- The following is content from the press release -
We will build a collaborative system that can provide one-stop support for ICT introduction proposals and infrastructure development for preschools, kindergartens, and parents, including the creation of play environments and the sharing of activity records.
(Benesse Corporation; President and Representative Director: Hitoshi Kobayashi; hereinafter "Benesse"), Smart Education Corporation (President and Representative Director: Daigo Iketani; hereinafter "Smart Education"), Codomon Co. (President: Masahiro Abe, Branch Manager; hereinafter "NTT West"), has been commissioned by the Nagoya City Board of Education to conduct the "Kindergarten Matching Project," one of the practical research projects of the 2021 "Nagoya School Innovation Project. The project is a part of the "Nagoya School Innovation Project" conducted by the Nagoya City Board of Education in fiscal 2021.
In this practical research project, in order to deepen and enhance "independent, interactive, and deep learning," new forms of environment and communication will be established at five Nagoya City kindergartens [Daiichi Kindergarten (Higashi Ward), Daisan Kindergarten (Nishi Ward), Fukiage Kindergarten (Showa Ward), Arako Kindergarten (Nakagawa Ward), and Naruko Kindergarten (Midori Ward)]. We will build a new environment and a new form of communication in the following kindergartens.
The consortium members will support the operation of the five kindergartens for one year by creating an environment in the five kindergartens that will lead to the creation of free play and review of children's learning, and a new communication environment in which children, parents, and staff can share information on the record of each child's activities, through the use of ICT that makes use of the knowledge accumulated through their respective projects. We will support the operation of the program for one year.
Specifically, we will address the following four points
- Creating an environment that induces new play by incorporating ICT
- Establish a system for recording and sharing children's activities through documentation using ICT
- Creation of time through labor-saving in-school operations using ICT
- Maintenance of ICT environment in the park to realize the above
Nagoya School Innovation Project" by Nagoya City Board of Education
This is a project to promote "individualized and optimized learning" according to the interests, abilities, and progress of each child in order to nurture Nagoya children who will "develop their own potential to the fullest and live their lives vigorously" in a dramatically changing society. The project has been conducted at one school, Yada Elementary School (Higashi Ward, Tokyo).
In FY2021, in order to further expand these efforts to improve classes, new schools (preschools) were selected through an open application process, and six new practical research projects called "Matching Projects" were launched to provide "individually optimized learning" by matching the issues and needs of the schools (preschools) to realize their vision of children with the expertise and know-how of the private sector. The Matching Project is a series of six new practical research projects that will work to provide "individually optimized learning.
This is an unprecedented initiative in Japan, where municipal schools (preschools) and private businesses collaborate throughout the year to conduct practical research across all school types, from kindergarten to high school.
About the Consortium for Innovation in Early Childhood Education, a consortium of companies
This is a joint venture of four companies with proven track records in their respective fields, working together to conduct this practical research that requires expertise in multiple areas, including teaching materials, teaching affairs, and communication infrastructure.
Smart Education Corporation, which provides "KitS," an ICT educational material that encourages children to create a variety of play activities based on their own free ideas; Codomon, Inc. Codomon Corporation and Benesse Corporation, and West Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, which is responsible for the construction of ICT environments in nursery rooms, staff rooms, and entrances.
About the Consortium Participating Companies
- Benesse Corporation (Head Office: Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture; President: Hitoshi Kobayashi)* Consortium Representative
:https://www.benesse.co.jp/
Benesse Corporation, a subsidiary of Benesse Holdings, Inc., has launched a business for nursery schools, and leveraging its own strengths in various knowledge and infrastructure for childcare support and early childhood education, has worked with CoDMON Corporation to jointly develop CoDMON's teaching support service for nursery schools, "Childcare We have been jointly developing "Documentation". In this project, we will serve as the representative company for consortium activities and be responsible for training in the use of "Childcare Documentation" and operational support. - Smart Education Corporation (Head office: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Daigo Ikeya)
:http://www.smarteducation.jp/Smart Education supports the creation of an environment in which kindergartners can freely create a variety of play activities and reflect on their own learning by using "KitS," an ICT educational material (used in over 500 kindergartens nationwide, this is the first time it has been used in a public kindergarten) that fosters 21st century skills and non-cognitive skills such as "creativity," "teamwork" and "ICT utilization skills" in kindergarten children. The program supports the creation of an environment that encourages children to create their own play and to reflect on their own learning. The creative activities of preschool children can be shared with their parents' smartphones and tablets, promoting dialogue between preschool children and their parents.KitS use scenery
- (Head office: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Yoshinori Koike)
:https://www.codmon.co.jp/
The ICT system "CoDMON," which has been introduced in more than 8,000 preschools and 120 local governments nationwide, provides a wide range of functions from labor-saving office work for staff, such as management of arrival and departure from preschool, to support functions for teaching, such as creation of lesson plans and "childcare documentation," thereby supporting both labor-saving work and improvement of childcare quality. We support both labor-saving and quality improvement in childcare. The system also provides a smartphone application that enables two-way communication between kindergartens, the Board of Education, and parents, and supports work style reforms that allow staff to spend more time focusing on children and parents. - Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corporation (Headquarters: Osaka, Osaka; Nagoya Branch: Naka-ku, Nagoya; Director and General Manager, Nagoya Branch: Masahiro Abe)
:https://www.ntt-west.co.jp/
NTT West will be in charge of the overall ICT environment, including iPad terminals for preschool children and staff, large presentation devices, and their communication environment, as well as the support window for prompt response to any problems that may occur, in cooperation with NTT West's help desk and other company representatives. NTT West has been striving to improve the work efficiency of preschools and the quality of childcare for preschool children by introducing ICT to the preschool area. As people's work styles diversify, including shorter working hours and teleworking, demand for ICT environment improvement is expected to increase to enable preschools to respond flexibly and improve work efficiency, and NTT West will make further efforts to support this trend.
