<Begin Segment 7>

MN: Can you share a little bit about what school in Japan was like? How did the day start? What was it like?

AI: Well, Japan school system is more strict than the U.S.. You get to school first thing in the morning, everybody lined up in the playground and we used to have what they call radio exercise. They turned the radio on, everybody do the same exercise the whole from first grade to six grade everybody's out there. And that's your first things before you go into a classroom and as far as the classroom goes there wasn't that much but they're more restrictive and rigid teaching wise.

MN: Did you still have the rajio taiso when it rained or snowed?

AI: No, not when it's rain. When you mention that I think we did something in hallway. I can't remember exactly what but rainy day we used to do exercise or something in the hallway.

MN: How about like did you have to bow to the emperor's direction?

AI: Yes, that's first before even exercise starts. So when you line up, face to the east where the emperor was, then you sing the national song, then your exercise starts after that.

MN: Did you also have to recite the Kyoiku Chokugo?

AI: Yeah, we start learning that as the grade goes. First grade you don't know, you can't even count the number when the first grade ends but eventually yes.

MN: Did you have to recite that every day?

AI: Every day.

MN: Did you understand what you were reciting?

AI: No, just copying everybody else.

MN: So do you still remember it if I were to ask you to recite it?

AI: I don't remember.

MN: What about soji toban, cleaning the classrooms, did you have do that?

AI: Yes, I remember that. We used to wipe the hallway, everybody line up side by side, we start from one end all the way to the other end. Yeah, you bringing back a memory.

MN: So there was no janitor, the students were the janitors.

AI: Well, I assume there's a janitor but that was one of the things that school in Japan do is let the students do the cleaning too, some work.

MN: Now academically how did you do in school?

AI: I would say probably middle of the class.

MN: Were there other Nisei in your classroom?

AI: Not that I remember.

MN: Did you have to get a tutor to help you keep up in school?

AI: No.

MN: What did you do in your free time?

AI: Go fishing, go swimming, because there was a river not too far from the house where we lived. So we used to go fishing and swimming and other than that play with the neighbor kids. There was probably about like half dozen kids about my age, our age so we used to play together.

<End Segment 7> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.