Jukusei Kaiei

2016/08/08

When they hear the term "Jukusei Kaiei" (All Keio students must be able to swim), I think Keio students and Keio University alumni are divided into two groups: those who ask, "What's that?" and the alumni who nostalgically recall, "If you couldn't swim 50 meters, you had to take an intensive swimming course in the summer."

In this article, I would like to explore the history of "Jukusei Kaiei."

The philosophy of physical education at Keio University can be summed up in the words of Yukichi Fukuzawa: "First build the body, then cultivate the mind." The Athletic Association Swimming Club was founded in 1902, but even before that, Keio students were swimming in the sea at Kamakura and Hayama. In 1930, a 25-meter pool was completed in Mita, Tsunamachi.

The first printed record of "Jukusei Kaiei" appears in the October 1939 issue of "Mita-hyoron (official monthly journal published by Keio University Press)." It was published in an article titled "The 37th Report of the Hayama Swimming Club." The article states that President Shinzo Koizumi, who was in office at the time, was asked to write it for the Hayama Swimming Club's pamphlet. It begins with the words, "Jukusei Kaiei. This is my immediate ideal," and concludes, "It is not without reason that some American universities do not grant a bachelor's degree to those who cannot swim 100 yards. Keio students, you must all learn to swim. The opportunity for you to perform a great act of kindness awaits you, always surprisingly close at hand."

After World War II, the first female students were admitted to Keio University in 1946. Three years later, an educational reform made four credits in health and physical education compulsory. Keio University stipulated that two of these credits were for practical skills, consisting of one credit for "Basic Physical Education" held once a week throughout the year, and one credit for an intensive "Elective Physical Education" course held in the summer or winter. One can only wonder what physical education classes were like amidst the devastation of the postwar period.

A pool was needed to hold swimming classes at Hiyoshi. The Hiyoshi pool was built in 1960, and swimming classes began the following year. Keio students had to take a swimming proficiency test, and those who could not complete 50 meters were required to take swimming as their elective physical education course. Behind this was Shinzo Koizumi's passionate commitment to "Jukusei Kaiei"—the idea that students should be able to protect themselves and have the strength to save a drowning person.

As time went on, the "liberalization of the Standards for Establishing Universities" took place in June 1991. This reform was promoted by then-President Tadao Ishikawa, who served as acting chairman of the National Council on Educational Reform and later as chairman of the University Council. With the revision of these standards, health and physical education courses became electives rather than compulsory subjects in many faculties at Keio University starting in fiscal year 1993. Along with this change, the term "Jukusei Kaiei" gradually faded away. However, its spirit lives on today, from "Yochisha Kaiei" at the Yochisha Elementary School to the university's swimming programs held in the Kyoseikan Collaboration Complex indoor pool, which was completed in 2008, the 150th anniversary of Keio's founding.

(Fusao Kuroda, Vice Principal, Institute of Physical Education)