Educational Philosophy and Policy

MEN FOR OTHERS, WITH OTHERS

Men for others
With others

At Eiko Gakuen we strive to cultivate men
who submit themselves joyfully
to a life of seeking out those around them who are suffering
and working with them to solve their problems.

… But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Matthew 20:26–28

AGERE CONTRA

Conquer the urge to turn away from difficult tasks and instead work diligently until they are fulfilled

Do not restrict yourself to narrow viewpoints.
Work to defeat your own weaknesses.
Learn to understand and care for others
and cultivate in yourself a keen sensibility.

His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.'
Matthew 25:21

MAGIS

Nurture your abilities
to the limits of your potential.

Do not work for your own vanity or advancement,
but to achieve a better world.
Learn to take the strengths you are given
and make them even stronger.

But Jesus answered them,
"My Father is working until now,
and I am working."
John 5:17

AGE QUOD AGIS

Do what must be done, when it must be done.

Discover the mission entrusted to you
and fulfill it without hesitation,
shouldering responsibility
in both thought and action.

So you also,
when you have done all that you were commanded, say,
'We are unworthy servants;
we have only done what was our duty.'
Luke 17:10

NOBLESSE OBLIGE

I will put the skills and discernment I have been given to the best of my ability.

I will do the things I can do
and the things only I can do
to execute faithfully
the duties that are incumbent upon me.

…Everyone to whom much was given,
of him much will be required,
and from him to whom they entrusted much,
they will demand the more.
Luke 12:48

AD MAIOREM DEI GLORIAM

To the Greater Glory of God

Know that man does not live by his own strength alone
but by the strength of the Almighty.
Become a man who can fulfill
the will of God, who gave you life.

I glorified you on earth,
having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.
John 17:4

1. Close liaison with families, which hold the true and original right to educate their children

It goes without saying that the people primarily responsible for a child’s education are that child’s parents. School education is critically dependent on parental understanding and cooperation. This is especially so for children of junior-high-school and high-school age, for whom the family has an especially vital role to play.
For this reason close liaison with families is essential to Eiko Gakuen. The School needs parents to understand our activities, our educational philosophy and our policies.
To facilitate close communication between parents and teachers, Eiko Gakuen holds a number of meeting and social events throughout the year. In addition to one-on-one interviews between parents and homeroom teachers, Eiko Gakuen hosts PTA meetings twice a year, as well as informal get-togethers in each district of our catchment area (consisting of 20 districts).

2. Individual consideration for each of the students within each group

While the basic format of Eiko Gakuen is group education, we are always mindful that each of the students who make up each group is a unique, irreplaceable individual. At Eiko Gakuen we do much more than simply impart knowledge to students. Through interactions between teachers and students and among students, we foster an experience wherein every student understands that he is valued and accepted. That experience lays the foundation upon which every student can grow and develop as an individual. Though students are taught in a group, every boy is encouraged to discover his own place in the School and build supportive relationships with those around him. To ensure this individual support, total enrollment per school year is capped at 180 students.

3. A variety of experiences and opportunities appropriate to each boy's stage of development

The School is a unified six-year education institution. These six years are divided into three stages, consisting of the introductory stage (corresponding to the first and second years of junior high school), the intermediate stage (third year of junior high school and first year of high school) and the advanced stage (second and third years of high school). Guidance plans and other approaches are fleshed out separately for each stage.

4. Self-awareness as a Member of the International Community

The global society of the future will see brisk movement worldwide of people, goods and information. In such a world, Eiko Gakuen students and other beneficiaries of Jesuit education worldwide are required to be able to consider issues from a global perspective based on Christian humanism. People who possess such qualities are called upon to immerse themselves in international society, not to build walls to protect their own countries or ethnic groups but to build bridges among the nations and peoples of the world and contribute to their happiness.
To achieve this objective, Eiko Gakuen makes use of a global network of Jesuit educational institutions. For example, the School dispatches students to and accepts students from Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu in the Philippines and dispatches students to Boston College, a Jesuit university in the US state of Massachusetts.

5. Ethical and religious education

Eiko Gakuen focuses on all-round education, an approach that essentially informs all of the School’s guidance on studies and living habits. To instill these principles thoroughly in students, Eiko Gakuen offers an exclusive course in ethics, as it has since its earliest days.
Now and in the future, students will have to make choices and judgments about what they should and should not do. As important as it is to accumulate a large body of knowledge, it is just as important, if not more so, to be able to think rigorously about decisions and judgments, make the right decisions and execute them. By offering classes in ethics, Eiko Gakuen aims to foster that capability in its students.
As a Catholic school, Eiko Gakuen believes that religion is a vital foundation for our existence as human beings. However, catechism is not a required subject at Eiko Gakuen, nor do we require students to worship Christ. Because nothing is a more important part of an individual than his religious faith, we believe that faith must come into being in freedom, born and nurtured in the deepest places of the heart.
For students who express an interest of their own volition, mass is held regularly in the school chapel, and opportunities for Bible study are provided as extracurricular activities in each school year. We encourage interested students to gain spiritual nourishment through a deeper understanding of the teachings of Christ, the spiritual bedrock on which the School is founded.