Reforming Lesson Study in Japan: Theories of Action for Schools as Learning Communities

This book elucidates the formation and development of theories of action in school reforms for Schools as Learning Communities (SLC) during ten years from its inception in 1998 in select Japanese elementary schools, junior high schools, and one secondary school. While growing international interest in Japanese lesson study is in pursuit of a standard lesson study, Suzuki offers a unique perspective into school reforms for SLC and how they resisted the standardization of lesson study out of concerns that it would limit a teacher’s autonomous judgment and choice.

Through a theory-of-action approach in its examination of the pilot schools for SLC, this book clarifies:

• Why did teachers reform lesson study?

• What were the difficulties in reforming lesson study?

• Why were teachers working on school reform for SLC?

• Why did the school reform for SLC evolve from an elementary school to the junior high schools and high schools?

This book provides a theoretical foundation for reviewing the past efforts and histories of Japanese lesson study reforms, and will interest academics and practitioners looking for insights into the future of lesson study.

Winner of the Seiichi Tejima Research Award (2023 Book Award) and the Academic Research Award by the Japan School Improvement Rescarch Association (2022).

Yuta Suzuki is an associate professor in the Institute for Liberal Arts (ILA) at Tokyo Institute of Technology. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Education from the University of Tokyo and a master’s degree in Education from the University of Tokyo. He received his PhD in Education from the University of Tokyo. He was a Research Fellow of Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and a project lecturer at the University of Tokyo. He received Seiichi Tejima Research Award (Book Award) For FY 2023 for Reforming Lesson Study in Japan following the Japan School Improvement Research Association Award in 2022. His previous books include Formation and Development of Teachers’ Professional Community: A Genealogy of Research on School Reform in the United States (in Japanese) (Keiso Shobo, 2018) (Japanese Association of School Education Award 2019), Essence of Education and Teacher Learning, coauthored (in Japanese) (Gakubunsya, 2019), and Reggio Children’s Wonder of Learning: Early Childhood Education at Reggio Emilia, (Japanese joint translation) (Access Publishing, 2011). His articles include "Teachers Professional Discourse in a Japanese Lesson Study", International Journal for Lesson and Learning Studies, Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 216-231 (2012). His research interests include lesson study, school reform, action research, teachers’ professionalism, professional learning, and professional community.