Historical and Sociological Study on Entrance Selection at Private Elementary Schools

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  • 私立小学校の入学選抜メカニズムに関する歴史社会学的研究
  • シリツ ショウガッコウ ノ ニュウガク センバツ メカニズム ニ カンスル レキシ シャカイガクテキ ケンキュウ

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The purpose of this study is to examine the mechanisms of entrance selection procedures at private elementary schools in prewar Japan. Preceding studies have clarified the social classes of children at private elementary schools and the reasons why parents enrolled their children in such schools. However, some of these schools began to evaluate the increasing numbers of applicants through the criteria of entrance examinations. What this means is that not all applicants were able to enroll in these high-status private elementary schools. This paper focuses on the mechanisms and the function of entrance selections of private elementary schools.<BR>The second and third sections of the paper present an analysis of the selection process through which private elementary schools evaluated young children. The methods they used included mental tests, physical tests (e.g., dance), and interviews with parents. These kinds of selection assignments were described by B. Bernstein as the “invisible pedagogy.”<BR>In the fourth section, the paper demonstrates that children from the new middle class had advantages over other class children (e. g., children of the old middle class) in the selection system, and that there were conflicts among children of different segments of the new middle class.<BR>The fifth section addresses how children were prepared for the selection process. Parents had their children study at home or in kindergartens to enable them to acquire the necessary skills for the invisible selection assignments.<BR>In the sixth section, the paper clarifies that the use of entrance examinations put an end to admission through personal connections.<BR>Through this series of considerations, the following conclusions are drawn:(1) For the schools, ideal children were those who were intelligent in terms of high scores on tests;(2) The schools intended to subordinate private-elementary-school-oriented families by means of the selection system; and (3) As a result, they accepted children with similar backgrounds and abilities.

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