[Feature: 125 Years Since the Establishment of Integrated Education] Roundtable Discussion: What is the Rich Education Fostered by "Diversity within Identity"?

This year marks the 125th anniversary of the establishment of the current system of integrated education at Keio University. However, since its founding, Keio University has seen Keio students of a wide range of ages learning together in a unified manner, and the system was gradually refined according to age over time.

While the history of Keio University since its founding is itself the history of integrated education, today I would like us to share and confirm the characteristics and significance of integrated education based on our respective experiences.

Since everyone gathered here today entered at different stages of the integrated education curriculum, I would like to start by having you talk about your own encounter with Keio University.

My encounter with Keio began at the Yochisha Elementary School. At Yochisha, I grew up running around under the zelkova trees and behind the Jisonkan (Auditorium of Keio Yochisha Elementary School). From the fifth grade, I joined the rugby club, and during summer training camps, I chased the oval ball at Tateshina Lodge.

After that, I went to the Keio Futsubu School. When I graduated from the Keio Futsubu School, it was the third year since the founding of Shonan Fujisawa Junior and Senior High School, and there were no students advancing from the junior high yet. It was the last year that a large number of students could enter from the Keio Futsubu School or Chutobu Junior High School. At the time, I heard that computers and English were very advanced there, so I went to Shonan Fujisawa Senior High School.

I was quite undecided about my path in university, but I proceeded to the Faculty of Science and Technology and have continued there as a faculty member.

Saito-san and Kono-san are the ones who joined from the junior high school stage.

In my case, it was from Chutobu Junior High School. From there, I went to Keio Senior High School, the Faculty of Letters, and the Graduate School of Letters. After that, I went outside for a while and worked at another university for about eight years. Then, 27 years ago, I returned to the Major in Philosophy in the Faculty of Letters and reached retirement age this March.

Separately from that, I had connections in two other forms. One was that from the latter half of my undergraduate years through graduate school, I was put in charge of instructing the instrumental music club, one of the club activities at Chutobu Junior High School. For a total of about eight years, I instructed the music club with the title of coach.

Furthermore, for five years from 2007 to 2012, I unexpectedly had the honor of serving as the Director of Chutobu Junior High School.

I entered Chutobu Junior High School and immediately joined the Judo Club. My family has long run a jujutsu and judo dojo, and I intended to succeed them in the future. However, the culture shock I received from Keio completely changed that thinking. It was as if I learned the word "freedom" for the first time as a junior high student. My life at home, where discipline had been strict until then, changed all at once.

I did judo for three years at Chutobu Junior High School and then at Keio Senior High School. I went to the Department of Law in university, but I continued judo in the Athletic Association, and I was often absent from my studies.

After my four years in the university Judo Club ended, I decided that doing nothing but judo was a bit problematic and made up my mind to concentrate on my studies. I went to the Major in Chinese Literature in the Faculty of Letters, and then to the Major in Japanese Literature in the graduate school. During that time, I developed a connection with Keio Shiki Senior High School and found employment there while still a graduate student. I encountered the Keio characteristic of "learning while teaching, teaching while learning" and began a very enjoyable and meaningful life as a teacher.

From 2000 to 2004, I was posted to Keio Academy of New York as a Japanese language teacher. Standing on the grounds of the Academy as it reached its 10th anniversary, I felt as if I was facing the starting point of education for the first time. Learning together with students who lived in dormitories away from their parents, day and night, regardless of whether it was inside or outside the classroom. It was truly a site of development. I was greatly influenced and retrained there.

After that, I returned to Keio Shiki Senior High School, but I went to the U.S. again and served as the Headmaster of Keio Academy of New York from 2015 to 2019, and now I have returned to Keio Shiki Senior High School again.

Nasu-san is the one who joined from high school.

I first encountered Keio through Keio Girls Senior High School, and after that, my whole family came to love Keio. Since I liked baseball, I devoted myself to club activities in the softball club at the girls' high school. I also participated in student council activities and have experience serving as the student council president.

During high school, I was given the chance to study abroad. In university, I proceeded to the Department of Law in the Faculty of Law, and here too, I was able to study abroad through the Juku's exchange program. Thanks to that, my interest in overseas grew stronger, and I ended up working for the Export-Import Bank of Japan, now the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, which has connections overseas.

