Shizuyo Omori: To Maintain a Lifelong Active Brain—Reskilling from Seniorhood

2025/01/20

I want to live every day vibrantly and maintain a lifelong active brain. It is just like a machine that will rust and stop moving if you don't oil and maintain it. If you apply the oil of "learning" and perform the maintenance of "practice," your brain will be activated and become a "lifelong active brain." Life will become rich and vibrant.

University correspondence education, the Open University of Japan, vocational schools, and studying for certifications are useful in themselves. If you increase the number of drawers filled with information, wisdom, and experience, you can take out what you need when you need it, using it to be helpful, overcome difficulties, or avoid danger. It is never too late to learn, no matter how old you are. The more you learn, the more you can enhance your abilities and brain power. "Infinite possibility" is a privilege held only by humans.

When I was a high school student, I had a long-term absence due to a serious illness, and my grades plummeted. Due to family circumstances, I gave up on going to university and started working. At the age of 48, I still wanted to study at a university, so I enrolled in the Correspondence Education Program at Keio University. Usually, studying is done through textbooks. When I passed through the school gates on schooling days—days when you can take classes at the school—I felt like I had returned to my youth at 18. The correspondence program brings together men and women of all ages and various professions. I was moved by the motivation to learn of people over 70. I made great use of my student ID, as student discounts apply at movie theaters, museums, and so on.

As a divorcee, I had a triple workload of work, childcare, and studying. Five years passed while I thought, "This might be impossible for me." At one point, I intended to withdraw and thought about disposing of my textbooks, but I felt it would be a waste of the tuition I had paid, and since I was able to earn my English credits smoothly, I was able to continue my studies and graduated at age 60.

The trick to graduating is to "announce it to those around you." That way, you cannot give up. What I initially thought was "I can't do it" became "I'll try," and then changed to "I did it." My long-awaited university graduation came true, and I gained confidence. I had acquired the power to not give up, the power to think, and the power to look ahead.

Because the content of correspondence education programs is not well known, there are misconceptions such as "correspondence students can enroll easily and are at a low level" or "the reason it takes correspondence students many years to graduate is because they are not smart." In the Correspondence Education Program, students learn from the same faculty as the on-campus program, and if students earn the prescribed credits, they can obtain a degree (Bachelor's) as a graduate of Keio University. The diploma awarded is the same as that of the on-campus program, and the word "Correspondence" does not appear on it. It is simply that the on-campus program is a narrow gate to enter, while the correspondence program is a narrow gate to graduate.

At the time of my enrollment, the average number of years required to graduate from the correspondence program was 8 years for the regular course and 5 years for those with a prior degree. The graduation rate was only 3%. There are reasons why it takes so many years.

There are two methods of learning in correspondence education: correspondence classes (textbooks) and face-to-face classes (schooling) (currently, there are also media classes via the internet). In correspondence classes, you proceed with your studies using distributed textbooks and take a subject exam after submitting a report. You only earn credits after passing both. From a student's perspective, it feels like administrative processing and report grading take a long time because there are so many correspondence students. Also, if you repeatedly fail, the textbook changes, and you have to start over with a new assignment. Naturally, this extends the period until graduation. These circumstances are part of why it takes time for correspondence students to graduate.

A university correspondence education program is almost entirely self-study. You cannot graduate just by studying hard. If graduation is like standing at the peak of a mountain, you cannot reach the summit if you have the wrong equipment or route; the same applies to academics. Based on this experience, I published the book "My Lifelong Learning Method: How I Graduated from Keio University at Age 60 While Working" (Godo Forest). I wrote about university correspondence education as a lifelong learning method, as well as various other ways of learning (not just formal education) and the tips for them.

After announcing that I was studying in the Correspondence Education Program at Keio University, I received support from many people. Mr. Y, a Keio University alumni, introduced me to Mr. S—the grandson of Aizo and Kokko Soma, the founders of Shinjuku Nakamuraya—as "an admirable person who is studying by correspondence despite being at an age where she has grandchildren." My graduation thesis was a "Study of Naoe Kinoshita." The Somas had a close friendship with Naoe Kinoshita. Mr. S provided me with materials regarding Naoe Kinoshita and introduced me to Kinoshita's grandson. They even held a graduation celebration for me at Nakamuraya. In addition, there were people who guided me through lands associated with Naoe Kinoshita and those who searched for and sent me materials. At one gathering, the graduation toast from the organizer (a Keio affiliate) was a cheer from a former leader of the Keio University Cheer Group. I was moved to tears.

My junior high and high school teachers were as happy as if it were their own achievement, and my children celebrated my graduation and my 60th birthday, saying, "You worked hard." My mother, who was hospitalized, happily showed my diploma to the people around her. It became the one act of filial piety I could offer her.

Studying in the Correspondence Education Program was difficult, but it brought great joy and connections with many people. The phrases "'I can't' is something you say after you try" and "Live a life of 'I'm glad I did it' rather than 'I should have done it'" came to mind and became my conviction.