Part 11　High School Level Worksheets

When it comes to home-based education I believe that the important thing is what not to do, rather than what to do. If we say that this topic and that topic are important just because they appear in school exams, then we are placing undue importance on the short term and cannot succeed in furnishing children with lasting ability. We focus our goal on equipping children with the ability they need to be able to study with ease in high school. For example in the case of math, by focusing on nurturing calculation skills students develop ample academic ability and accordingly the ability to do word problems and geometry as well.

Toru Kumon

The ultimate goal of Kumon Method education is to foster children who can study high school level worksheets through self-learning. Whether they are junior high school students or elementary school students, or even preschoolers, we instruct our students in a way that allows them to advance to high school level material efficiently and without overexertion. Why do we do this? Many people will be aware that there are numerous cases of students who were good students in elementary school, but who were not able to keep up with their lessons after going on to junior or senior high school. The most common reason for this is the lack of the necessary basic academic ability that forms the foundation for the study of each subject. Due to a lack of academic ability, students are unable to keep up with their school lessons and cannot enjoy their school life in junior and senior high, and may even give up on their schoolwork. In extreme cases this can even cause students to go down the path of delinquency, which is something that we should never allow to happen.

There are those who say that even if a child's school grades are not so good, as long as we develop their individualities and they can live healthy and active lives in their own way, then that is fine. Some may encourage their children to invest all their energy into sports, music or art, and these are indeed wonderful pursuits. However, it must be said that when it comes to choosing a path in life, generally speaking it is not until children reach quite an advanced age that they come to gain a firm idea of what it is they want to do. Most people probably reach some kind of conclusion about their future life path when choosing what to study at university. If a child has the dream of becoming a doctor when in elementary school or junior high school, we don't want them to have to give up on that dream later on just because they are not able to do math.

Also, one cannot help but feel sorry for students who have to spend their high school days up to their neck in work studying for exams. There are so many things that we would hope young people can have time to experience in their high school days: for example, spending time with friends, taking part in school clubs, reading widely, going on overseas trips, volunteering, and so forth. Home-based education plays a vital role in ensuring that children have time to enjoy these kinds of pursuits and also do not have to worry about their studies in high school. Therefore in the home, from the time children are in elementary school, or indeed preschool, up to the time they enter high school, it is important to conduct efficient study to build the core skills that form the basis for all learning.

This is why the Kumon math and language programs are structured so as to enable students to advance efficiently to high school level material. Content that is not directly linked with this goal is omitted and we do not include all of the topics that are taught at school. The math program focuses on developing a high level of calculation ability, which is indispensable for doing high school math. The language programs focus on developing reading ability, which is of great benefit to students in high school and beyond.

In the end, the skills that Kumon students develop in reading, writing, calculation, and foreign language are not only skills that will serve them well in high school, but are skills for life that will help them to succeed both in and beyond the classroom.