After joining the bank, I continued overseas operations for over 30 years. I was seconded to the OECD in Paris, and from 2010 to 2014, I was stationed in New York as the Chief Representative. During this time, I had the opportunity to be involved with Keio Academy of New York. No matter where I go, it is a life where I never forget Keio.

Kono-san, you mentioned "culture shock." Specifically, what kind of things were they?

First, at Chutobu Junior High School, you are traditionally told to call teachers with the suffix "-san." There is no teacher's platform in the classroom, and teachers speak to students from the same eye level. That was a shock. Also, it is said that Chutobu Junior High School has no school rules. They only said to act like a Chutobu student. Being told to manage my own money was also a big culture shock for a first-year junior high student.

How about you, Saito-san?

I also entered Keio at Chutobu Junior High School and was surprised by a kind of culture shock, wondering if such a different world existed. If I organize what was different about Chutobu in my own way, one thing is the custom of students calling teachers with "-san." This is truly thorough, and everyone, without exception, calls teachers with "-san."

At Keio University, originally everyone except Yukichi Fukuzawa was called with "-kun." When I was the Director of Chutobu Junior High School, I told the students that Yukichi Fukuzawa's true intention was not that he alone wanted to be called "Sensei." It is the spirit that everyone, including himself, is on equal footing when it comes to learning. Therefore, there is no need to specifically attach "Sensei."

Yasaburo Ikeda, a scholar of Japanese literature, was deeply involved in the founding of Chutobu Junior High School. I believe that when Mr. Yasaburo applied the Keio school style as he understood it to the newly established Chutobu after the war, he thoroughly implemented the policy of calling each other with "-san."

If you ask what the aim of this is, I think it is not just about equality, but about teachers not treating students like children. Students are children, but they are owners of independent personalities. In this respect, both students and teachers are the same, and individual autonomy lies in that development. I believe it means looking at each person as an independent human being.

Children are sensitive to such things, so when they feel they are being treated that way, they feel they must behave properly and straighten their backs. It is because they are connected as equals and by trust as human beings, not by a vertical relationship, nor by a relationship of the teaching side and the taught side. I think this is the way of thinking.

Another thing is "freedom." As Kono-san said, Chutobu Junior High School is supposed to have no school rules. There were things like agreed-upon items, but it wasn't that you had to do them; it was handled very loosely, such that in some cases you could ask why it was so or even change it.

Also, freedom is a very difficult thing. Just because you are free doesn't mean you can just do whatever you want; it also means taking responsibility for your own actions. So, where and how do you decide what is okay to do and what is not? First, the person themselves must think about it. After thinking, they try to express it in their own actions and words. Then, even if the person thinks they are being free, they might be told that it is merely being selfish.

I often told the students at Chutobu that we drink water when we are thirsty and eat food when we are hungry. We tend to think this is also our freedom. However, this is not freedom at all. Drinking water when thirsty is something we must do to survive as living creatures, so instinct is commanding us to drink water. This is a state of being made to do so by instinct, and it is not freedom.

Not only that, in our social lives, even when we think we are doing as we please, there are many cases where we are actually being made to do so by something. We are sometimes guided by clever commercials.

Then, the question "Am I truly free?" should always be asked; it's not as if one is free from the start. Even as a junior high student, while going through trial and error in my own way, I clearly remember vaguely feeling that while freedom seems to be a very important thing for human beings, it is also a very difficult thing.

I certainly agree that being respected as an independent individual from childhood is true. I myself was never once called without a suffix by my homeroom teacher when I was a Yochisha student. Everyone was called with "-kun" or "-san," and they always spoke to us in polite language. Also, the teachers' attire during class was naturally a suit and tie.

Regarding "freedom," I think this is a keyword not just for Chutobu Junior High School but for Keio University as a whole. During my Yochisha days, there were many opportunities to think about the meaning of freedom, and teachers would speak to us using Yukichi Fukuzawa's words, "Freedom exists within restraint." Or, at that time, at both Yochisha and the Keio Futsubu School, various teachers would read passages from Kiyoshi Ikeda's "Freedom and Discipline." I believe that how to perceive and convey freedom was always an important task for the teachers as well.

