Sessions 10 & 11 - Japan Since 1945 Workshop, 12/8

[Mario Galindo]

I am also intested to see how my Generation Z students will resond to the Japanese model of Choose and Focus.

Anytime I mention money of bring up the topic of "Who wants to be rich" I get an automatic focus of about 3-5 minutes. So, this particular Japanese historic phenomenon can come in when reading or discussing change, adaptability, focus, negative to a positive, and set-up particular student chosen topical research.

From there we can tie-in financial literacy like mutual funds versus banking interest, long term versus shorter, and earning/spending habits.

 

[Margaret Siryj]

I have to agree with you, Kim.  Professor Schaede was one of the most interesting and dynamic speakers we had the pleasure to hear.  She had such enthusiasm about her content, and being a 12th grade Economics teacher students enjoy discussions.  She presented ideas about the Japanese people, their way of life, and the amazing economy of the island nation.  Her researched statistics were shared with my students and they were enthralled to learn that Japan was the premier East Asian country to incorporate the "industrial policy" that currently, Taiwan and China have adopted.  Professor Schaede provided a platform that opened my eyes to the powerhouse that exists today which was the template in the 1970s and 80s.  While the United States was worried and consumed with the Oil Embargo, the Japanese were working on their "industrial powerhouse".  

www:factsanddetails.com/japan/cat24/sub155/item903.html

 

[Margaret Siryj]

Mario, I remember in the late 1980s that Japan was the "happening place" where each sizable company and corporation had their executives earining Masters degrees in Business Administration.  Japanese citizens were purchasing real estate in the United States at a tremendous rate and Americans were concerned that Japan was going to eventually own America.  Like Professor Schaede taught us the "industrial powerhouse" was the envy of most of the world in the 1970s and 80s.  Japanese automobiles and electronics were seen everywhere and their citizens truly adopted the philosophy of superior products.  It is truly amazing to think that the small in size island produces so much in exports.  Dr. Schaede provided a simple, yet very effective graphic demonstrating import, manufacture, export and money.  Unfortunately, their population is on the decline, and many citizens of child-bearing age are choosing not to have children or one at most.  This is problematic because their population is aging, and this brings new issues to the forefront.  

[Margaret Siryj]

I was entralled by Dr. Schaede and her knowledge of Japan.  How interesting that Ulrike would be brought up in Japan and was able to see first-hand how the Japanese embrace their work ethic philosophy.  I purchased her book because I wanted more information than she had time to deliver.  Her book mentions that even though it seems that Japan was considered "stagnate" during the late 1990s through the early 2000s, it maintains that the island nation was about to transform and change how it did business. Ulrike suggests that this period was considered a "strategic inflection point" because of the ways that business was conducted via family connections.   Interestingly enough, Japan has become the template for Taiwan, Korea, and China to follow.  Previously, families were at the helm of major corporate entities and conducted business on "their own terms".  Her book's title refers to the way that Japan chose to operate through corporate culture.  Old Japan was the familial structure of companies and the New Japan is modeled more similarly to American companies.  This change of organization was difficult because of generational structured corporations and familial charts of organization, but New Japan was inevitable if this country wanted to maintain its dominance for technology and automobiles.  Prospective employees who have no family ties are much better situated to become part of a given enterprise in the New Japan.  I am half way through her text, and it has been a real eye opening experience.  I am looking forward to see what else Schaede has to say about Japanese business.  

In my Economics classes, students research American and Japanese companies and follow the stock market.  They are given an opportunity to research Japan and its business culture.  This learning activity is done in teams of three students and at the end of my learning segment, a presentation is given to the rest of the class.  This past semester I was able to add content from Ulrike Schaede's powerful book to help enrich the content of Japanes Economics.

[Margaret Siryj]

The book that was given to our class at the end of the session has proved to be quite interesting!  "The History of Japan-US Relations", edited by Makoto Iokibe looks at the repercussions of the 1970s Embargo.  The book states that Nixon placed an embargo on the import of American soybeans to Japan.  Meanwhile, a few short months later, the Americans were embrolied in the Oil Embargo with OPEC and US citizens were waiting in line to pump gasoline into their automobiles.  Japan had it own problems with OPEC because this island nation "needed to secure a solution to the crisis".  Japan was able to be excluded from the embargo, which was considered special treatment and Japanese citizens were able to obtain all the gasoline they wanted.  President Ford visited Japan in 1974 and the Emperor of Japan visited America  the next year.  These two trips between the President and Emperor assisted with a "defense cooperation scheme" between the two countries.  When Carter came to the Oval Office, it was clear that he had little experience with foreign affairs and politics, but he was determined to continue building the alliance between the United States and Japan.

In my classroom, this book is a valuable resource for both my 10th grade World History/Geography and Economics students.  These two groups of high school students learn about US-Japan relations prior to WWII throughout modern times.  Makoto Iokibe has edited a fine book that educates on the history of US-Japan that includes information from Commander Perry to the present.  This book has content that can be used in research where students learn about the valuable alliance that both countries share.

