"Tekijyuku" was a private school run by OGATA Koan at the end of the Edo Age from 1838 until 1863.
OGATA Koan was from the Okayama area. He was a renowned medical doctor and a scholar of Dutch learning.
During the Edo Age, Japan closed the country and had an official relationship only with Netherlands. So, a scholar of Dutch learning means an intellectual.
During the Edo Age, education level in Japan was very high.
Each feudal domain ran their school for all "Samurai"s, who belongs to ruling class people and their literacy rate was almost 100%.
Almost all kids, even kids of a farmer or of a manual laborer, were said to go to a local private school.
Students of "Tekijyuku" were "Samurai" people. The number of students was the largest, more than 50.
Many students of "Tekijyuku" played key rolls at the end of the Edo Age and in the Meiji Age, when Japan tried to catch up to Western countries.
OMURA Masujiro and FUKUZAWA Yukichi are good examples.
Those students sat down on the floor and studied Dutch every day.
A portrait of OGATA Koan was displayed in the room used for studies.
After the death of OGATA Koan, a hospital and a medical school were run by Osaka Prefecture from 1869. Also, FUKUZAWA Yukichi started to run his private college in 1868. They later became and are currently Osaka University and Keio University.
The location of "Tekijyuku" is in downtown Osaka. The building of "Tekijyuku" remains and is surrounded by modern buildings.
Home Page in Japanese: "Shane's HomePage"