What did you feel when you entered the girls' high school, Nasu-san?

I think my culture shock came from two directions. One was the classmates who had come up through Yochisha and Chutobu. Since more than half of the entrants to the girls' high school are from the outside, they should originally be the minority, but from the moment they entered the classroom after the entrance ceremony, they exuded an overwhelming aura.

I think the classmates who came from below had learned the Keio school style from both their families and teachers. By chance, an internal student from Yochisha sat next to me, and she spoke to me very naturally. This allowed me to fit into the school all at once. Since then, I feel I have also absorbed the school style that they possess.

The other culture shock was the teachers. As just mentioned, the teachers did not treat individual students like children, but faced the students, looked at each person's individuality, and responded politely. This was both a surprise and something I was grateful for.

I believe that at the girls' high school, the idea of respecting each other's way of life was nurtured. I think the good point is being able to learn what someone is devoted to and what kind of person they are, recognize diversity, and respect each other. There was a culture of praising from the heart when there was a wonderful result, and everyone cheering for those taking on difficult challenges.

This was something fresh I felt when I entered the girls' high school. It wasn't that anyone taught us that, but as a result of overlapping or clashing the influence from teachers and the way people from the inside had grown up, I think a relationship was formed where we could properly respect the other person. Teachers didn't talk much about superiority or inferiority based on test results, and we didn't have the idea that such a thing was great. I think it's because we built relationships while looking at each person's character.

牛場さんは幼稚舎から進学される中で、いろいろな段階で新たな仲間が加わる面白さがあったかと思います。

Ushiba-san, as you advanced from Yochisha, I imagine there was the interest of new companions joining at various stages.

Even for me, having come up from Yochisha, there was a lot of culture shock. The kids who entered the Keio Futsubu School through exams were so capable, especially in math, that I wondered how they reached that level. I was shocked, wondering if these people were really in the same grade.

Although Keio Shiki Senior High School has many students who enter through exams, there are also internal students. Kono-san, are there things you feel as you observe this mixing?

That is a part that I, as a teacher, feel is the real pleasure of integrated education, and it is a place where we teachers are also learning from the students.

Among the internal students, while their academic performance might not be as high, in terms of life outside of academics such as sports and friendships, there are areas where students who entered from high school rely on and learn from the internal students. The current situation is that they learn from each other, give and take, and build a hard-to-find relationship of trust by the time they graduate.

同じ慶應といっても学校ごとにそれぞれに個性もあります。各学校間で共通する部分と個性についてはどのように見ていらっしゃいますか。

Even though it's the same Keio, each school has its own individuality. How do you view the common parts and the individualities between each school?

Regarding this, the phrase "diversity within sameness" comes to mind. Every school has something close to pride or self-confidence in inheriting the Keio DNA. On the other hand, every school has its own founding spirit, and I think that becomes the individuality of that school.

When I visited Keio Academy of New York before, I participated in the activities of the Fukuzawa Research Society. They were reading "Gakumon no susume (An Encouragement of Learning)" in a circle, and the Academy students were discussing "independence" based on their cross-cultural experiences when they moved to America at various ages. I remember strongly realizing the preciousness of the Academy in the development of discussions that are rarely heard in domestic schools.

In my case, when moving from Yochisha to junior high, there was a choice between Chutobu Junior High School or the Keio Futsubu School, and I went to the Keio Futsubu School. Several classmates went to Chutobu, and since they spent their time in a co-educational environment in the city, I felt they had become quite sophisticated when we reunited in high school.

For high school, many went to Keio Senior High School, but I went to SFC and was away from everyone. When I returned to Hiyoshi in university and reunited with my classmates, their appearance had become more adult and changed, and we were mutually surprised.

However, although they wear the culture of different affiliated schools and have a somewhat different atmosphere, there is something like a Keio boy or Keio girl that runs through them. When I think about what this is, I am made to realize that the attitude of looking at me as a person and having interest in the interestingness of a person to have a conversation is common to everyone. This feels good.

