Explorations in Sights and Sounds
Orginal Publication Date
1994
Journal Title
Explorations in Sights and Sounds
Volume
14
Issue
ess/vol14/iss1
First Page
36
Last Page
37
Abstract
Japan's rapid expansion in the world of commerce since the 1960's has not only brought economic prosperity to the country but new social phenomena to its isolated monolithic culture. Roger Goodman's book focuses on just one such problem concerning "kikokusijo", or secondary schoolchildren returnees who resided abroad more than one year due to overseas assignments of their parents. The increase of returnee school children from 1,543 (1971) to 10,498 (1986) began to raise concerns in the mid-1970's with the Ministry of Education, mass media, and various public and business communities. The creation of remedial schools and special classes was hastened largely due to powerful lobbying by the returnees' parents who are mostly social elite. Why does a handful of returnee children raise a major social concern in this age of global travel and communication? A plausible explanation is the main undertaking of this book.
Rights
Copyright, ©EES, The National Association for Ethnic Studies, 1994