The View From My Desk: Kusu JHS

Fifth period cleaning time for year two, class one.

Did I mention my duties will take me to all seven of Kusu's junior highs? I'm too lazy to go back and peruse previous entries but, yeah, there's seven: in order of size from largest to smallest we have Kusu, Mori, Yahata, Kitayamada, Kogo, Hiju and Yamaura. My classes range in population from about thirty at Kusu down to two and three at Hiju and Yamaura. Yes, just two or three per class at those two. Unbelievable.


Third year, group one class. This class is my first period of the day.

Why does the Japanese government maintain these remote schools instead of consolidating them when their student bodies drop this low? I keep thinking that maybe nothing has changed in the Japanese mindset since the second world war, this pointless stubborn streak that prevents retreat even in the face of a hopeless cause. It's not like this is the Alamo where there was simply no retreat from the situation so they might as well go out in a fantastic blaze of glory--there is a better way! Consolidate! There's room at Kusu and Mori and Yahata to fit the kids at Yamaura, Kogo, Hiju and Kitayamada, really. And make no bones about it, these schools will close at some point as the rural population steadily declines from old age or emigration to urban areas. For a school to close in Japan though, from what I've heard, the body must drop to two students. At that point I think you're just damaging the kids' ability to have a normal social life though.


The staff offices at Kusu JHS.

But enough about that, this has all been an elaborate, somewhat dark lead in to my seven-part series "The View From My Desk". In this series I'll simply take a picture to show what's outside the window next to my desk. That's pretty damn simple


Here it is, the view from my desk at Kusu JHS. That's Mt. Kirikabu in the background, one of many forested mesa in the area.

--Matt