One father’s love for his son gave birth to the º¬Ðß²Ý Method of learning.
It all began in 1954 when a young boy’s mother found a maths test in his pocket.
That boy’s name was Takeshi º¬Ðß²Ý, and he was in his second year of elementary school. Seeing that his test results were not as good as they usually were, his mother consulted her husband about what to do. Her husband was Toru º¬Ðß²Ý, a high school maths teacher at the time. To address his wife’s concern, Toru then began making maths worksheets for his son, Takeshi.Â
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý believed that the work of an educator is to foster a mindset for self-learning in children. So he went through much trial and error when creating learning materials for his son so Takeshi would be able to work comfortably with the materials each day and to steadily develop his skills.
That boy’s name was Takeshi º¬Ðß²Ý, and he was in his second year of elementary school. Seeing that his test results were not as good as they usually were, his mother consulted her husband about what to do. Her husband was Toru º¬Ðß²Ý, a high school maths teacher at the time. To address his wife’s concern, Toru then began making maths worksheets for his son, Takeshi.Â
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý believed that the work of an educator is to foster a mindset for self-learning in children. So he went through much trial and error when creating learning materials for his son so Takeshi would be able to work comfortably with the materials each day and to steadily develop his skills.
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý wrote out calculation problems on loose-leaf paper for Takeshi, and the materials that he created from 1955 became the prototype for today’s º¬Ðß²Ý worksheets. Takeshi quickly developed his ability through studying the materials created by his father for half an hour every day.Â
As a result, he was able to reach the level of differential and integral calculus when he was just a few months into the sixth grade. Following his success with Takeshi, Toru º¬Ðß²Ý invited some children from the neighbourhood to come and study at his home, and instructed them in a similar way to how he had instructed Takeshi. As a result, all of them greatly improved their academic ability.
Seeing this, Toru º¬Ðß²Ý wished to develop the potential of as many children as possible with his learning method. In 1958, therefore, he decided to establish an office in Osaka and open more Math Centres. From that year the number of º¬Ðß²Ý students began to increase steadily. With reaching high school level material through self-learning as the goal, Toru º¬Ð߲ݒs aim was to develop the ability of students to the maximum by enabling them to study at a level appropriate for each individual.
Children have an inherent potential to grow. Through their practice of reading, writing, and calculation, students develop the confidence to learn on their own. We at º¬Ðß²Ý consider education to be the nurturing of children’s ability to achieve self-fulfilment in the future and realise their dreams and goals. Born out of a father’s love for his son, º¬Ðß²Ý is not restricted by the barriers of language, culture or history. As more people hear about the benefits of the º¬Ðß²Ý Method, it continues to reach greater numbers of students throughout the world.Â
Handmade original worksheets created by Toru º¬Ðß²Ý for his son. These materials served as the prototype for today’s º¬Ðß²Ý worksheets.Â
Toru and Teiko º¬Ðß²Ý instructing students together at the Toyonaka Uenozaka Center, circa 1965.Â
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý giving a lecture in Brazil (August 1994)Â
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý (1914-1995)
Toru º¬Ðß²Ý was born in Kochi Prefecture, Japan. After graduating from Osaka Imperial University (Faculty of Science, Department of Math) he became a schoolteacher. During his 33-year career, he taught maths at his alma mater Tosa Junior/Senior High School, and later at Sakuranomiya High School in Osaka City, as well as at other schools. In 1958, he established the Osaka Institute of Mathematics, which later became the º¬Ðß²Ý Institute of Education Co., Ltd. in 1983. He devoted the rest of his life to improving the º¬Ðß²Ý method and making it available to more and more people around the world.Â
Landmark publications:
The Secret of º¬Ðß²Ý Math(Kosaido Publishing),Give It a Try – Yattemiyo(º¬Ðß²Ý Publishing),
It Is Not the Child Who Is at Fault(º¬Ðß²Ý Publishing), and many others.Â