Attention Houston: It is now time to go back to school...

My job requires me to go to a total of three schools: One junior high school, and two elementary schools. 塩尻 中学校, also known as Shiojiri JHS, is my base school. I report to work here with the exception of the five or so days per month when I visit the two elementaries.

One can argue that a school is not the edifice itself, but rather the concept of teaching and learning that goes on in said space, but I wanted to share a bit about the physical building first. This post may be used a reference point for future blog posts about my job as an ALT, so I will try to hit the main areas of the school so that you can have a general idea as to what it looks like. In the words of my dear granny, Maxine McDonald, I shall give you the “Two-dollar Tour.”

School campus as seen from athletic fields

Map of school

Map: The school is a three story building that centers around a courtyard. There are two towers, so to speak, with classrooms in either tower. If you look in the above photograph, you can see orange, blue, and green-colored tiles. These tiles represent the homerooms of the first, second, and third years, respectively. These are all in the west tower. The east tower houses the science, fine arts, and home economics rooms. You can also see my silhouette in the picture.

Student's entrance as seen from driveway

Students’ Entrance: This is the primary entrance that students use to come and go. It is the closest entrance to the academic wings, and it has multiple doors for easy traffic flow.

Adult's entrance as seen from driveway

Adult’s Entrance: This is the main entrance that the saff and faculty use when entering and exiting the school. It is farther away from the academic wings, but closer to the teacher’s room, front office, clinic, and teacher’s lounge. Parents, visitors, postmen, and vendors also use this door.

When I first discovered that there were two entrances, I didn’t really know what to think, but then I realized that it’s the same in America. The students of a school don’t all funnel in through the front doors by the main office. That would be impractical. Both entrances serve the most commonly used areas for each group of people, and both have separate genkan:

Adult's genkan: inside looking out

Students genkan as seen from above

Genkan: Imagine if a foyer and a mudroom hooked up and had a baby. This would be it. The genkan is just on the other side of the external doors. It is a recessed area of a home or school that functions as a transitional space. It has mats for drying off muddy or wet shoes, and it has racks for the storage of umbrellas on rainy days. The genkan’s primary function is to serve as a space where one can change shoes. In Japanese homes and schools, shoes that are worn outside are never to be worn inside.  Before entering the main area of a home or school, you must remove your regular outside shoes, sotobaki, and put on your inside shoes, uwabaki. I can’t help but think of the scene in Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift where Lucas Black’s character learns about outdoor and indoor shoes the hard way.

My shoe locker

Sotobaki (outside footwear) = Nike

Uwabaki (indoor footwear) = Converse

Staff room: This room is located at the front of the school. It is where all of the teachers, as well as the administration gather every morning. When a teacher has an off period or planning time, this is usually where they go. Everyone has their own desk and computer provided by the school. I, of course, bring my own computer. You know, the one that runs on an operating system in my mother tongue?

Staff room

Corridor: Here is a shot of the hallway. Each hallway in the academic wings has a trough-style sink for students to wash their hands after using the bathroom, before eating lunch, etc. They also have a large common area that can hold every student in their respective grade comfortably. The students often gather here during passing period. Sometimes this space is used for grade level meetings as well.

Corridor

Classroom: This is a picture of your standard classroom. Of course the elective and science rooms are a bit different, but you get the general idea. What I admire most about the classrooms at this school is their ability to provide a stunning view. Since Japan’s landscape is over 80% mountains, you can imagine how distracting nature can be. Add in the the fact that every 10-15 minutes or so a JR train goes by, and you’d start to wonder how I get anything done in a regular period.

Standard academic classroom

First floor terrace

I may regret saying this in the winter, but I can say it now cause it’s how I feel: I love how the classrooms here blur the lines between the natural world and their man-made school. There is no central air conditioning in my school, so it helps to have larger than life windows that open. Many times I find myself saying “There’s a nice breeze blowin’ through.” On the first floor of the school, all the classrooms have a giant glass sliding door that opens out onto the terrace. There are morning glory vines, a rock sculpture, and the special needs department’s vegetable garden. On the second and third floors, the classrooms have doors that open out to a veranda. It isn’t uncommon to have visitors of the bug variety in the course of a regular class period.

On the Whole: I really enjoy my base school. The simple structure and great views make it a comfortable place to be. Like I said, maybe I’ll be changing my tune come wintertime, but for now I’m on cloud nine.

View of town from third floor of Shiojiri JHS