Minato Ward has decided that the Japanese skills of some of the foreign pupils at elementary schools are so weak that it makes more sense to teach them some parts of the curriculum in English. The first school to introduce this system is one in Minami Azabu. The ward says that, as far as it knows, this will be the first time a public school in Japan has decided on such an "international school" policy. Minato, together with Shinjuku, has one of the highest ratios of foreign residents of any administrative district in the country. Minato says their research has shown around 70% of foreign children in the ward speak English so that was the language selected for use. Under the system, foreign kids will be taught subjects like science, mathematics and social studies in separate lessons, using English language materials with content based on those used by their Japanese peers. Sports, music, art and household studies will be taught in Japanese with some English included. In these lessons, the main teacher will be assisted by a qualified teacher with English skills. The trial will start at the Minami Azabu school from April with an expectation that the system will be fully up and running from next year. The Minato Board of Education says the scheme is not simply about helping foreign students cope at school, it's also a chance for Japanese students to gain experience of a different culture at an early age.
Source (Japanese)