Kaichi Tokorozawa School

Origins and Founding Vision

Kaichi Tokorozawa (開智所沢) is one of Japan's newest private schools, having opened its doors in April 2024. The school is operated by Gakko Hojin Kaichi Gakuen (学校法人開智学園), an educational foundation with deep roots in Saitama Prefecture that has championed inquiry-based, exploratory learning for decades.

The impetus for the Tokorozawa campus came from the group's long-time chairman, Toru Aoki (青木徹), a former public middle school teacher who spent over a quarter-century building a network of peer-level schools centered in Saitama. According to Diamond Online, the idea of expanding to Tokorozawa was conceived more than 30 years before the school finally opened — land was secured and held in anticipation of the project long before construction began.

Simultaneous Launch of Primary and Secondary Schools

Uniquely, the Tokorozawa campus launched both a primary school (開智所沢小学校) and an integrated secondary school (開智所沢中等教育学校) simultaneously in April 2024. This 6-year integrated model from Year 1 through Year 6 (equivalent to middle and high school) allows for continuous, coherent inquiry-based learning across developmental stages.

Immediate Public Interest

Despite being a brand-new institution, the school attracted extraordinary interest from its very first admissions cycle. In January 2024, the entrance examination for the secondary school alone drew over 7,800 applicants. By the 2025 admissions year, combined applications across general and international student tracks exceeded 15,000 — a remarkable figure for a school in only its second year of operation.

Architecture and Ethos

The school's physical design reflects its ambitions. The campus features a stylish black-and-white exterior unusual among Japanese school buildings, signaling its identity as a forward-looking institution. Its modern facilities include artificial turf sports grounds, science laboratories, a gymnasium, a cafeteria, and a multi-purpose hall — all purpose-built for the 2024 opening.

The Tokorozawa campus represents both the culmination of a personal educational vision and the natural next step in Kaichi Gakuen's expansion, carrying forward the group's philosophy of nurturing curious, creative, globally-minded learners.

Unprecedented Early Demand

For a school that had not yet opened its doors, Kaichi Tokorozawa generated extraordinary admissions interest. In January 2024 — the month before the school's first academic year began — the secondary school entrance examination alone attracted over 7,800 applicants, described by Diamond Online as an auspicious debut (幸先の良い船出).

By the 2025 admissions cycle, combined applications across general and international student tracks surpassed 15,000 — a figure that places the school among the most sought-after new private schools in Japan.

Acceptance Rates

Despite the high volume of applications, the first-round examination in January 2024 resulted in approximately 87% of applicants (2,337 of 2,683 exam-takers) being offered admission. This comparatively high acceptance rate reflects the school's commitment to enrolling a diverse, enthusiastic student body in its inaugural year rather than applying ultra-selective gatekeeping.

Admissions Structure

The school conducts multiple rounds of examinations for both the secondary school and, separately, the primary school. The admissions process includes both a general examination track and an international student track (国際生入試), catering to returnee students and those with international education backgrounds.

Entry fee (入学金) is set at ¥250,000, and annual tuition begins at ¥648,000 (授業料 ¥540,000 + 教育充実費 ¥108,000), rising to ¥1,018,000 for students who advance into the Special International Course (特別国際コース) in Year 5.

Scholarship and Merit Tracks

The school offers a merit-based scholarship system (特待奨学金) with multiple tiers:

• S特待 (S Scholar): Full tuition waiver
• 特待A (Scholar A): 100% tuition reduction
• 特待B (Scholar B): 50% tuition reduction

These are awarded based on entrance examination performance and are renewable, incentivizing academic excellence from day one.

International Student Proportion

Approximately 10% of students are returnees or international students, with the remaining 90% being local Japanese families — positioning the school as a primarily domestic institution with meaningful international exposure.

Core Educational Philosophy

At the heart of Kaichi Tokorozawa's educational identity is the principle of 探究型学習 (inquiry-based learning) — an approach in which students are encouraged to pose their own questions, investigate problems, and construct understanding rather than passively receiving information. This philosophy is not new to the Kaichi Gakuen group; it has been the foundation of the group's schools since their inception and is now systematically extended across the Tokorozawa campus's 6-year integrated program.

The school articulates its mission as: "Creating a future of coexistence with AI" (AIと共生する未来を創る), reflecting its commitment to preparing students for an era of rapid technological transformation. The official educational goals center on developing three core competencies: creativity (創造力), critical thinking (思考力), and the ability to communicate and express ideas globally (発信力).

International Baccalaureate Framework

Kaichi Tokorozawa is structured around the International Baccalaureate (IB) continuum. The primary school operates the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP), while the secondary school is working toward full IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) authorization (candidate school status as of June 2025). This alignment with international standards ensures that the inquiry-based curriculum meets globally recognized benchmarks.