[Kathryn Sutherland]

I also found Dr. Shaede's lecture to be illuminating!  I knew Japan was economically very prosperous, but I did not know how they got there.  The common misconception reiterated by the politicians in power today is that manufacturing + value added = economic dominance, so we should be manufacturing stuff--right? But the countries that are doing the manufacturing aren't reaping all the profit.  Sure, the iphone says "assembled in china" on the back, but that doesn't mean every payment you make on your iphone goes to China's economy.  So this equation of old economic prosperity doesn't work out so well in today's highly globalized economy.  Her lecture gave great insight on how much of a transformation Japan's economy has made in the past 75 years, from focus on growth, stability, and group membership to global competition, global and institutional investors, and profits and stock prices, and how Japan's market dominance today seems invisible to us since it has moved upstream, away from assembly.  What I think will be the most interesting bit of economic news to follow in the future will be how South Korea and Taiwan, who have been copying Japan's model, will adjust as they then try to "move upstream" as well.  Who will then fill in the manufacturing void? 

[Kathryn Sutherland]

Another resource given to us by the Japan Society was the kid friendly magazine, "Hello! Japan." In it are short, lower-elementary appropriate pictures, drawings, and informational captions following two kids, Sakura and Yuta, through a wide array of topics about life in Japan.  Ranging from nature and geography to government and international relations, this would make a great resource for kindergarteners as a read aloud, or as an independent station to learn and explore. I particularly like the page about Japanese history--it breaks it up the time from pre-history to present into six main periods, "each one with a very different culture." Noticibly absent is any major discussion of the occupation of Korea or World War II, but for kindergarten, and for a very brief overview of Japanese history, it serves to explain the six main periods in an accessible and colorful way.  

[Sophia Kang]

I found Professor Schaede's argument that the 1990's in Japan was not a 'lost decade' but one of renewal and repositioning very intriguing. She argued that the drastic change in the competitive environment after war caused Japan to change from its Developmental State System (aka "iron triangle") to the Congruence Model--a shift from increased size production to a more focused approach to which businesses to succeed in. This was evident when I visited Japan. In the souvenior shops, a common phrase I spotted was "Single-mindedness" similar to the idea of focusing and succeeding in that. Even in the production of confectionaries, I noticed an experienced craftsmanship of a single type of pastry rather than the appearance of a single brand in multiple places. Their focus on the quality production of core iPhone components was also impressive to consider.

[Christine Moguel]

What?  ONLY 11% of the japanese are willing to fight for their own country.  Could it be that the japanese feel more "safe" from any foreign threats becasue of the US presence in military bases in Japan?  I just cant wrap my head around the fact that only 11% of the Japanese popluation would actually fight for their own country.  

[Kathryn Sutherland]

Although we did not get to meet Kerim Yasar due to unfortunate circumstances, I really wanted to talk about Giants and Toys--did anyone else enjoy it as much as I did?  I had originally put it on thinking that I would maybe multi-task and do chores, but I could not take my eyes off of the screen.  It was such a funny, interesting, and engaging story--and I had the music stuck in my head for days.  I was looking forward to hearing an expert's analysis of the movie and how it related to Japanese business culture during that time.  In particular, I wanted to know more about the last scene, where the main character wears the space suit when the model won't.  Did it symbolize his undying devotion to his company, even at the expense of his dignity? I could tell the movie was a satire of the fast-paced and competitive business culture that was developing in Japan, but I'd be interested to hear more of what else the movie was poking fun at!

[Lindsay Reiss]

I really enjoyed Professor Kubo's lecture about how former enemies have become partners. Outlining the journey from bitterness to partnership helped me understand better US-Japan relations today. Japan made at least 53 apologies and participated in the San Francisco Peace Treaty. I thought the apology graphic was very interesting too.

[Lindsay Reiss]

Professor Schaede's lecture on Japan business and economy was very engaging. She talked about how Japan is very affluent and is the 3rd largest economy with a workforce of only 65 million people. The idea of lifetime employment is also one I had not heard of before. I also didn't know that workers didn't specialize and change positions throughout the years. The shift in production because of Korea's ability to produce cheaper and the smiling curve was also new to me.

 

 

[Sophia Kang]

What stood out to me from Professor Scchaede's lecture was the sense of identity through the lack of specialization:

• Although the industrial system gave disproportionate benefit to the powerful, no one complained because the lower class were taken care of by… sense of identity as in no specialization (individual comes first then group; identification with company as family resulted in long work hours--ie. “I am Toyota. Not, I am an engineer at Toyota”), no worrying about employment, subsidies

• Lower levels of anxieties and depression through social and job

 

Although post-war Japan was struggling to recover and there was overt poverty, there was a sense of the company people were representing becoming their family, which allowed for increased production.

[Reynaldo Mangabat]

The lectures of Professors Kubo and Schaede is a perfect presentation of Japan’s quest after the 2^nd World War from its asymmetrical political alliance especially with the US to its economic journey including those so called “lost decade” which was effectively a hibernation and resurrection and economic turn-around. The heated discussion in the class about the asymmetrical US-Japanese relation brings me to my Philippine history where despite of the Philippine-American mutual defense treaty, we can never rely on the US to protect us even now in the midst of Philippine-China dispute over the territorial sea. The brilliant economic analysis of professor Schaede opened my eyes to a different perspective of how Japan permeated the world’s economics by embedding itself on the very fabric of the world’s manufacturing industry. 

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