Was Great Teacher Onizuka Right? [A Personal Perspective]

 

We cannot go back to the past, no matter how hard we try. No matter how wonderful it was. The past is nothing but the past. ~ Eikichi Onizuka

 
Hello and welcome to my first blog post of 2024 after a long-ish, six week break. First of all, I feel that I need to explain my absence. Evidently, I wanted to continue writing right after Christmas but a set of personal circumstances forced me to adjust my schedule. In addition, I did not have time (and I was not in the mood) to watch absolutely anything. In fact, throughout January, I managed to see some random stuff on TV and only one(!) movie, which was Amadeus (1984).
     What is more, there is one more important factor responsible for my absence that is connected with the topic of today’s editorial. That is to say, I have made a New Year’s Resolution to become a better teacher for my students. Yes, some of the readers may already know this from the context of my previous reviews and articles. I have been working as a high school teacher for two years now (previously I worked at a university), and it is a very challenging profession at times. Of course, everybody has a different perception of it, depending on their place of birth, but where I live, it is not a line of employment held in high esteem by society (but more on that later).

     The beginning of the current school year was particularly challenging for me. Apart from regular teaching, I got an increase in work hours, I became a homeroom teacher to a class of first graders, and I also had to oversee a team of new teachers in terms of bureaucratic paperwork. The period between September and November was very exhausting for me, and I didn’t feel like a teacher at all, but more like an administrative official who had to mediate his way between students, teachers, and principals.
     Thankfully, things did calm down towards the end of December and I had some time to recharge my batteries and think clearly. It was at that time when I made a firm decision to limit the overbearing paperwork to an absolute minimum and focus primarily on regaining that teaching spark. I even began to re-educate myself, looking for the latest information on classroom management techniques and learning/acquisition strategies other than traditional textbook cramming.

     This is where GTO comes in. For those of you who do not know, Great Teacher Onizuka is a popular Japanese franchise created by manga artist Tooru Fujisawa in 1997. It initially started with a 25-volume manga series that received subsequent continuations and iterations in other media. In 1998, it was turned into a J-Drama. In 1999, there was a theatrical movie as well as a 43-episode anime series. In 2012, GTO was remade again as a J-Drama by Fuji TV. The series tells the story of an ex-bosozoku gang member Eikichi Onizuka who barely finishes studies allowing him to become a teacher. He finds a job at a private middle school in Tokyo, and he is assigned to the most troublesome class. Nevertheless, Onizuka’s unconventional techniques quickly lead to changes in the mentalities of unruly students.
     To be honest, I am a fan of the whole franchise, but the 1998 series with Takashi Sorimachi stole my heart, and to date remains my favourite interpretation of GTO. I have been meaning to write about this drama on the blog for years, but I never felt I had anything innovative to say about this all-time classic. However, in this article, I would like to put it in perspective with regard to my work.

     Consequently, when I was scavenging the abyss of the internet in search of information that might help me on my teaching journey, I stumbled upon a reddit discussion about the validity of techniques used by Onizuka-sensei. This discussion really got me thinking. Evidently, Onizuka is this larger-than-life, too-cool-for-school character with a deep sense of morality overshadowed by typical manga wackiness. However, it is difficult to see him do any actual teaching in the series(!) Yes, sometimes in the drama we see him holding a coursebook for social sciences, so at least we know what subject he is supposed to teach, but that is it!
     Ultimately, Onizuka’s teaching purpose is about conveying life wisdom to his students. He is not teaching them hard theory, but how to live a life. In this manner, Onizuka is yet another fictional teacher in the pantheon of mentor characters like John Keating, Mark Thackeray, and William Hundert who always strived to inspire their students and often treated them like adults. Perhaps this is the most uplifting takeaway from GTO for any struggling teacher: Onizuka persistently broke the stale teacher/student power dynamic, going out of his way to show his students that he does not look down on them.

     Still again, “educational” techniques used by Onizuka to achieve his goal leave a lot to be desired. If I were to repeat them, I would certainly end up in jail for jeopardising the health and safety of my students by jumping off a roof, getting into a fight with bikers, busting into a student’s home with a sledgehammer, or playing chicken with a speeding truck. However, I wouldn’t mind wrecking the vice-principal's Toyota Cresta every week.
     Point of the matter is that you will not learn anything about classroom management techniques from GTO (you are better off watching Dragon Zakura instead); however, GTO teaches you about employing a different approach towards your students. Onizuka, in contrast to fellow peers in the teacher’s lounge, understands that teaching is actually a relationship game. Hating your students will not get you anywhere. You should make an effort and familiarise yourself with them, even when they are troublemakers. Remember their names, ask them about their interests. greet them at the beginning of every lesson, and say goodbye when they leave.

     Kindness doesn't cost much, but for many teachers in my country it is an impossible feat. I know from experience that many (not all) teachers here are just in it for the money. They often lack necessary knowledge to conduct a subject, let alone conduct a proper class with beginning, middle, and end. This situation only fuels students’ unwillingness to learn. I know I can’t change the world, but at least I can work on bettering myself.
     All things considered, the past six weeks of teaching were extremely rewarding for me. This is not the time and not the place to get into personal specifics, but my adjusted approach resulted in many unexpected, kind-hearted situations with my students, and I feel really proud because of that. My thanks go to my dear friend @penel from MDL who was willing to patiently hear my stories.

     So, coming back to the question of this editorial: Was Great Teacher Onizuka right? Well, he was definitely right about changing your perspective and attitude to your students. And this made me like the character even more. Thank you for sticking by, I did not think this editorial would be so long. Next week, I will try to write something related to Cowboy Bebop (hopefully)!

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