WALS CONFERENCE
HIROSHIMA 2025

We are honored to welcome you to Hiroshima for the 2025 WALS conference. Hiroshima is a city that embodies resilience and peace, having rebuilt itself after the devastation of the atomic bombing. Hiroshima has risen through connections with people from diverse backgrounds, making it a powerful symbol of hope and collaboration. The history of Hiroshima, which can be considered the history of people’s cooperation in realizing a better future, aligns with the core value of Lesson Study. We are happy to announce that the 2025 WALS conference will be held at the International Conference Center Hiroshima, which is next to the Peace Memorial Park, so you can feel the spirit of Hiroshima. The conference will be November 10-12, 2025, and will be preceded by a day for graduate students and early career researchers (November 9) and followed by optional school visits (November 13). 

This year’s conference theme is “Tsunagu” (Connect in English). Tsunagu reflects our commitment to fostering connections between individual Lesson Study projects beyond their own context, jugyou kenkyuu (授業研究) in Japan and Lesson Study in the world, Lesson Study and Learning Study, general pedagogy and subject pedagogy in Lesson Study, and Lesson Study and teacher education. This theme highlights that we can collectively enhance our understanding and practices of Lesson Study and Learning Study through connection.

The conference offers a variety of sessions over three days, including paper presentations, roundtable presentations, poster presentations, teacher talks, symposia, and workshops to realize the mentioned vision. These formats will create opportunities for participants to connect with one another in meaningful ways. The keynote speeches will also embody the spirit of Tsunagu, linking Japan and the world and the past, present, and future of Lesson Study and Learning Study to inspire new ideas and stimulate thought.

A special highlight of WALS 2025 is the Kokai Jugyou Kenkyuu (公開授業研究, Public Lesson Study Day) on the last day of the conference, where international educators and researchers will collaboratively create knowledge based on in-person Lesson Study experiences. Additionally, the conference will feature a Japan Day, offering experiences of Tsunagu between Japanese-speaking and English-speaking participants. We hope these unique opportunities encourage active participation!

We hope this conference provides a rich platform to connect with diverse individuals and ideas. Hiroshima is waiting for you to create new steps for hope and collaboration in Lesson Study and Learning Study. Join us for the WALS 2025 in Hiroshima!