「同一の中の多様」というのは、各校は、共通する価値感があり、それに加えて歴史的な経緯によってそれぞれの時期にその時の問題意識と理想をもって創られたことから生じている。

生徒1人ひとりは、個性のある各学校の中で、しかし同時に「自由」を大切にする環境の中で自分の個性を育みます。そして中学、高校、大学と進学する各段階で、受験での入学者も含めて混じり合っていきます。そこで、先ほどカルチャーショックという話がありましたが、言わば化学反応が起こっていく、その機会を大切に思います。

その意味でも各校の個性は大切ですし、それぞれの学校で今も大事にされています。

"Diversity within sameness" arises from the fact that each school has common values, and in addition, each was created with the awareness of issues and ideals of its time due to historical circumstances.

Each student nurtures their individuality within each school that has its own character, but at the same time within an environment that cherishes "freedom." And at each stage of advancing to junior high, high school, and university, they mix together, including those who enter through exams. There, as we discussed regarding culture shock, a chemical reaction, so to speak, takes place, and I value that opportunity.

In that sense, the individuality of each school is important and is still cherished in each school today.

共通の基盤の中でお互いにリスペクトするような人間関係をいつの間にか持てるようになるという意味では、学校の授業だけではなく、部活動や生徒会など、授業以外の部分が大きな役割を果たしているように思います。

河野さんはずっと柔道をされてきましたが、部活動を通じた人間関係についてお感じになることはありますか。

In the sense of becoming able to have human relationships where we respect each other within a common foundation before we know it, I think not only school classes but also parts outside of classes, such as club activities and the student council, play a major role.

In the Athletic Association, you can't talk to each other unless you are being honest. Since we share meals and sleep, there's no way to hide anything. In such interactions, the feeling that we are the same once we are stripped bare was one of the most important things. For some, it takes a long time to reach that point, while for others it's short, but that is the greatest education in the Athletic Association, and I suppose one is trained both mentally and physically through these dense human relationships.

Saito-san, you have been doing music for a long time and were active in the Wagner Society in high school and university. I imagine you felt the interest of working together with the girls' high school and Keio Shiki Senior High School during your high school days.

As you say, the fact that there are very many opportunities to be together with other schools within the Juku in club activities is also a blessed part of Keio's integrated education.

We had horizontal connections between student councils. It was fun to exchange opinions with the presidents of Shiki High School and Juku High School, and to go help out at each other's school festivals. It helped me understand the other schools well. Thanks to the friendships formed then, even decades after graduation, the members from that time still gather and work together during our turn to host the Rengo Mita-kai.

In affiliated schools, there are opportunities to encounter specialized academic disciplines from the university at an early stage. Mr. Ushiba, what are your thoughts?

I feel I was greatly influenced by Keio's vertical network, which taught me many things that led to my current work.

When I was at the Yochisha Elementary School, in an era when not every household had a computer, a teacher placed four or five computers in an empty room next to the faculty office. Because that teacher was a graduate of the Faculty of Science and Technology, graduate students from a laboratory in the Faculty of Science and Technology would come to that room in groups of two or three every Wednesday after school to hold a class.

I started going to that room tentatively after being invited by a friend. One day, I asked a graduate student, "What kind of research are you doing?" and was astonished when he replied, "I'm researching AI that gets smarter and smarter through conversation." When I asked to see the research, he brought a floppy disk with the program the following week and showed me an AI that grew wiser by playing riddles.

I was shocked to realize that graduate students could create things that change the world like this. That made me ask my parents for a computer because I wanted to do computer science and AI, and that is what led to my current research.

Even when I was at SFC Senior High School, I once overstretched myself and snuck into a lecture at the neighboring university campus, and it happened to be a guest lecture by Ryuichi Sakamoto. There was a broad-mindedness that allowed high school students in, and being able to peek into various parts of the university while pushing my boundaries was very stimulating.

These are things you can't learn from school classes alone. It was great to have the experience of having an admired "amazing person" right in front of me, breathing the same air, and being able to interact with them. Now that I am an adult, it has made me think about how I can be someone who provides such experiences to students and what I can do now. I am grateful for the opportunity to have had many rich experiences within those vertical bonds.

Reflecting on my own experience, I also had opportunities to visit the university from an early age.

For the Labor Exhibition at the Keio Futsubu School, I was working on descriptive geometry and computer graphics. A teacher at the Keio Futsubu School introduced me to Professor Go Sato of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, who gave me advice. I also went to the Institute of Information Science at Hiyoshi and was allowed to stay until late at night every day, mixed in with graduate students, running a mainframe computer.

