The New Movement of Active Learning in Japanese Higher Education: The Analysis of Active Learning Case in Japanese Graduate Programs

Currently, active learning becomes the major concern for Japanese higher education institutions. In this chapter, active learning is defined that students study with clear purposes and are engaged in learning proactively. As a result, active learning brings some learning outcomes. Many previous studies have shown that the learning outcomes of students are strongly associated with the quality of pedagogy and student experience. Such pedagogy often includes active learning methods, and it is often expected that active learning methods are strongly associated with proactive learning of students. Such active learning methods have been introduced in the Japanese graduate programs so called leading graduate programs. In this chapter, after examining the theory and effectiveness of active learning, we will examine the practice of active learning methods introduced in leading graduate program of University of Tsukuba. That program is unique and interdisciplinary programs, which will lead to learning outcomes sought in the new knowledge-based society

New Azaphilones, Seco-Chaetomugilins A and D, Produced by a Marine-Fish-Derived Chaetomium globosum

Seco-chaetomugilins A and D were isolated from a strain of Chaetomium globosum that was originally isolated from the marine fish Mugil cephalus, and their absolute stereostructures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analyses, including 1D and 2D NMR techniques, along with the chemical transformation from known chaetomugilins A and D. Seco-chaetomugilin D exhibited growth inhibitory activity against cultured P388, HL-60, L1210, and KB cells

Impact of Higher Education Policy on Private Universities in Japan: Analysis of governance and educational reform through survey responses

Japanese higher education policy since the 1990s has been more economic-centered and neo-liberal in nature than previous policy and is characterized by both governmentalism and managerialism. It is widely known that operating grants for national universities have been reduced since they became national university corporations. At the same time, government control of private universities has increased, as evidenced by the new framework for providing financial assistance to private universities. Notable trends in Japanese higher education policy can be summed up by keywords such as “financial allocation cutbacks within higher education,” “accountability,” and “assessments”. A 2013 survey conducted by The Promotion and Mutual Aid Corporation for Private Schools of Japan reveals that private universities’ assessments of their own financial situations differ depending on the size, history, location, and fields of study represented at the university and that various inequalities exist between public and private institutions and among private institutions

Gains in Learning Outcomes of College Students in Japan: Comparative Study between Academic Fields

Currently, gains in learning outcomes of college students become the major concern for Japanese higher education institutions. Actually, in recent decades, national and public as well as private universities have been forced to embed learning outcomes into their curriculum. Many previous studies have shown that the learning outcomes of students are strongly associated with the quality of pedagogy and student experience. This paper explores to grasp the association of college experiences with degree of learning between academic fields through a nationwide research for student self-reported survey so called JCIRP. The findings suggest that faculty engagement and student experience appear to play a pivotal role in acquisition of knowledge and skills. Based on the findings of this study, it is suggested that pedagogical approach should be improved by embedding aspects of interactive teaching and learning in the classroom setting and in the whole curriculum

Relevance of Parental Income and Education to Learning Behaviors of College Students : Toward the Construction of Post-First Generation Theory

In the United States, the first generation student issue has been examined by many researchers and several kinds of federal support policies have been implemented. The rate of attending graduate schools has risen simultaneously. Recently, it has been frequently pointed out that the disparity caused by income and education widening in the United States. In fact, while the top 10% of parent income group occupies 64% of Tier 1 higher education institutions, that group accounts for only 11 % of the Tier 6 & Tier 7 groups. Given such widening disparity caused by parental income and education, analysis of these higher education issues with post-first generation theory is urgently needed. This research explores the relevance of parental income and education with learning behaviors and experiences of college students. It uses a quantitative research design using data obtained from CSS2012 designed for upper division students from the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California at Los Angeles. The research framework examines whether or not there are differences of learning behaviors and experiences of college students between public and private universities and between academic majors and if there are differences, it analyzes what kind of factors make those differences. Findings of the study confirm that the proportion of parents attending graduate schools increases and the effect of federal support policies for first-generation students can be observed in public universities to some extent. Also, federal support policies for first-generation students have certain effects on some college experiences and learning. However, findings of the study suggest that students from high family income and parent education tend to select STEM majors. It is noted that occupations in STEM fields assure higher income relatively. On the other hand, first-generation students tend to choose education majors. Hence, this study confirms that family background such as parent income and education impacts students’ choice of majors. In other words, the study confirms the existence of a reproduction function of family backgrounds for higher education in the United States.本研究は，科学研究費補助金挑戦的萌芽研究「大学生版QOL指標の開発を踏まえた学修成果測定研究の新展開」（課題研究番号：15K13208）の研究成果の一部である

Regulated growth of diatom cells on self-assembled monolayers

We succeeded in regulating the growth of diatom cells on chemically modified glass surfaces. Glass surfaces were functionalized with -CF(3), -CH(3), -COOH, and -NH(2 )groups using the technique of self-assembled monolayers (SAM), and diatom cells were subsequently cultured on these surfaces. When the samples were rinsed after the adhesion of the diatom cells on the modified surfaces, the diatoms formed two dimensional arrays; this was not possible without the rinsing treatment. Furthermore, we examined the number of cells that grew and their motility by time-lapse imaging in order to clarify the interaction between the cells and SAMs. We hope that our results will be a basis for developing biodevices using living photosynthetic diatom cells