Hitachi Second High School Hitachi Second High School was founded in 1927 as a private school by Mr

Hitachi Second High School

Hitachi Second High School was founded in 1927 as a private school by Mr. and Mrs. Hisanosuke Nagai. They had lost their two daughters one after another. Devotion to girl’s education was the way they found to console their grief. In 1936 it changed to a prefectural girls’ high school, and in 1948 it was renamed Hitachi Second High School.

It is located on a hill in the center of Hitachi. Beautiful cherry and gingko trees around the campus create a calm presence of mind. Under the school motto; “Be generous and graceful, Cooperate with each other, Have a bright and cheerful heart And work harmoniously with others”, the school wants its students to study for knowledge, sensitivity, and perseverance in order to live for the future.
There are 18 classes as part of the general education course and 3 as part of the international course, and more than 800 students are studying under the direction of 65 teachers.
85 % of the graduates go to colleges, junior colleges, or special training schools, and those that enter employment directly are about 8%. In accordance with the post-graduation needs of their students, the school has put together a well devised curriculum to attain their goals.
It is worth mentioning that this school has an international course which attracts students from all over Ibaraki. It started in 1993 and has been aiming at producing internationally aware graduates since then. This is bearing fruit now and will surely do so in the future. Recognizing that English is an important international language, the school assigns the international course students more English credits than those of the general education course (29 for the former and 23 at maximum for the latter). The various sub-courses which form part of them are very attractive such as English Understanding, Expression, Cross-Cultural Understanding, Current English, etc. Students enjoy stimulating classes given by foreign teachers.
Besides daily classes, the school holds various events of great value. There is four days English camps for all first and second graders, a school trip abroad for five days, an exchange trip to New Zealand for two weeks, etc. As for the Exchange Trip, it is open to students on the general education course as well.
In 2003, Hitachi Second High School was designated as a Super English Language High School by the Ministry of Education and Science for a period of three years. This has enabled the school to experiment further in English education. Amongst these experiments, the Hitachi Summit was picked up by the media and became a subject of attention. This was a debate between high school students from Hitachi and foreign students studying in Japan. During the debate, Hitachi Second students did remarkably well.

These kinds of events help students to understand foreign culture and at the same time they give students a chance to lose their prejudice towards certain countries. Through these experiences, students find themselves acquiring an internationally aware mind. Some of their comments include: “I am happy to study at this school.” Many students exchange mail with the foreign students whom they got acquainted with through these events, and enjoy this friendship.
There are two foreign students at the school (one from New Zealand and one from Indonesia) and five Hitachi Second students are studying abroad.
Regarding extra curricular club activities, 60 % of the students belong to one of 23 clubs. There are 13 sports club including Japanese fencing and Japanese archery, and 10 cultural clubs including tea ceremony. Students practice diligently in each field and get good results in tournaments and contests. In most areas, they are at the highest level in Ibaraki Prefecture.
Now the new school year has just begun. The students will surely add new pages to the school’s 77-year history. Let’s hope they can be supple and beautiful in all their activities like the wild rose which is the school’s emblem.

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