
Professor Shinichi Aizawa from the Faculty of Human Sciences researches education from the lens of sociology. He focuses on the role of secondary education, which plays a significant role in the development of an individual’s personality and their career choices. While examining education’s history, he scientifically analyzes the relationship between education and society.
The field of education comprises pedagogy, which refers to studies surrounding the methods and practices of teaching, and educational research, which examines educational frameworks and systems. My research, which uses sociology to examine the effects of education, falls under the latter.
I take a scientific approach to education research. Although people can draw from their own subjective experiences in education, it is important to speak about education from a concrete scientific understanding.
My research focuses on secondary education. This period, spanning junior high to high school, is formative for an individual’s mental development, personality development, and self-awareness. Furthermore, the type of education one receives during this period can significantly affect their subsequent path in life.
Amid a complex web of factors that extends beyond a student’s abilities and inclinations – differences between living in a city versus the countryside, environment, gender, familial relationships, and financial circumstances – what is the social significance and impact of schools and education? I address this question with insights gleaned from surveys and data analysis.
The importance of investigating history when thinking about education

Historical changes in education is another theme of my research. I pay particular attention to postwar Japan, which was a turning point for education. The end of the war saw an increase in the rate of people entering high schools and universities. It also became easier for people to pursue occupations different from their parents.
However, many people are unable to pursue their preferred career paths, despite attending university, and others are shackled by student loan debt. Considering these circumstances, can we say for certain that the proliferation of education has enhanced people’s happiness? This is one question I think about.
In sociology there is the concept of path dependence. This concept refers to the idea that even if something is irrational, it remains in the form passed down from the past. For example, coeducation was permitted following the war, and while most schools have since become coed, public high schools in some regions remain single-sex. This is because occupation forces did not strongly promote coeducation in these regions.
This type of phenomenon is commonplace in the educational system. It is impossible to understand why they exist without examining the past, which is the main reason I am interested in history.
Towards a society where everyone receives quality education and is rewarded for learning
As part of my research into historical developments, I look at various materials, including school histories, meeting notes, and boards of education documents available at local public libraries. Tracing the school merger plans over the last 30 years provides context of how Japan’s education and schools have changed.
Furthermore, an examination of historical documents and questionnaires reveals that child poverty and educational inequality, topics that have been frequently discussed in the past decade, are not sudden developments and have existed for many years; there were simply times when people did not pay much attention to them. People’s interests change with the times, and as such there are still many buried, overlooked issues.
Everyone should have equal rights to education; but the reality is that many inequalities exist and many of them are not problems related to the individual but stem from social structures.
I personally hope we can realize a society that rewards people for their pursuit of learning. I will continue to engage in research that contributes to this end. My current goal is to write a book on Japanese society and education firmly based in quantitative analysis and historical research.
The book I recommend
“Taishu Kyoiku Shakai no Yukue: Gakureki Shugi to Byodo Shinwa no Sengoshi”(The Future of Mass Education Society: Postwar History of Diplomaism and the Myth of Equality)
by Takehiko Kariya, Chuko Shinsho

I started thinking about studying the social sciences when I was in high school. I was especially interested in society, and this book, which I encountered in my second year in university, opened my eyes to a fascinating academic field. It was this book that inspired me to research the sociology of education.
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Shinichi Aizawa
- Professor
Department of Education
Faculty of Human Sciences
- Professor
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Shinichi Aizawa graduated from the Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University, and received his Ph.D. in Education after completing the doctoral program of the Graduate School of Education, the University of Tokyo. He subsequently served in several positions, such as Associate Professor at the Department of Contemporary Sociology, School of Contemporary Sociology, Chukyo University, and Associate Professor at the Faculty of Human Sciences, Sophia University, before assuming his current position in 2023.
- Department of Education
Interviewed: November 2023