Also, from high school onwards, I received a great deal of help from the faculty and staff at Mita through the Fukuzawa Memorial Center and the Fukuzawa Yukichi Association.

The teachers had relationships of trust and connections not only within the same school but also with teachers at other schools and various faculties of the university. I believe they introduced me, thinking it would be good for this particular student to be exposed to such a teacher.

Whether it's sports, music, or academics, there are natural opportunities to interact with various people from the sensitive period of adolescence. The younger you are, the fewer barriers there are between the humanities and sciences, or between generations. There is also an inclusiveness that says "come join us" to children who want to try something. Today, everyone in society is struggling with issues of diversity and inclusion, but I feel there are many great hints within the traditions of Keio's affiliated schools.

Recognizing each other as human beings. Accepting people as comrades, no matter where they join from. This should be important not just within Keio. It is very important to include anyone who empathizes with a vision and say, "Let's do this together."

People often talk about Keio's perceived closedness, but that's not the case at all. I believe Keio University's integrated education was a system that naturally nurtured a mentality and set of values capable of including all kinds of people through infinite connections.

At the Girls' High School, highly specialized teachers serve as regular homeroom teachers or come as principals. Being able to receive guidance from highly specialized teachers when young was a very good thing.

I was able to ask questions and have discussions with teachers who had specialized knowledge about things I was interested in. Being able to do such things since high school is, I think, a very blessed environment.

There are truly many professionals, aren't there? I remember being startled when I went to a music room at the Keio Futsubu School and saw a music teacher scribbling notes on a score with a serious face distorted by the agony of creation. Seeing a professional engaged in earnest creation was a huge shock and left a lasting impression.

The Girls' High School is the only all-female school among the affiliated schools, and I feel that what can be gained from that is very significant. That age is when one is most conscious of the opposite sex, but without thinking at all about the eyes of the opposite sex, preconceived notions, or role awareness, we did what needed to be done as individuals, tackled difficult projects, and even did the heavy lifting ourselves for large performances at school festivals.

I believe that graduating after handling all of this allows one to become mentally independent and, in the future, economically independent. I think the characteristic of this school, which others don't have, is that you are trained over these three years to live without being dependent.

Many graduates of the Girls' High School are active in interesting ways in various fields. Ms. Nasu, you were part of the first generation after the Equal Employment Opportunity Act was enacted, joined an organization with relatively few Keio University alumni, and have worked overseas. Do you feel that what you gained during your time at the Girls' High School has played a role in your work?

The basic spirit of working while valuing the other person does not change. There were times after entering society when things didn't go smoothly, but I believe that if you have the feeling of valuing and respecting the other person, you can reach a mutual understanding even in business. Also, I cultivated a belief in being myself and a sense of self-affirmation during my high school days without relying on evaluation from others; this has been very helpful in terms of being able to work hard without wavering when facing difficult challenges at work.

Furthermore, while it's not necessarily something I gained specifically at the Girls' High School, I have many experiences where meeting people who are Keio graduates instantly fosters a sense of trust and closes the distance because we share certain values. I am very grateful for the breadth of the network.

Also, something I hope was of some help was when I was stationed in New York. Several Keio University alumni in New York were invited to speak in front of students at the Keio Academy of New York to help them choose their university faculties. At that time, as soon as I said "I am a graduate of the Girls' High School" in my opening self-introduction, the students at Keio Academy seemed to be able to think of it as their own concern, and I received many active questions during the breakout sessions. I believe it served as some kind of reference for the students at Keio Academy, who are far from Japan, regarding the vague anxieties they had about how people who progressed from within the system can be active in society.

Earlier, Mr. Kono mentioned "learning while teaching, teaching while learning." How do you feel about the teachers at the affiliated schools?

Among the teachers, there are those who graduated from Keio University and those who graduated from the affiliated schools. There are also cases where graduate students serve as part-time instructors. Furthermore, many teachers of physical education, music, and art come from specialized schools rather than Keio, so they are very diverse.

