Four courses of high schools, Regular (General), Part-time, Correspondence and Credit Unit Courses.

　

　

　

 High schools are classified in three courses: Regular (General), Specialized (Technical) and Comprehensive.

　

　

 No special measure/considerations are given within the public school systems under Hokkaido Prefecture or City of Sapporo.

 If you wish to receive any special consideration, please talk to your HR teacher of your middle school, and submit such request to high school via middle school you are attending.

 Students returning from foreign countries may apply for the general course of Sapporo Intercultural Technological High School, regardless of (with or without) his/her resident district (You may confirm with your middle school teachers about the conditions of the length of living abroad, and etc.)

　

　

　

 Evaluations for acceptance by public high schools are based on “Internal Report Card” and the scholastic test scores of the entrance exam

 Private high schools conduct the same type of evaluation. However, unlike the schools under public system, each school determines their own standards and evaluation points for acceptance.

　

　

　

　

 In the 9^th grade, a student and his/her home room teacher will start discussions about his/her future directions. Around the end of Nov. timeframe and the early part of Dec., a 3-parties meeting, or “three persons meeting”, with the student him/herself, guardian (parent) and home room teacher present is held to discuss about the student's future directions. In this meeting, the student's desires and hopes for his/her future is expressed and discussed with all three parties exchanging their views and onions, and come to final determination as to what he/she will do after graduating from middle school

 Home room teacher's role is to provide advices to the student and his/her guardian on what are the future options. Teacher's advices are based on the overall view of how the student has developed during the school years in test scores, with current development in his/her ability in studying at home and probabilities in passing/failing the exam for the high school that has surfaced as a target school. Also taken into consideration is the expected school life after entering high school, and/or future outlook thereafter. At that time, the teacher will suggest the (more realistic choice) names of high schools that are within the prospective range of his/her abilities. The repatriated student, if and when his/her guardian is not fluent in Japanese, he/she will have to act as an interpreter for a teacher and a guardian. This task is a rather heavy one, as the student him/herself may be in the process of still learning about Japanese systems, and as it is also clear that the ideas for higher education differ very much between Chinese and Japanese ways of thinking.

 In the usual situation, sensitive matters such as the student's weakness in learning, etc. are communicated directly by the teacher to the guardian. But in the above case, this heavy, burdensome task will have to fall on the student's shoulders even if he/she may not wish to disclose such message to a guardian.

 These elements sometimes invite certain misunderstanding and/or unnecessary worries in the guardian's mind.

 A few of such cases in summary are described below:

　

　

 The ideas that getting into the famous high school would make it possible to get into the famous university are rapidly dwindling into obsolescence. For one thing, there is no guarantee for a student to move onto a great university even from a noted high school. And the more troubling thing is that the student after entering a famous high school, if it is beyond his/her learning abilities to follow the classes, will have difficulty in making it through. This makes no sense. Thus, it will be more beneficial to choose a high school within the range in which he/she can compete with his/her peers.

 Also becoming obsolete in Japan is the used to be established pattern of “successful career” after graduating a good university. Society now requires energy, actions and personality that carry him/herself to completion in the real world instead of the prestigious education on the paper.

 In high schools, selection of the next path, colleges, universities and any institutions of higher education, is geared towards the schools where the student is able to materialize his/her skills, abilities and unique self, rather than making it to the famous schools.

 As private high schools with connections to higher education institutions have priority rights to move their students on to the next level path, public high schools also have some priority rights upon recommendation in certain designated schools. In order to qualify for such privileges, a student needs to excel in his abilities to demonstrate the upper range of the scholastic scores.

　

 High school systems differ from Prefecture to Prefecture within Japan. If you have a plan to move, you need to find out how the high school systems are structured in the Prefecture where you move to. Some Prefectures may require you and your child to visit their board of education to receive confirmation on your child's qualification status to take an entrance exam test. There are many other items that need clarifications regarding your child's entering high school, and we advise that you inform your home room teacher before the end of October, and that you start preparing for your child's high school in the next location. Changing school in the months of March or April will require cautions and certain considerations as it may cause minor but sensitive issues.

　

 You can take test for 1 public high school - exam day scheduled on one day only for all public high schools. Private schools in Hokkaido have 2 sets of test schedules, A & B, thus, you are able to take test for 2 private high schools. Even for public high schools outside Hokkaido, it is not possible for you to take test-system is not the same. For private high schools outside Hokkaido, you can apply for as many as the test schedules allow you to.