiEducaion Research Institute published the special issue on jukumen-tioned at the beginning of this chapter. 61If the juku as an idea still holds its own at university level,what about those institutions that are most commonly associatedwith the word juku today, the private establishments whichchildren of school age attend outside school hours? Theassumption that no direct continuity exists between today’s jukuand the juku of Tokugawa and Meiji Japan appears largelycorrect. Still, today, as in the nineteenth century, there is greatdiversity between the institutions that call themselves juku. Thereare juku for sports, arts and crafts (keiko juku). Among those thatoffer academic subjects (gakushū juku), some help students tocatch up with school work (hoshū juku), while others—the onesthat most closely fit the cram school image—prepare youngerstudents (grades one through nine) for entrance examinations(shingaku juku). The yobikō (“preparatory schools”) prepare theolder students (tenth grade and above). 62 Juku can be large and partof a chain, but most often they are small, sometimes taught by asingle teacher, and cater for neighbourhood children. Somefunction as daycare centres where students do homework andreview lessons under supervision, an important aspect at a timewhen women increasingly seek careers outside the home. Apreparatory course for entrance to a private middle school can bean effective way of keeping a child out of mischief after schooluntil a parent comes home. 63 Whether large or small, juku areoften places where schoolchildren experience the mostmeaningful social relationships. Sometimes the teaching methods