Seijoseph Gakuen Elementary School

From Post-War Mission to International Landmark

Founded in 1953 by the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement — the same congregation that had already established a Catholic church in Tsurumi's Higashiterao Nakadai district — St. Joseph's Gakuen Elementary School was born out of a conviction held by its founders during Japan's post-war turmoil. As trustee Fushima Takaoky later recounted, the missionaries believed it was essential to create a school that would "nurture people who could make universal value judgments, act from love, and contribute to world peace."

The school opened under the original name 'Tsurumi St. Joseph Elementary School' (鶴見聖ヨゼフ小学校). In 1957 it was renamed St. Joseph's Gakuen Elementary School, and a junior high school was added to the campus. Three years later, in 1960, the senior high school opened — creating the integrated pre-school-to-high-school community that exists today.

A Historic Milestone in 2018

For over six decades, the school built its reputation quietly on small class sizes, Catholic values, and close-knit community relationships. Then, in January 2018, it achieved a nationally historic milestone: the school became the first elementary school in Japan to be authorized as an International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IB PYP) school.

This authorization was not a departure from the school's founding philosophy but rather its natural extension. The IB's mission to develop "inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring young people" who contribute to a "peaceful and better world" resonated directly with the Franciscan Sisters' original vision. The school saw IB PYP as the curriculum framework that could realize what had always been its core educational aspiration.

Continuity Through Change

Despite its milestone IB status, St. Joseph's has remained remarkably consistent in structure: each year group has just two classes of approximately 35 students, keeping total enrollment around 330 pupils. This deliberately small scale — maintained across decades — reflects the school's belief that personal attention and genuine relationships are the foundation of good education. Today, the school continues to be operated under the auspices of the Catholic Franciscan Atonement tradition, with its motto, "With a loving heart, we nurture each person," unchanged since its founding.

The Founding Spirit: 信・望・愛

At the heart of St. Joseph's Gakuen Elementary School lies a triad of values inherited from its Catholic Franciscan founders: Faith (信), Hope (望), and Love (愛). These are not merely decorative principles — they form the lens through which every aspect of school life is interpreted, from classroom instruction to pastoral care and community service.

The school's official motto, 「愛の心をもって、一人ひとりを大切に育む」 — "With a loving heart, we nurture each person" — places the individual child at the centre of the educational project. This is a school that explicitly rejects a one-size-fits-all approach, believing instead that every child has received unique gifts from God, and that education's purpose is to help each child recognize, develop, and offer those gifts to the world.

The school's educational guidelines, as published by the Kanto Private Elementary School Association, articulate three pillars:

1. Cultivate a heart of love rooted in Catholic teaching
2. Develop intellect and virtue, training mind and body to contribute to society
3. Nurture awareness of each individual's God-given gifts and the disposition to use them

The IB PYP as a Natural Partner

When the school's leadership contemplated what educational framework would best serve children navigating a rapidly changing world, they concluded that the IB Primary Years Programme was the answer. Far from viewing IB as a departure from Catholic tradition, the school sees the two frameworks as deeply complementary.

Both the school and the IB Organization share the goal of developing people with an "international perspective" — individuals who contribute to a peaceful, happy world. The IB Learner Profile attributes — being inquirers, knowledgeable, thinkers, communicators, principled, open-minded, caring, risk-takers, balanced, and reflective — map naturally onto the virtues the Catholic tradition has always sought to cultivate.

The school's signature 探究の時間 (Inquiry Time) sessions bring the IB framework to life, encouraging students to pose questions, investigate, and construct their own understanding — not as a Western import, but as an expression of the same curiosity and care for the world that the Franciscan missionaries themselves modelled.

A Philosophy That Shows in Daily Life

This integrated philosophy is visible in the school's daily rhythms: morning prayer and Mass participation alongside collaborative IB project work; a school uniform that conveys belonging and equality alongside individual expression in the arts; small class sizes that make genuine pastoral attention possible. The result is a school culture that is at once distinctly Catholic and genuinely international in its educational ambitions.

Small by Design: The Two-Class Model

One of the most distinctive features of St. Joseph's Gakuen Elementary is its deliberate commitment to small scale. Across all six grade levels (Grades 1–6), each year group contains exactly two classes of approximately 35 students — yielding a total school enrollment of around 330 pupils. This structure has been maintained consistently since the school's founding and reflects a principled educational choice rather than a capacity constraint.

With approximately 43 teaching staff (33 full-time, 10 part-time) serving 330 students, the school achieves a student-to-teacher ratio of roughly 8:1 — significantly more favourable than the national average. This allows for the kind of close observation, personalised feedback, and genuine mentorship that the IB PYP framework requires.

IB PYP in a Japanese Elementary Context

As Japan's first authorized IB PYP elementary school (since January 2018), St. Joseph's has pioneered the integration of the IB framework within the Japanese elementary school context. The school operates on a standard Japanese three-term academic year beginning in April, following the national curriculum, while layering the IB's transdisciplinary Units of Inquiry framework on top.

