[Special Feature: 125 Years Since the Establishment of Integrated Education] Makoto Ueda: The Mission of Integrated Education

"That tie doesn't match your shirt." "That's different from what you said the other day." Thirty-five years ago, my life as a teacher at Chutobu Junior High School began with the shock of being pointed out on various small details by 13-year-old junior high school students. In "normal" schools, I thought from my own experience that the teachers' room was a place with a high threshold—a place you never went unless something serious happened. However, at Chutobu Junior High School, it was truly a "social lounge" or a "common room." Students would come and go, engaging in "small talk." The topics ranged widely from private matters to their own hobbies and futures. I remember well escaping to another location because so many students would come by. My previous school was a rough public high school where my job was to stop students from going to motorcycle gang rallies. Before that, I was at a private school where providing exam guidance while making it to Koshien was the ultimate mandate. For me, having taught in those environments, every day was a shock.

Furthermore, despite being junior high school students, their specialized knowledge was incredibly rich. "The topography of Karuizawa," "How to make Camembert cheese," "The mie poses of Kabuki," "Talk of celestial bodies." Before I knew it, I was the one asking the junior high school students questions. It was truly "learning while teaching, teaching while learning." Having spent my life entirely in public schools until high school, I made a fresh start as a teacher who was an "affiliated schools freak."

Two years later, I transferred to Keio Senior High School as an English teacher and was appointed as the manager of the baseball club. I was all fired up, thinking, "Right, we're going to train hard and go to Koshien." However, the baseball club members who had come from Chutobu Junior High School called out to me in a friendly way, saying, "Ueda-san!" Soon, the students from Keio Futsubu School and the players from outside schools followed suit. I still cannot forget the look on the faces of the High School Baseball Federation officials when a manager entered the headquarters booth at the stadium for an official game and addressed me as "Ueda-san" as usual. I'm sure they thought Ueda was being looked down upon by his players.

Also, on the field, the players would frankly confront me with what they thought or questioned. Whether it was not being satisfied with how players were being used or holding a "vote of no confidence in the manager" among the players, I was able to spend a lot of fun and fulfilling time that other high school baseball managers never get to experience.

Flying the flag of "Enjoy Baseball," the Juku baseball club fights today just as it did in the past. Of course, we fight with all our might against our opponents, but we have also fought against the "common sense of the baseball world." The ability to do this may be the "mission to society" that flows steadily through the Juku. I always feel that we must ride more firmly on the pure and untainted clear stream that Yukichi Fukuzawa let flow. I also served as a coach for the university baseball club for five years, and here too, I often saw how the "samurai" from affiliated schools created a culture where they could firmly advise the manager and coaches if they thought it was for the good of the team, regardless of their baseball skill.

I've ended up talking only about baseball, but I am always surprised by the high potential of affiliated schools. In particular, these "extraordinary elementary and junior high school students" acquire the means to spread their wings to the outside world from their junior years. I was also inspired by the many teachers working there. Furthermore, although education is conducted in various different environments at each of the affiliated schools, there is something shared among them. And there is no doubt that this "something" is the "mission to society" shown to us by Yukichi Fukuzawa.

Through my life as a teacher and my experience as a baseball club manager, I feel once again how important and vital the role played by "integrated education" is for Keio University. From their junior years, these boys and girls naturally acquire within Keio University the sensibility to not be swallowed by the trends of the times, and sometimes to go against the flow. And when they become members of society, they do not flatter or fawn over great power, but rather reform the status quo and try to create something good. And if the current system does not change, they will become leaders by starting new organizations themselves. My heart still leaps when I meet graduates filled with such a "mission to society." I sincerely hope that all the faculty and staff of the affiliated schools will navigate the wonderful ship called "Keio University" with confidence.

In March of this year, I reached the mandatory retirement age as a teacher at the Juku. Among the celebratory parties held by many former students was a Chutobu Junior High School class for which I was the homeroom teacher for only one year. Even as time passed, they called me "Ueda-san," and I was inspired by my former students just as I was 35 years ago. As an "affiliated schools freak," I want to continue to be someone who can provide inspiration as well.

Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the predecessors who have supported integrated education for 125 years, the parents, and all the faculty and staff.