Graduation

Yesterday I experienced my first sotsugyoushiki, or graduation ceremony. It was for YJHS, my large junior high. I was a little disappointed that I wasn't going to graduation at my mountain school, because I don't really know the third graders at YJHS. I barely ever saw them; for one reason or another, I was almost always assigned to work with the second or first grade classes. In any case, I didn't have a terribly deep emotional attachment to the students who were graduating.

Graduation took place in the gym, which had been arranged for the occasion. Red and white striped plastic drapes covered the walls, and the floors were covered with tarps. On the stage at the front of the gym was a gigantic floral arrangement. The first and second graders were seated in folding chairs at the back of the gym, facing forward. The graduating students were seated on the right side of the gym with their chairs facing inward, and the parents and guests were seated opposite them, also facing inward. The teachers in charge of the third grade sat at the front of the gym near the stage, and the rest of the teachers sat in a row along the side of the gym.

Graduation started with the third graders filing in one at a time and taking their assigned seats. It was all very orderly. I imagine they must have been rehearsing it for the past several days; that's typically how things work at school. After everyone was seated, a video was shown. It was a compilation of videos from several events, including Sports Day. The video was pretty interesting to me in that it showed the sort of activities the students did as a class. It looked like they went on a few trips. I was especially surprised to see clips of them in normal clothing; I only ever see them in their school uniforms. Even on the weekends, most students wear their uniforms.

From that point on, most of graduation took the form of speeches. Speeches from the Principal, from the head of the PTA, from a representative of the graduating class, and from a representative of the students in the lower grades. There were also a few songs, including the school song, the national anthem, and some songs that I think are only sung at graduation. It was a little hard to tell what was what since I couldn't read the program.

For the actual graduation part of the ceremony, the students' names were called one at a time. Each student was expected to stand up and respond "Hai" ("Yes") in turn. A few of the more rebellious students shouted "Hai" when it was their turn, but that was about the extent of the excitement. The students didn't receive their diplomas until it was time for them to file out of the gym. They expedited this process by having three teachers (one for each class) handing out diplomas. There were three more teachers assisting by handing the students little gift bags. I don't know what was in the bags, but it seems safe to assume that it was some kind of present.

By this point, a good number of students and teachers were crying. The teachers dabbed at their eyes with handkerchiefs which they'd had the foresight to bring, and the students mostly wiped their faces on their sleeves. I didn't have a very clear view of the parents, but I would imagine that some of them were crying as well. The teachers who weren't handing out diplomas stood at the back of the gym to shake hands with the students as they filed out. I wondered for a bit if I should join them, but ultimately decided that I'd probably just be in the way. I didn't really have a bond with any of these students and it would be a bit pretentious to act like I did.

While part of me thought that it was a bit silly to make such a fuss over junior high school graduation, I can kind of see the sense in it. Unlike in the U.S., students from one junior high will not necessarily go to high school together. In fact, it's very unlikely that most of the class would go to the same school. Each student had to take high school entrance exams individually, and given that there was a range of ability within the class, the students wouldn't all be attempting to get into the same school. The brighter students would be taking more difficult exams to get into better schools, and others would just be attempting to get into any high school they could. The students within each class (3-1, 3-2 or 3-3) had been with each other all day every day for the past year, but from there on out, they might not see each other again. So graduation was a pretty big deal.

After the ceremony ended, there was some time for the students to say goodbye to their underclassmen and teachers. Everyone mingled outside the gym for a bit. Once that was done with, the students were free to go home. Graduation had lasted about 2 hours. I went back to the staff room and watched the teachers gradually make their way back to their desks. I think it was a fairly taxing day for the third grade teachers, watching their students leave. There was a meeting once everyone had returned, but I'm not sure exactly what was said. It was something relating to the ceremony.

When I went up to get my attendance sheet stamped, the vice principal asked when I was going home for the day. I didn't really know how to respond. When could I leave? He eventually told me that I was done for the day and that it was okay to go. I double checked this with one of the English teachers, and I was allowed to go home early. On my way out, the vice principal stopped me and announced to everyone that this was my last day. I reminded them that I was coming back for the next school year, but they stood up and clapped for me anyways. It was a little strange. Looking back, they may have done this not because they thought I was leaving, but because some of them might be transferred. So maybe that was the last time I would see some of them. I'm rather hoping that there won't be any major changes to my schools; I like the teachers I work with, and though I don't talk much with the others, I feel like the atmosphere in the staff room is pretty good.