I want to bring to your attention a newly established Christian international school called Kakegawa International Christian School that I think is remarkable for a few reasons.
The international school is founded by Paul and Cheryl Bostrom, who started the school as a natural extension of their home-school for their 13 children. Cheryl Bostrom until recently was a member on our Education in Japan Yahoo Groups community. But that is not why the school deserves special mention.
The reason why the school is remarkable is that it is an international school that openly welcomes and accepts for the sort of students that normally wouldn’t be found in international schools – “futoko” (school refusing and dropout) children and children from single parent homes. International schools in Japan are notorious for being very expensive and hence being the preserve of wealthy expatriate families.
And KICS’ open welcome to futoko kids and kids from single parent homes isn’t just “lip service” either, the school is astonishing as it makes it truly affordable for such families with its low between 18,000 and 40,000 yen per month, with discounts offered to children from single parent households. It also offers cooked buffet lunches for its children at just 250 yen per meal, that makes it equivalent to the cost of a public elementary school lunch (kyushoku) fee which costs in the range of 5,000 yen a month.
Also amazing despite its efforts to keep the school affordable, is the fact that KICS isn’t compromising its educational standards either. Quite the opposite, it offers a bilingual educational programme with materials from Bob Jones University which has long standing among Christian homeschoolers as providers of trustworthy and high quality education, combined with Japanese textbooks used by the public school system.
As I said, Kakegawa International Christian Church deserves very special mention … because like Christian mission schools of old, it opens its doors to those who truly need it. And I also draw attention to the school because it is a beacon to our society and a call to us to make similar efforts to accommodate children which society acknowledges to be falling through the cracks of the Japanese education system.
KAKEGAWA INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH Website: http://www.kicschool.net/
Address:625-1 Tonbe, Kakegawa-shi, Shizuoka-ken, 436-0224
Phone: (0537)24-3614 Email: kics@bostrom.ecnet.jp
Kakegawa International Christian School is a new church school established in 2008 that grew out of the homeschooling expertise of the Bostrom family who extended their experience in homeschooling their 13 children – to include other children. The school is laudably particularly welcoming and accepting of “futoko” children or “school refusers”. KICS also not surprisingly, offers homeschool support for families who homeschool.
The school offers a full Japanese, English, or bilingual school program, including K5 (kindergarten), elementary, junior high, and highschool courses. The curriculum combines public school textbooks with additional materials to broaden students’ outlooks on life. KICS is a member of ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International), which is officially recognized by the Japanese government. As of 2008, there are 26 Christian schools in Japan that are members of ACSI.
The school goal:
* To foster a love of learning in children and young people, and to strengthen parent/child relationships. KICSchool recognizes and respects the uniqueness of each student.
Teaching / learning style:
* Students learn to follow their curiosity, to think creatively, and to work both independently and cooperatively with others. Students study at their own pace, with guidance from qualified teachers. They believe that a “one size fits all” education style does not suit all students.
* The benefits of a small class room (1 – 10 students) create personalized help for each student, and a comfortable, friendly environment for learning. Each child is given support and encouragement to become his or her own unique self.
No entrance examination is required. Students may enroll anytime during year. The school is especially welcoming and accepting of futouko (school refuser/drop out) children.
Bob Jones University materials are used for the school. Japanese public school texts are used alongside of BJU ones.
KIS very likely offers the most reasonable tuition rates ever seen of an international school in Japan and discounts are available for single parents. See details below (sourced from their website):
K5 (K−5 Class) Tuesday – Friday 9:00 to 12:45
《Regular》 ￥18,000／month x 12 <OR>
《Church Member》¥14,000/month x 12
K5 (K−5 Class) Tuesday – Friday 9:00 to 3:00
《Regular》 ￥24,000／month x 12 <OR>
《Church Member》¥20,000/month x 12
• Includes ALL school supplies and utilities.
• Lunch is ￥200 per meal.
Elementary/Junior High/High School 9:00 to 3:00
《Entrance Fee》 ￥50,000
《Regular》 ￥40,000／month x 12 <OR>
《Church Member》 ￥30,000／month x 12
• Includes ALL school supplies, utilities, and monthly field trip costs.
• Lunch is ￥250 per meal.
《Student Insurance》￥2,000／year
(Tuition discounts are available for families with low income, two or more students enrolled in KICSchool, and for single parents)
• DELICIOUS buffet lunch 4 days a week Tue. to Fri. (Monday is bento day)
• English textbooks are from BJU (www.bjupress.com)
• Japanese textbooks are from public schools (high school from CLARK/Hamamatsu with WEB support) supplemented with BJU Japanese curriculum.
• ESL curriculum used for transition into English
• High school diploma and transcripts provided for U.S. or Japan college applications.
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