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Tashiyoshi Takada, |
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Founder of Suken |
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The Social Significance of Suken About twenty years ago, there was no mathematics examination system in Japan and mathematics was simply one of the tools used to take examinations. Today over 300,000 people, young and old, men and women, are learning mathematics each year as part of their life long learning. This is because we created Suken, an indexed system of mathematics study that anyone can use. About 12 years ago, mathematical study in Japan was stagnant and many people came to dislike mathematics. It was a malaise suffered not only in Japan but in many advanced countries. Then, the system of Suken was developed and we began to see the results of studying mathematics. Instead of the deviation from a relative evaluation, Suken offered an absolute evaluation as a archetype of similar evaluation methods. Japan was fortunate to be the first among advanced nations to create a foundation of mathematics as part of life long leraning. The Suken Foundation realized that opportunities for people to use their brain to perform calculations had dramatically decreased with advances in calculators and computers. We foresaw the acceleration in this deterioration of mathematical abilities. This is why we strived to popularize mathematical examinations that people from all walks of life can participate in anytime. The Japanese government passed the Revised Education Law in December 2006, incorporating the idea of life long leraning. It was as if one of the Suken Foundation’s wishes had been granted. Our goal is to ensure Suken continues to contribute to life long learning. Suken is used in approximately 12,000 schools, including high schools, professional schools and universities, nationwide. The number of families taking examinations is increasing. As the component of science, mathematics and social studies, we believe the value of Suken will increase. The use of Suken is also spreading overseas. In Riau, Indonesia, local schools offer mathematics examinations with provincial financial support. In Cebu, Republic of the Philippines, Suken is widely recognized among mathematical education authorities and local schools have started to adapt the Suken system. With our core value of using knowledge assets to create a foundation to pass from generation to generation, we will address the issue of a declining population. |
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