The school's philosophy explicitly draws on the Kaichi Gakuen group's high-level educational heritage while layering international standards: "Through the Kaichi Gakuen group's high-level, quality education and internationally standard learning, we nurture the creativity, critical thinking, and expressive ability to thrive in the future."

Integration of Technology and Global Skills

Distinguishing Kaichi Tokorozawa from many traditional Japanese private schools is its overt integration of AI and ICT into the curriculum. The school positions technology not as an elective but as a core component of future-readiness. English is treated as a primary vehicle for both instruction and expression, not merely a subject.

Core Values

The school's values center on four pillars: Challenge (挑戦), Creativity (創造), Collaboration (協働), and Responsibility (志). These values permeate student life from club activities to classroom inquiry projects, creating a consistent culture of engagement and ambition.

Pastoral and Character Development

Beyond academic achievement, the school emphasizes character development (人間教育), encouraging students to understand and respect world cultures with the ultimate aim of contributing to "a peaceful and prosperous society" — a phrase repeated in official mission documentation.

Six-Year Integrated Curriculum

Kaichi Tokorozawa operates as a fully integrated 6-year school connecting primary (小学校) and secondary (中等教育学校) education. This continuity allows the inquiry-based philosophy to develop without interruption across developmental stages, from early primary through the equivalent of high school Year 3 (Grade 12).

IB Programme Alignment

At the primary level, the school follows the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP), which emphasizes trans-disciplinary inquiry, student agency, and international mindedness from an early age.

At the secondary level, the school is a candidate school for the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) as of June 2025, working toward full authorization. The MYP's emphasis on conceptual understanding, global contexts, and the interconnection of subject areas aligns directly with the school's inquiry-based ethos.

Course Differentiation

The secondary school offers distinct academic tracks:

• Standard course (本科): Core 6-year integrated curriculum with strong English and inquiry components
• Special International Course (特別国際コース): Available from Year 5, designed for students targeting overseas university admission; carries higher annual fees of ¥1,018,000 (vs. ¥648,000 for the standard course)

Students are also grouped by merit-scholarship status (S/A/B/準特待), creating aspirational academic tiers within the school community.

Class Size and Structure

Classes are capped at approximately 30 students, maintaining a manageable environment for personalized inquiry and teacher-student interaction. With 41 teachers (36 full-time + 5 part-time) serving approximately 553 students, the teacher-student ratio is estimated at around 15:1.

English and Global Education

English functions as both a core subject and a primary medium of instruction in certain subjects, with an estimated 80% English / 20% Japanese instructional balance in international-track classes. The school invests in English education for returnee students and aspiring global learners alike, and positions English proficiency as essential to its international graduate profile.

AI and ICT Integration

True to its motto of "Creating a future of coexistence with AI," the school actively integrates AI tools and ICT into student learning — not as add-ons but as core components of 21st-century readiness.

Location and Access

Kaichi Tokorozawa sits at 169 Matsusato, Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture (〒359-0027 埼玉県所沢市大字松郷169), occupying a spacious site that was secured by the Kaichi Gakuen group well in advance of the school's opening.

The campus is accessible via public transport: the nearest station is Higashi-Tokorozawa Station on the JR Musashino Line, approximately a 12-minute walk from the school. Bus connections from Tokorozawa Station are also available. The school does not currently operate its own school bus service.

Modern, Stylish Architecture

The school's physical design deliberately breaks from conventional Japanese school aesthetics. The building features a black-and-white exterior — the front facade is black, with white side panels — creating a striking, contemporary appearance that reflects the school's identity as a forward-looking institution. Diamond Online specifically noted this as an unusual design for a Japanese school.

Facilities

As a purpose-built 2024 campus, all facilities are new and modern:

• 44 homeroom classrooms — standard teaching spaces
• Science laboratories — purpose-built for hands-on scientific inquiry
• Gymnasium — indoor sports and physical education
• Multi-purpose Hall — for school events, performances, and assemblies
• Cafeteria — dining facility serving both bento and school lunch options
• Artificial turf sports ground — large outdoor field suitable for soccer and other sports

The absence of a swimming pool (as noted in third-party records) is one of the few facility gaps in an otherwise comprehensively equipped new campus.

Library

The school maintains a library with approximately 2,000 books, modest for its size but reflecting the school's digital and inquiry-oriented approach to information access.

School Life Culture

Students wear uniforms (制服あり) and follow a 3-semester academic calendar beginning in April. Lunch is available both as a packed bento or through a school lunch (kyushoku) service. Club activities (部活動 / EA: Exploratory Activities) are a central feature of student life, with over 15 clubs spanning sports, arts, music, and technology — including student-initiated groups such as an E-sports club and a Vocaloid music club.

The campus atmosphere is deliberately designed to inspire curiosity and collaboration, serving as a physical embodiment of the school's mission to be "a laboratory of future-oriented learning."