Co-design
We do not treat people as sources of data alone. Educators, learners, families, community knowledge holders, policymakers and developers can contribute to defining questions, methods and the ways findings are returned.
Research
Three research areas, connected by one question.
How can science and learning become more inclusive, culturally grounded and responsible?
The Kano Lab studies challenges that arise between science, education, society and policy. We do not understand science communication as the one-way transmission of knowledge. We seek to create the conditions in which people with different knowledge, experiences and values can share questions, learn and participate in decisions.
Our three research areas are deeply connected. Inclusion is essential to work on traditional knowledge and AI. Culturally relevant education links sustainability with equity. Responsible AI must respect the knowledge and agency of teachers, learners and communities.
Research Area 1｜Inclusive Science Communication and STEAM Education
We study people with low interest in science and technology, women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), deaf and hard-of-hearing children and their families, and culturally relevant STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts/Liberal Arts, and Mathematics) education. Rather than evaluating only attendance and satisfaction, we ask who did not participate, what institutional or cultural barriers shaped participation, and how learning environments can be redesigned.
Research Area 2｜Traditional and Indigenous Knowledge for a Sustainable Society
Kakishibu and tea are our two flagship cases for studying materials, skills, food cultures and relationships with nature that have been sustained in communities. Earlier work with Kyoto vegetables and wagashi also informs this area. We do not absorb traditional knowledge into modern science without question; we emphasise the rights, histories and values of knowledge holders and communities.
Research Area 3｜Responsible AI in Education
We examine AI and educational data through educational purpose, teacher and learner agency, equity, privacy and accountability—not only through efficiency. Ethical, legal and social issues (ELSI) and responsible research and innovation (RRI) are incorporated from the beginning of design, procurement, use and evaluation.
UNESCO Chair｜A platform connecting research, education and international collaboration
The UNESCO Chair on STEAM Education for Braiding Traditional Cultural Resources with Science provides an international platform for developing this work. Beginning with Kakishibu and tea, it connects research with teacher learning, community co-design, educational resources, comparative studies and student and researcher mobility.
How we conduct research
Qualitative and quantitative inquiry
Depending on the question, we combine interviews, observation, dialogue records, media and resource analysis, questionnaires and audience-diversity analysis.
Practice and evaluation
We develop television, workshops, games, lessons and participatory processes, while also evaluating whom they reach, what learning and dialogue they support, and where they fall short.
International comparison and social implementation
We do not simply export Japanese practice. We create reciprocal learning across different cultures and systems, connecting findings to education, communities, media, policy and international frameworks.
Forms of research output
Our outputs include peer-reviewed papers and academic books, as well as:
- workshops for children, families and the public;
- games for schools, universities and professional learning;
- educational activities connected with television;
- dialogue training for researchers and graduate students;
- ELSI frameworks for educational data and AI;
- participatory processes for science and technology policy; and
- open-access books and international research networks.
A lineage of research and practice
Our three current areas grew from long-term work on NHK educational television, deliberative public comment through PESTI, Human Genome Map for Every Home, pluripotent stem-cell classrooms, science cafés, art–science events and game development.
Participate in our research
We welcome proposals from prospective PhD students, JSPS candidates, visiting researchers and collaborators. We are interested not only in participation in existing themes, but also in the original questions and expertise that each researcher brings.