Johnouchi Junior and Senior High School

    

   Founded as a prefectural high school in 1980 with the motto "Independence, Cooperation, Progress," Johnouchi enjoys
a more than 30-year history of educating some of the best and brightest students in Tokushima. In 2004 it became the first
combined junior and senior high school in Tokushima Prefecture. The school celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2010.

     
          A sixth-year student and a second-year student celebrate during the sports festival. The two students from
      different grades became teammates during the Sports Festival.

   Johnouchi's goal is to make the dreams of its students come true. During their time at Johnouchi, young people from
all over Tokushima cultivate a rich sense of humanity, develop a wide-ranging interest in international cooperation and
foster a deep sense of creativity. The knowledge and experience that they gain enables them to grow as human beings
and prepares them to make significant contributions to the peace and progress of society, not only in Japan but also
around the world.

The Three Spirits: Humanity, International Cooperation, and Creativity

                                                                    
This is Johnouchi's school emblem. It is designed in the shape of the yamamomo plant (Myrica rubra).
Each of its three leaves represents one ideal: independence, the foundation of an ever-changing world;
cooperation, which is learned through experience during high school; and progress, an endless quest for
self-improvement. In addition to representing these three ideals, the three berries also represent three
pillars of education: the acquisition of knowledge, the cultivation of moral character and the development
of a strong body.

Spirit of Humanity

   Clubs in the sports category include famous international sports such as basketball, track and field and tennis, and
more traditional Japanese sports such as kendo (sword fighting) and kyudo (archery). Johnouchi's students are
particularly good at judo, mountain climbing and fencing. Clubs in the cultural category include English Conversation
Club, Computer Club, Drama Club, Calligraphy Club and Japanese Tea Ceremony Club.

   Students may also participate in many volunteer activities. Since Johnouchi is next to the Yoshino River, students,
teachers and parents often travel to the riverbank and clean the area. Students are given the chance to learn the value
of protecting and caring for their hometown's natural beauty through hard work.

   Johnouchi is unique as the first school in Tokushima Prefecture chosen to become a combined junior and senior
high school. Since students at the junior high school do not have to take a high school entrance exam, competition
to enter is quite fierce. Johnouchi's teachers pride themselves on taking responsibility for both the junior high school
and senior high school students. Junior high school teachers sometimes teach senior high school students and vice
versa. In keeping with the spirit of combined junior-senior high school education, both junior and senior high school
students participate together in major school activities. Highlights include the Culture Festival, Sports Festival and
lectures from famous speakers.

      
Both Japanese and Western sports are offered as club activities. Japanese archery, called kyudo (left),
and wrestling, called judo (right), are two popular clubs.

Spirit of International Cooperation

   Students at Johnouchi learn about the international world in many ways. Each student must study English so
that they can communicate their ideas and feelings to people in other countries. However, international cooperation is
not a one-way road. The students also study Japanese culture in order to be better prepared to explain their own
culture to foreigners.

   The most unique aspect of Johnouchi's English language education is called "English Surfing." For 15 minutes every
morning, junior high school students practice their English pronunciation and comprehension through various activities.
The activity both students and teachers enjoy the most is singing English songs. Singing songs helps students learn
and practice the unique rhythm and pronunciation of English. Since students can practice their English every morning,
English Surfing is an extremely effective method of supporting their regular English classes and advancing their English
education.

         
Students gather to clean the area around their school every semester (left). Musical education includes a lesson
on how to play traditional Japanese instruments such as the shamisen, a three-stringed instrument similar to a
banjo (right).

Spirit of Creativity

   Junior high school students at Johnouchi have six classes per day. High school students have seven per day on Tuesdays
and Wednesdays. Junior high and high school education lasts for 3 years each. Japanese students start junior high school
one year later than Americans do; thus, Japan's high school system lasts for 3 years instead of 4.

   On a typical day, students assemble in their homeroom classroom by 8:25 AM. At the junior high school, English Surfing
(English communicative activities and singing) lasts from 8:30 to 8:45. The first class of the day begins at 8:55 and ends at
9:45; class periods are 50 minutes each and passing periods are 10 minutes each. Lunch is from 12:45 to 1:25. High school
students eat bento or go to the school cafeteria. Junior high school students eat lunch specially provided by an outside
company. The final period ends at 3:20 and students clean the school until 3:45. Students are divided into groups and
assigned an area of the school, such as classrooms, hallways or even bathrooms, to clean. After school is over, a majority
of the students attend club activities for about 2 hours. It is not uncommon to see students leaving school at six or seven
in the evening.

Culture and Sports Festivals

      
A scene from the talent show (left). Students give their all and race to the finish (right).

   Every September, the entire school enjoys what can be called the two biggest events of the year: the Culture Festival and
Sports Festival. In keeping with the spirit of junior-senior high school combined education, almost all of the events feature
junior and senior high school students working together. During the Culture Festival, the 2nd and 5th year students
compete in a talent show, the 3rd year students transform their classrooms into amusement parks for children, the 6th year
students prepare and sell food and drinks, and various club activities display the results of their hard work in exhibitions.

   Every student, from the 1st years to the 6th years, participates in the Sports Festival. Students fight for the honor of their
homeroom class and compete in a wide variety of activities. The activities range from the traditional--relay races, tug of war,
folk dancing--to the more unique, such as an obstacle course in which you must grab a slice of bread with only your teeth
and a race in which members of every club dress up in their respective uniforms and race around the track while introducing
their club activity to the audience. For example, the basketball team passes the ball as they run, the fencing team fences
with each other as they run, and the ecology club takes turns driving its electric go-kart around the track.

School Uniform

   Johnouchi's uniform comes in two types. One is worn during the summer months and the other is worn during the winter
months. Students must wear the uniform while they are in school or attending any school-related functions, including
sports tournaments or while studying abroad.

   You can see pictures of the school uniform here.

Together with Nature Near the Yoshino River

Students enjoy riding a yacht (and swimming) in the Yoshino River during a summer seminar.