However, if teachers stay at the same school for a long time, a common sense unique to that school can develop before they know it, and they may come to believe that is the only correct way, sometimes leading to a lack of objectivity. Recently, personnel exchanges between affiliated schools have become active, with various movements back and forth. I feel it is necessary for teachers to constantly seek new blood, stimulate each other, and learn from one another.

Teachers at affiliated schools can see how each individual student grows over a fairly long period—not just while they are enrolled, but after graduation. For example, a junior high school teacher can see them as high school students, as university students, and after they enter society. It is a blessing for us that we don't have to worry about immediate results like schools focused on entrance exams, but at the same time, we can think about education on a long time axis. I think this serves as a great learning opportunity for those on the teaching side.

I feel that most when we consider students' promotion or advancement to higher schools. At that time, we discuss the situation of each individual student, which is the best opportunity to see that student from many angles. The various ideas presented by teachers who view the student's future potential as their own concern, rather than someone else's, are extremely valuable. This is because we can share the educational views of the many teachers the student has interacted with during their long growth through the elementary, junior high, and high affiliated schools. The insights gained from this bring great benefits to our activities as teachers. I believe the role of a teacher who wishes for a student's growth—becoming a promising university student and eventually a member of society who contributes to the world—is not limited to the time the student is enrolled.

Professor Saito, from your perspective as a university professor and as the Director of the Chutobu Junior High School, what do you think is important for teachers at affiliated schools?

Earlier, Ms. Nasu mentioned that it was good to be able to talk directly during high school with teachers at the Girls' High School who had highly specialized abilities and knowledge, and I completely agree.

Children have a great deal of intellectual curiosity regarding things they are interested in and want to pursue highly specialized matters. At such times, having teachers nearby who are familiar with the cutting edge of their respective specialized fields is a very good stimulus. In that sense, teachers at affiliated schools should be high-level experts in their respective fields, and I also want them to constantly refine their own scholarship.

Looking back at history, it seems that the teachers at each school have also contributed to expanding the breadth of Keio University's scholarship and culture. For example, my homeroom teacher during my Yochisha days, Mr. Saburo Kuwabara, often read masterpieces of children's literature to us, and at the university, he used those works to give lectures on the history of children's literature. Teachers at the various schools within the Juku can also devote themselves to fields that do not fit within the specialized frameworks of the university. Furthermore, they are not chased by the meritocracy seen in recent universities. Thinking about it that way, I believe we must more carefully cherish the environment of the schools within the Juku, where one can deepen their life's work over time.

A good point of Keio's integrated education is the vertical connection in that sense. Since the university and graduate school have faculty members researching the cutting edge of their respective fields, there are chances for such faculty to come and teach at the high schools, junior high schools, and even elementary schools of the affiliated schools. I definitely want this to be utilized in the future.

When I was the Director of the Chutobu Junior High School, the current President Kohei Itoh was there as a parent, and we decided to create a course where Mr. Itoh and frontline university faculty would talk to Chutobu students. During the elective class time for third-year junior high students, with Mr. Itoh as the organizer, we had university faculty, mainly from the Faculty of Science and Technology, talk about the cutting edge of natural science and have free exchanges of opinions with the students. Mr. Itoh himself spoke about quantum computers and quantum mechanics.

This was a really good stimulus for the children. At that time, Mr. Itoh prefaced his talk by saying he would speak about nuclear power issues from a strictly neutral standpoint as an expert. However, after the class ended, a Chutobu student came up and said, "You said you would speak from a neutral standpoint, but isn't the act of speaking to the public about the mechanism of nuclear power in this way already not neutral?" He said he was taken aback by the question.

For teachers as well, through interactions with students, they are made to look again at things they might have overlooked. I thought it could be a good stimulus for both sides.

In terms of being allowed to use university resources, what I thought was wonderful was being allowed to participate in a multi-day computer programming course held in a large lecture hall at Mita during the spring break of the Girls' High School. It was planned by the university, and anyone from the internal schools who wanted to participate could do so. Since it was an era when personal computers were still rare, looking back, I think I was given a very valuable opportunity. This triggered my interest in computers, and after getting a job at a bank, I was able to be involved in a project to introduce the internet, which was cutting-edge at the time.

Within the vertical connection, speaking to younger students who are different from those you usually teach is very interesting and a learning opportunity, isn't it?

