【Podcast】#13 日本の学校のルール | Rules of School in Japan

Answer these quiz questions if you’ve listened to a new episode of my podcast.

If it was difficult, read the transcript below and try again.

Good morning. Hello. Good afternoon.
I am a Japanese teacher, Emi.

Recently, it’s been getting warmer little by little.
But the cold season lasted a bit longer than usual.
That’s why the cherry blossoms are blooming a little later this year.

However, I went to see the cherry blossoms this (meaning “last” here) Wednesday.
Only about 40% of the cherry blossoms had bloomed yet, but they were still beautiful.
If you come to Japan in the spring, around March or April, please try to go see the cherry blossoms!

Alright, now let’s check last week’s question.
Last week, I asked this question:

“Do you know the rules of Japanese schools?
Are there any rules from Japanese middle or high schools that you know or were surprised by?”

That was the question.

Today, I will talk about Japanese school rules and my high school schedule.

First, let’s do a Goi check.
It is a Vocabulary check.
There are seven new words today.

1. Danshi (男子)
This means “boys,” especially students who are boys.

2. Joshi (女子)
This means “girls,” especially students who are girls.

3. Kinshi (禁止)
This means “something you cannot do. (“prohibited” or “not allowed.”)
For example, “Tabacco Kinshi” means you are not allowed to smoke.

“Insyoku Kinshi“
“Insyoku” means eating and drinking.
So, it means you are not allowed to eat or drink.

This is what “kinshi” means.

4. Seifuku (制服)
This means “school uniform.”
It is the original uniform that students wear when going to school.
Many Japanese middle and high schools have uniforms.

5. Bukatsu (部活)
This refers to after-school sports or activities.
For example, baseball club, soccer club, wind instrument club (a music club), and art club.
We have these kinds of club activities.

6. Tookoo (登校) & Gekoo (下校)
“Tookoo” means “going to school.”
For example, “I go to school at 8:30 in the morning.”

“Gekoo” means “going home from school.”
For example, “I go home from school at 5:00 in the evening.”

This is “Tookoo” and “Gekoo.”

And this is the last vocabulary.

7. ~ Kooji (～校時)
This is used to count the order of classes (meaning “period”).
For example, the first class of the day is “1-kooji,” then “2-kooji,” “3-kooji,” and “4-kooji.”

Alright, that’s the end of the vocabulary check.

Now, let’s talk about Japanese school rules.
I think Japanese schools have some unique and unusual rules compared to other countries.

First, let’s check the rules that apply to both boys and girls “Danjo Kyootsuu“.
“Danjo” is a combined word with “Danshi” and “Joshi.”
“Kyōtsū” means “common/same,” so these are the rules that apply to both boys and girls.
There are four of them.

First of all,
1. Wearing the uniform properly

Japanese schools have uniforms.
But students are not allowed to wear them in a stylish way.
“Osyare” means stylish or fashionable.
You have to wear them properly, not in a stylish way.

There are rules about the length of skirts and pants.
If you make them shorter or longer, teachers will scold you.
So, you can’t really be fashionable at school.

This is the first rule, wearing the uniform properly.

And the second rule is;
2. No dyeing hair

“Someru” means to dye (my/your) hair.

In Japanese schools, you can’t dye your hair any color you like.
For example, you can’t dye it pink because you like pink, or dye it blue because you like an anime character.

If your natural hair is already light brown or blonde, you may need to submit a certificate to the school.
We have to prove it somehow and write it on paper, then submit it to the school.

It is a little strict. But this is the second one.

And the third rule is;
3. No bringing certain items to school

When I was in middle school, we weren’t allowed to bring smartphones.
There are some people who own their smartphone, but they couldn’t bring it to school.

Also, snacks were not allowed in middle school, but they were okay in high school during lunchtime.
But you can only have them for lunchtime of course.
When I was 18 years old, I studied abroad in the U.S. and I was very surprised to see some students eating snacks during class at that time.
Chewing gum was not allowed at all. During classes and even during lunchtime.

And one more thing you’re not allowed to bring, games.
Bringing games to school was also prohibited in both middle and high school.
Schools are meant to be somewhere to study, so you’d be get scolded by Sensei.

