Why do you deliver the speech?

 

This topic that I have chosen to share with the judges and audience is something that I feel very passionate about. Through the eleven years of my school life, I was fortunate enough to study abroad for several years. Through my experience, I was able to see the pros and cons of schools in Japan. In fact, I was able to actually feel the characteristics of Japanese schools since I was the student. Looking at schools from a student's perspective, I developed an idea and I want to share this with everyone and hopefully change people's mindset and furthermore, the action for the better future. 

 

 

 

 

Education for the 21st Century

 

 

Just a quick warning, during my speech I'm going to ask some questions. Feel free to raise 

your hand when it applies to you. Please participate. 

The ultimate question. It is the question you have all faced at one point in your life. I faced 

my ultimate question when I was 13 years old. I was studying for a modern history test when I thought, 

“Why do I have to go to school?” How many of you have asked this question? I see many hands! Those 

of you who are not raising your hand, please participate! Let me ask another question for all of you who 

are working. Has knowing what year Christianity was first introduced to Japan helped you at work? Do 

you even remember when it was? Anyone? Exactly! So what's the point of memorizing? What's the 

point of taking the test? What's the point of going to school? 

Moreover, I was especially concerned about being graded through memorization tests. This 

was probably because I spent most of my elementary years in the US where I was graded on how well I 

did in my writings, research projects and presentations. Here's another question. How many of you have 

had to do research projects or presentations at work? Exactly! The skills I was graded on, were skills I 

could see myself using 10 years later. 

That night, I couldn't see how cramming all that information would offer the same benefit. So 

I went to sleep. The next day, I asked my teacher my ultimate question and she answered, “It's for your 

future.” She didn't understand... Or so I thought. What she meant was my future, meaning next week, 

when I would get my test back with the lowest score that I could possibly get and an extra assignment. 

“It's for your future.” I knew she wasn't just talking about the assignment. She was talking 

about how it will help me succeed in the future. According to critics, our education system was 

developed in the “Industrial Era.” Education was all about cognitive growth, memorization, and 

standardized tests. So if you had sufficient knowledge, you were guaranteed to enroll in a good 

university and get a lucrative job which eventually led to a good life. So you can understand what my 

teacher meant.

The only problem is that this theory is outdated. The same critics talk about the world's shift 

to the “Technological Era,” where one click gives you enormous amounts of information. The quality of 

your ideas and ability to find creative solutions became the key to success, not knowledge. So although 

“knowing” may have some potential to be useful in the future, it shouldn't be the main focus. The focus 

should be educating us, students, so that we can come up with unique ideas and find creative solutions. 

In the words of these critics, education should help students develop “21st Century Skills,” which are 

essential in the 21st century. To name a few, critical thinking, reasoning, digital literacy, teamwork, and 

research skills. 

So my next question was how should I attain these 21st Century Skills? Critics put an 

emphasis on the necessity of education reforms. However, this will take a lot of time and effort. So 

searched for an alternative. I couldn't find an answer until I entered high school and joined the debate 

team of the English Club. Debates require 21st Century Skills so it was the perfect solution! Looking 

back at my 2 year experience in the English Club, I think I made tremendous progress in acquiring the 

21st Century Skills. 

I thought, “Wow... If only we could do debates in class...” That wish actually came true when 

we chose to do debate during homeroom. It was even the same topic that I was working on with my 

debate team. I started fantasizing about how much fun we will have. I was so excited! So when the class 

I've been waiting for all week finally came, do you know how I felt? Devastated. The class felt no 

different from all the others. It wasn't like the debate in my English club. I panicked, “How can this be? 

This is supposed to be the best class ever! What was wrong?”...Then it hit me. The issue wasn't the test. 

It wasn't the curriculums. It wasn't reforms. It was something much simpler... Participation. 

The biggest difference between schools in the US and Japan, between my club members and 

my classmates, is how much everyone participates. In the US, students were always asking questions, 

speaking up, discussing, and sharing ideas. The same goes for my English club. But the only thing you 

hear in Japanese classrooms is... Yes, silence. Come to think of it, I myself became silent when I came 

back to Japan because it felt as if being active in class and breaking that silence was bad. But after 

realizing that my attitude was the problem, I changed. I spoke up in class, asking questions even if it felt 

uncomfortable. I even encouraged my friends to speak up. 

The answer to my ultimate question was participation. What we learn in school could be 

learned from textbooks. But what makes school so special is that it provides the opportunity to test 

yourself in a small society by coming up with arguments, testing your ideas in class, and evaluating your 

classmates' opinions as well as your own. Therefore, it nurtures 21st Century Skills. Sure enough, my 

change in attitude had a positive impact, especially in my English class last year. My English teacher 

told me that my actions to encourage participation made the whole class more active and lively. My 

classmates were able to communicate better. It was that simple. A simple change in the students' attitude, 

but a massive improvement. This is how school is preparing me for my future, when I go out into the 

real world. 

Reforming the curriculums can improve education. But even if the government chooses to do 

so, if the students are not willing to participate, it's pointless. So participate, participate, and participate. 

Before I finish, I would like to ask you all one more question. Do you remember my request at the 

beginning of my speech? Please participate. Thank you.