When I was the Director of the Keio Yokohama Elementary School, I talked about various things to first and second graders. For example, even when talking about Yukichi Fukuzawa, it is much easier to talk to university students. You cannot hide behind difficult words with children, so you must speak entirely in easy-to-understand language. You cannot speak to them unless you restudy considerably. Conversely, I realized that children have the comprehension to understand even very difficult things if we make the effort to convey them. No matter the age of the student, they have that capacity.

Mr. Ushiba, you also have contact with students and Keio students of various generations. What are your thoughts?

Every year, we hold a summer vacation research experience for affiliated schools. Graduate students work hard to teach about the brain, AI, medicine, and so on.

At that time, the students from the affiliated schools say that although they are all from Keio, they go to different schools and initially thought they were different types of people, but while being taught by their seniors in the same place with the same goal for three days, their horizontal connections deepened and they became very close.

Seeing that, I felt as if the same situation that stimulated me when I was at the Yochisha—wanting to be like the older graduate students—was unfolding before my eyes. I think this is the richness and fullness of the weave of vertical and horizontal threads generated from the bottom up.

It's not because someone told them to, and it's not decided by rules, but a sense of family like unconditional love where people want to do something for others. I think this is a feat of tradition that cannot be built overnight. As someone who grew up in such a place, I want to have many opportunities to provide that now. Now that COVID-19 has finally subsided, I want to open a computer class for Yochisha students myself.

So far, we have only mentioned the good points of integrated education, but of course, there are aspects that must be improved. One is that because the environment is so blessed, there is a tendency to become complacent, thinking, "Well, things will work out somehow." It is a fact that if you just go with the flow within Keio's integrated education, most things will work out. In that sense, there is complacency, laxity, and a lack of self-discipline. Anyone is prone to becoming that way unless they are very careful.

It is a fact that there are cases where people surrender themselves to the environment, entrust themselves to it, and get swept away. From the standpoint of a teacher, at what stage and to what extent should we make the individual understand that this will ultimately not be for their own good? That was a process of trial and error, but it gave me a lot to think about.

The Girls' High School was, in any case, "free." Until the year before I entered, periodic exams were held without proctors. Also, there was no daily homework, and in the third term of the third year of high school, there was something called a graduation seminar where, just like at a university, all classes became electives, and students could take classes of interest from a wide range of themes. Regarding studies as well, student autonomy was respected.

However, because students who cheated or did not attend the graduation seminars appeared—students who only sought freedom without constraints and did not fulfill the responsibilities that come with freedom—the student council felt a sense of crisis that we had to change the consciousness of the girls' high school students through our own power and held an all-school assembly. This was the result of thinking it was important to consider how we should be and act accordingly, rather than changing behavior because a teacher got angry. I remember it was very difficult to get the girls' high school students, who usually aren't very serious, to listen.

The phrase "sense of security" has come up several times in everyone's stories. I believe this sense of security is actually important.

However, it must not be the kind of security that leads to the complacency Professor Saito mentioned, but rather a security that allows one to take bold challenges precisely because there is a place to return to. For that, as in Ms. Nasu's story, a certain kind of mindset is required of the students. Also, as was the case with the teachers who have sustained integrated education in the past, it is essential to continue firmly questioning the meaning of "freedom" and "independence" together with the young Keio students.

I have worked in workplaces with few Keio University alumni, but the sense of security from being raised in affiliated schools has become a power that gives me courage. I think it was a very reassuring presence that allowed me to take on challenges outside, with the thought that I could consult someone if anything happened. For example, going to consult a teacher at the Girls' High School or talking with friends—having a place to return to is very encouraging.

Professor Saito pointed out the issue of complacency as an important challenge. How do you perceive the sense of security?

I thought that what Professor Yamauchi expressed with the word "sense of security" might be expressed with the word "trust" in my own words. As people who have received the same Keio University education, I think there is definitely a basic human trust that is born.

Supported by that, when going out into fields where there aren't many Keio graduates, like Ms. Nasu, I think it can serve as a support that you can return to at any time.

In the case of the Chutobu Junior High School that I experienced, the girls who enter from the outside are particularly outstanding, both academically and in terms of talent. Looking at them, since there are women with this much ability at Keio University, I want them to definitely use this ability in society.