Yes, this is the third one; things you cannot bring to school.

And the last common rule both for boys and girls.
4. No part-time jobs

Most schools prohibit part-time jobs.
But there are many students who want to work part-time, so they ask the teacher for permission.

Yes, these are the rules both for boys and girls.

Now, let’s look at rules for boys only.
There are two.

1. Two-block(undercut) hairstyles are not allowed
This haircut called “two-block” was prohibited. (when I was a student)
Please look it up how it looks.

A “two-block” hairstyle (undercut) is when the top is long, but the sides and back are shaved short.
This is often banned because it looks like a “bad boy” style.

And having long hair was also prohibited.
But only for boys.
2. Long hair is not allowed for boys

The reason is because it is considered not clean.
I think they (the school) say having long hair for boys is not clean as their reason.

This is a bit of a weird rule, isn’t it?

These are the rules for boys only.

Next, let’s look at rules for girls only.
There are three.

The first rule is about skirt length.

Girls’ uniforms are usually with skirts, but they can’t be too long or too short.
The standard length is around the knee.
If a skirt is longer or shorter than that, teachers will scold the student and tell them to adjust it to knee length.
That’s the first rule.

The second rule is about long hair.
Girls are allowed to have long hair, but if their hair is long, they must tie it up with a hairband.

They need to tie it into a single ponytail.

The third and final rule is that makeup and accessories are prohibited.
This rule applies to both middle school and high school.

Students are not allowed to wear makeup on their faces or accessories like earrings and necklaces at school.
The main reason is that school is a place for studying, not for wearing makeup or dressing up.

It’s quite strict, isn’t it?
Because of these rules, students really can’t be fashionable at school.

These are the rules of school in Japan.

How was it?
Did you find unique/weird rules?
Or did you find anything the same as yours?

Please let me know!

Now, I’d like to talk about my high school schedule—specifically, my daily schedule.

My class was part of a more serious academic program, so our lessons started at 7:30 AM.
Yes, 7:30 in the morning.
In contrast, students in the regular classes arrived at school around 8:50 AM.

Since my house was close to the school, I would wake up at 7:00 AM, wash my face, brush my teeth, put on my uniform, and leave home around 7:20 AM.
Each class lasted 50 minutes, so after our first lesson at 7:30, we had a 30-minute break.
During that break, I would eat breakfast or chat with my friends.

After that, we had a short homeroom session.
During this time, the teacher would check attendance and talk about any events happening that day.

Once homeroom was over, we had four morning classes, called 1校時 (first period), 2校時 (second period), 3校時 (third period), and 4校時 (fourth period) in Japanese.

After the fourth period, lunchtime started at 1:00 PM.

Since my high school didn’t have a cafeteria, students either brought their own bento (lunch boxes) from home or bought food from vendors that came to the school.
Lunch break lasted 45 minutes.
After lunch, we had two more afternoon classes, 5校時 (fifth period) and 6校時 (sixth period).

When classes were over, it is time for cleaning.
In Japan, students are responsible for cleaning their own schools, whether in elementary, middle, or high school.
We clean the classrooms, hallways, and even the restrooms.

However, cleaning time was only about 10 minutes, and everyone worked together.

Finally, we had one more short homeroom session before school officially ended.
On most days, school finished a little after 4:00 PM.
After that, students either went to Bukatsu (club activities) or headed home.

This was my daily schedule as a Japanese high school student.
Of course, school schedules vary depending on the school, and class times might be different as well.
But today, I shared what my schedule was like when I was in high school.

What do you think? Does it seem long?
How is it different from schools in your country?
I’d love to hear about the rules at your school, too!

Now, I have a question for you today as always.

“What are you into these days?”

“Hamatteiru“ means something that you really like or you’re into.
For example, you could say, “I’m really into idols!” or “I’m really into visiting cafés!”
It’s similar to talking about hobbies, but “Hamatteiru” is a more modern phrase.

Next week, let’s talk about recent slang used by young people while discussing things we’re into!

A transcript for today’s podcast is on my website.
The website is en-nihongo.com .

I’d be very happy if you could share your thoughts/impressions or could answer the question I asked in this episode!

I’ll see you in the next episode.
Jaa ne-!