In Japanese elementary schools, there is no janitor for the daily cleaning. Every day, after the last class, the students sweep the floors, wipe the windows, scrub the toilets, and take out the rubbish. They do this themselves — six-year-olds with brooms and rags, cleaning the space they share.

To Western eyes, this can look harsh. To Japanese eyes, it is education.

The Concept

The practice is called sōji (掃除) and it is considered a core part of Japanese education — not an extracurricular chore but a daily lesson in responsibility, community, and omoiyari (thinking of others). The message is clear: this space belongs to all of us. Caring for it is everyone's responsibility. No one is above cleaning.

Why It Matters

A child who has scrubbed a toilet does not casually make a mess for someone else to clean up. They have learned, through their body, what it costs to maintain a shared space. This is omoiyari education — not taught through lectures but through practice.

Similarly, school lunch in Japan is served by the students themselves. They take turns dishing out the food, carrying the trays, cleaning up afterward. No child is served by an adult. The experience of serving and being served — alternating regularly — teaches a visceral understanding of care: today I take care of you, tomorrow you take care of me.

These practices produce adults who queue orderly, who keep public spaces clean, who speak quietly on trains. Not because they are following rules, but because they internalised, at age six, the principle that their behaviour affects everyone around them.

How to Apply This

Apply the sōji principle at home. If you have children, involve them in maintaining shared spaces — not as punishment, but as participation. "We all use this kitchen, so we all take care of it."

Ask the omoiyari question. When a child is unkind or careless, don't say "Don't do that." Ask: "How do you think they felt?" This question — the foundation of Japanese nursery education — redirects attention from behaviour to empathy.

Explore how Japanese culture teaches empathy from childhood in The Japanese Art of Omoiyari: The Quiet Practice of Thinking of Others First by Takeshi Mori.

Join the Takeshi Mori community at takeshimori.com for your free guide to Japanese philosophy for modern life.