The 探究の時間 (Inquiry Time) is the centrepiece of the IB PYP implementation. Rather than delivering knowledge through direct instruction alone, students are encouraged to ask questions, investigate concepts across subject boundaries, and present their understanding in diverse ways. Assessment is portfolio-based and continuous, focusing on growth and understanding rather than examinations.

English Language Education

English is taught as a compulsory foreign language from the earliest grades — a notable commitment for a Japanese elementary school. While the primary language of instruction remains Japanese, the school's IB PYP status and its international educational philosophy mean that English permeates school culture in ways that go beyond a typical foreign language class. No EAL (English as an Additional Language) support programme exists, however, as the student body is predominantly Japanese.

Technology and the Physical Learning Environment

The campus supports modern learning with electronic whiteboards and tablets in classrooms, a dedicated computer lab for ICT education, a science laboratory, an art room, a music room, a home economics room, and a well-stocked library. The Nature Trail — a wooded walking path on campus — provides an outdoor learning environment that connects students to the natural world, a particularly valued feature in an urban school setting. All classrooms are air-conditioned.

Who May Apply

St. Joseph's Gakuen Elementary School admits children entering Grade 1 (approximately age 6) each April. There are no residential restrictions — families from anywhere in the Yokohama and greater Kanto area may apply. The school admits boys and girls equally across its two classes of approximately 35 pupils each, targeting roughly 70 new students per year.

The Application Process

Applications are submitted exclusively online via the school's official website, typically during a window of September 1–30 for April entry the following year. Applicants pay an examination fee (検定料) upon submission. The school hosts at least one open information session (学校説明会) in June each year, giving prospective families their first opportunity to visit the campus, meet staff, and understand the school's philosophy before applying.

What the Assessment Involves

St. Joseph's does not use a written academic examination for elementary admissions — in keeping with both Japanese elementary school convention and the school's holistic educational philosophy. Instead, the entrance assessment comprises:

• Behavioral observation / physical activities: Free play, collaborative tasks, imitation exercises, group creation activities — designed to reveal how a child engages with peers, follows instructions, and handles new situations
• Oral assessment: Simple cognitive tasks including counting and basic problem-solving
• Parent-and-child interview: This is the distinctive element. The interview probes parents' understanding of Catholic education, their parenting philosophy (心がけてきたこと — what they have been mindful of in raising their child), and their relationship with their child. Understanding and empathy with the school's Catholic values is explicitly assessed

Results are typically announced on the same day as the examination, with enrollment paperwork due within 24 hours. This efficient timeline rewards families who are prepared and committed.

Selectivity and Transparency

The school does not publicly disclose application numbers or acceptance rates (応募者数非公表), making it difficult to quantify selectivity precisely. However, given the school's long-standing reputation, its unique IB PYP status, and the small cohort size (~70 places), the assessment is understood to be competitive. Families are advised to attend the information session and pre-test (プレテスト) events offered in the lead-up to the examination period. No waitlist policy is published.

Location and Access

The school is located at 11-1 Higashiterao Kitadai, Tsurumi Ward, Yokohama (〒230-0016) — a quiet residential hillside area about 15 minutes' walk from JR Tsurumi Station, or a 5-minute ride on the Rinko Bus to the 'Nihongi St. Joseph Gakuen-mae' stop. There is no school bus service, and families arrange their own transport. Multiple bus routes connect the campus to Kikuna, Tsunashima, and Shin-Yokohama stations, giving the school a reasonably broad catchment area despite its hillside location.

Safety and Security

The campus features 24-hour security including surveillance cameras and an ID card system at the main gate — measures noted explicitly by third-party parent guides as a distinguishing feature. A staffed guardhouse monitors all campus entry and exit. School office hours run weekdays 8:05–17:00. This emphasis on physical security reflects the school's pastoral responsibility for young children.

The Physical Environment

The campus is shared with the affiliated St. Joseph's Gakuen Junior/Senior High School (a girls' school), giving elementary students access to a broad range of specialist facilities while maintaining their own dedicated spaces. Key facilities include:

• A large outdoor playground with artificial rubber surfacing for physical education and recess
• An indoor gymnasium for sports clubs and PE lessons
• A Nature Trail — a wooded walking path through the campus grounds, used for environmental education and quiet reflection, a particularly evocative feature in an urban school
• Dedicated science laboratory, art room, music room, and home economics room
• A computer lab with PCs and tablets supporting ICT education and programming classes
• An AV classroom for audio-visual learning
• A library (approximately 10,000 volumes)
• A school chapel (聖堂) for regular prayer and Catholic observances
• Katsuno Hall — a large auditorium for school events, performances, and assemblies

All classrooms are air-conditioned, and the school has equipped classrooms with electronic whiteboards and tablets in support of its IB and ICT curricula. Lunch is a bento brought from home, with bread and milk available for purchase — a practical arrangement that keeps mealtimes communal and personal.