Purpose: This comparative study sought to identify best practices concerning symbolic mathematical communication between primary school teachers and students in Japanese, Laotian, and Thai classrooms. Method: The target groups were 18 teachers and 671 students in Grade 1 to Grade 6 mathematics classrooms in Japan, Lao PDR, and Thailand. A total of…

The Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA) has instigated domestic policy debate aimed at improving education systems' quality and efficiency. Its high performers are often described as knowledge-based legitimation tools that have become reference societies. This article analyses if and the extent to which PISA affects the choice of…

In today's information-driven society, the Japanese government envisions the next societal revolution as "Society 5.0," where advanced technologies and service platforms integrate with and empower individuals in a human-based society. While Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education has traditionally focused on…

The OECD Future of Education and Skills 2030 (E2030) project's overall goal is that of looking to the future in terms of how school curricula should evolve given the technological advances and other changes that societies are now facing. Towards that end, the E2030 project centres on the idea that education needs to equip students with the…

As public education faces multiple issues, including the surfacing of children's struggles in society and the formation of capabilities suited to the times, free schools are tasked with expectations for their role as a supplement to public education, leading to a change in the onetime structure of opposition. However, attention must be paid to the…

The purpose of this study is to predict the mathematical literacy levels of the students participating in the research through the data obtained from PISA 2015 exam organized by OECD using data mining and to determine the variables that affect mathematics literacy. For this purpose, students' mathematics literacy levels and the variables that…

This paper reports on a study of collaborative group work in mathematics. Although collaborative group work is known as one of the important approaches in education, it is still uncertain how group thinking can be measured in various learning contexts. We used the Group Thinking Measure (GTM) test developed by [Wegerif, R., T. Fujita, J. Doney, J.…

In recent years, scholars have increasingly advocated the importance of cultivating non-cognitive skills (social and emotional skills) in early childhood, and play is useful in acquiring the skills. Simultaneously, young children also need to acquire mathematical cognitive skills as a learning foundation. However, many researchers have indicated…

Background: Countries around the world have struggled to implement education policies and practices to encourage more female youths to pursue Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). This has resulted in a persistent and sizeable gender gap in science and mathematics subjects in some countries. Using mixed-methods sequential…

The Japan Comparative Education Society (JCES) was founded in 1965 with its flagship Japanese-language journal "Hikakukyoikukenkyu" ("Comparative Education Research") first published in 1975. The organisation currently has around 1000 members, making it the second largest comparative education society in the world. Though JCES…

In this paper, we explore theoretical approaches to Japanese teachers' lesson designs involving the adaptation of mathematics textbooks for instructional change. In Japan, although most teachers use textbooks as the main resource for lesson planning, called "kyouzai kenkyuu," the ways in which they use textbooks can differ. In a…

Our study is on developing mathematics items for Computer-Based Testing (CBT) using Tablet PC. These items are subject-based items using interactive dynamic objects. The purpose of this study is to obtain some suggestions for further tasks drawing on field test results for developed items. First, we clarified the role of the interactive dynamic…

Equitable access to high-quality higher education is in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 4, 5, and 10, which indicate that it is crucial for a future sustainable society. Globalisation and reductions in systemic barriers to university admission are creating increasingly diverse higher education classrooms, but traditional…

This paper considers the functions and effects of "representation" in politics and education. The voting age for public elections in Japan has been lowered from 20 or older to 18 or older, calling for a shift in the curriculum to the basics of political participation and competence. In this paper, while focusing on the political issues…

This "From the Archives" article was originally published in Japanese in v6 n3 Mar 1936 of the Japanese-language journal "Shinkyo" (New Teachings), a periodical publication of the Soka Kyoiku Gakkai, the Society for Value-Creating Education, established by Tsunesaburo Makiguchi in 1930. This installment of "On Attitudes…