「学習がくしゅう指導しどう要領ようりょう」改訂かいていを議論ぎろん 生成せいせいAI対応たいおうで学まなびはどう変かわる？

The Central Council for Education has summarized the main points of previous discussions regarding the revision of the Course of Study, which sets the content taught in schools.

It also indicates a policy of responding to advances in digital technologies such as generative AI, while emphasizing diverse learning opportunities tailored to the characteristics of children, such as those who do not attend school.

There are also schools that are taking advanced initiatives.

At Harayama Elementary School in Inzai City, Chiba Prefecture, fifth and sixth graders are using conversational generative AI during their Integrated Studies classes.

In the 6th grade class on September 5th, generative AI was used with the theme of coming up with games that help students get along with those from other grades.

When the children typed prompts—such as “the place to play is on the grass” or “there are many third-grade participants”—into their tablets to give instructions to the generative AI, answers like “tag” or “art projects that even those who aren’t good at sports can enjoy” would come up.

In response to the answers from generative AI, the children discussed in groups, exchanging opinions such as This game requires equipment or There isnt enough space, and deepened their thoughts about what kind of play would be good.

Furthermore, what the teacher emphasized in class was the risks of generative AI.

Children were learning not to enter personal information such as their names or addresses to avoid information leaks, and that the answers generated by AI can contain mistakes, so fact-checking is important.

One of the boys said, I didnt have a chance to use generative AI until we used it in class, so its really interesting.

But since there can be mistakes in AI information, I make sure to look things up properly, they said.

Homeroom teacher Kenta Fukuchi said, As generative AI becomes more familiar to children, I believe its necessary for them to learn the skills to use it properly, while understanding the risks.

In December of last year, a special committee of the Central Council for Education, which was consulted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, has been working on revising the curriculum guidelines for the 2030s, and on the 5th, they summarized the key points of their discussions so far.

According to this, it is necessary for children living in an unpredictable era to acquire solid, practical knowledge, develop the ability to learn independently, and cultivate information literacy skills to adapt to advances in digital technologies such as generative AI.

Additionally, by placing importance on diverse learning tailored to childrens characteristics and individuality—such as school refusal or exceptional talents in specific fields—a new system will be established to allow for the development of curricula that take into account each individual’s actual situation.

In addition, it states that in order to make such policies sustainable, a flexible curriculum that creates breathing room for both teachers and children is necessary.

The special subcommittee of the Central Council for Education will proceed with concrete discussions on each individual subject from late September onward, and plans to submit its recommendations within the next fiscal year.

Tama City Higashi-Atago Junior High School in Tokyo set up a classroom called Atago Space last year for students who tend to be absent from school or show signs of school refusal.

For the 26 students from first to third grade, four teachers are assigned, and individual instruction plans are created according to each students learning situation.

For example, according to the curriculum guidelines, the use of the future tense is originally scheduled to be taught in the first semester of the second year in English class, but in this classroom, the lesson was delayed by about two months.

Flexible methods are being used, such as incorporating playful elements with origami into instruction and preparing worksheets tailored to each student.

According to the school, the students in this class had difficulty adapting to school life, such as struggling in group settings or having trouble getting up in the morning. However, since they started attending this class, their attendance rate has been improving.

Principal Kazuhiko Takeda of Higashi Atago Junior High School said, By providing learning and assessments tailored to each student, we are able to draw out their natural desire to learn and support them through their anxieties, which I feel is leading to improvements.

Even when looking at the annual standard number of class hours for upper elementary school grades, it was 945 periods during the 2000s due to the so-called yutori education, but now it has increased to 1,015 periods, and having six classes a day has become the norm.

Based on this situation, a group consisting of school teachers and experts held a press conference on August 28, requesting a review of the standard number of class hours and the curriculum in order to reduce the burden.

Ms. Sachiko Mizuno, a public elementary school teacher from Kanagawa Prefecture who attended the press conference, said, I feel that school has become a difficult place for children.

There is too much to teach, so teachers are working overtime every day. I hope that this revision will reduce the workload, they appealed.

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has stated, We are not considering increasing the standard number of class hours any further so as not to impose an additional burden, and we are taking seriously the opinions of those who would rather see them reduced.

We would also like to consider reducing the burden on teachers and children along with discussions on the revisions.

On top of that, teachers at schools are currently facing a serious situation with staff shortages and long working hours, to the point where some teachers have even died from overwork.

He also points out that it is important to simultaneously discuss revisions while reducing the standard number of class hours and increasing the number of teachers, in order to implement measures to lighten the burden.