However, it seems many still enter the home as full-time housewives. This is a real waste for both society and the individuals themselves. Ms. Nasu went out into the world, and I want more people to go out. This is something I want to hope for again, not just for graduates of affiliated schools, but for all current female students.

I want them to go out more into fields where there aren't many Keio graduates. For example, the field of politics is one such area. Female politicians active with a sense of security. I expect women to go out while having the reliable support of Keio University behind them. We must also back them up with all our might.

Precisely because there is a sense of security that someone will scold you when you make a mistake or lend a hand, you can take the plunge, right? I think everyone should be more aware of that. As Professor Saito said, it is a fact that there are children who do not realize that benefit and think they can just go up the escalator in lukewarm water. I think it is a major issue how much we can provide experiences that open their eyes to that from an early stage.

Currently, global activities, including studying abroad, are increasing, and I think it is better to do more of this. Also, Keio as a whole has some parts that are slow in understanding regional areas. The same goes for the issue of disabilities. I think experiences to learn about such things are still insufficient.

Furthermore, the issue of economic disparity. Even at the university now, there are students who want to study but repeatedly take leaves of absence and eventually quit due to their family's economic hardship. Since people in affiliated schools generally come from more affluent families, I think their sensitivity to such things is low. I want to raise my own sensitivity and work on these issues.

As I said earlier, Keio is not closed; it should originally have a tradition of openness and inclusion that understands people of various cultures and backgrounds, recognizes those who are making an effort, and supports them as one's own comrades. I feel it would be good if we could use that power more, make various problems more of our own concern, and become a Juku with even more depth.

I would like you to talk about what you want to cherish as Keio University's integrated education for the future, or any challenges you see.

I hope that opportunities for exchange between affiliated schools will increase more and more. Collaboration between high schools and the university in classes and so on is one thing, but even between high schools, since remote classes are now possible, couldn't we expand the possibilities for class exchanges and the like? For example, students from the five high schools of the affiliated schools could share a certain time. At that moment, Shiki High School, Juku High School, and the Girls' High School would also become co-educational. I think there would be the enjoyment of students attending classes with heightened spirits. Also, if collaboration between junior high and high schools becomes active, junior high students might be able to have a greater sense of purpose and make more meaningful advancements to higher schools.

Regarding studying abroad, the timing of the start of semesters in the West and Japan is different, so it sometimes spans across school years. In that case, couldn't we make it so that even if it spans the graduation year, students can still advance within the affiliated schools? Is it okay for every school to continue with only the grade system as it is? I think we could also consider introducing a credit system to increase opportunities for free exchange with overseas schools.

One more thing: through daily dialogue with students, I feel the importance of home education. Students are still bound to their homes. This might be connected to the complacency Professor Saito mentioned. When a student independently decides on their desired faculty at the university, there are moments when they wake up to the fact that their parents' opinions might only be valid at home. I feel that is when the student heads toward independence.

Yukichi Fukuzawa himself said that the home is important first to raise individuals with the spirit of independence. And he also worked hard to improve home education throughout Japan. I believe how Keio University sends messages to families is a major theme.

I think the ideal state is for the goodness of Keio to permeate all of Keio, for this to continue steadily, and for it to spread to each household as well. I think it is important how we can get people who entered from the university to become familiar with the Keio school spirit and become supporters.

I believe that the further down you go in integrated education, the more you are blessed with opportunities for experiences different from studying for academic grades. These experiences build a person's depth. I believe integrated education is a system suited to raising people with great depth.

125 years ago, when Keio University established the form of integrated education that exists today, Yukichi Fukuzawa said in a text titled "Essentials of Educational Reform" that within that curriculum, one should "perceive a certain kind of spirit." And he said that if you dissect that school spirit, it consists of the spirit of independence and freedom, and the other is the practical spirit, the spirit of jitsugaku.

I believe it is important to continue questioning what that "certain kind of spirit" he said we should "perceive" is, and to constantly find contemporary meaning in it, in order to keep Keio University's integrated education from the Yochisha and Keio Yokohama Elementary School to the university as something vibrant and to develop it further.

I think we were able to think about what that spirit is in today's roundtable discussion. Thank you very much for today.