Gakken Holdings has launched local pilot classes for KOKORO DOTOKU, a moral education program jointly developed with Indian education company MysticLand in School. The program targets approximately 1,500 fifth-graders at 10 private schools in India and has been redesigned to adapt insights from Japan’s moral education to the local culture.
The pilot classes are being conducted for approximately 1,500 fifth-graders at 10 private schools in India. The KOKORO DOTOKU education program uses familiar stories as its subject matter. Rather than seeking a single correct answer, the program is designed to have children think for themselves about the characters’ feelings and actions, discuss them with those around them, and learn diverse perspectives.
The pilot teaching materials focus on “kindness and compassion” and the related Indian concept of “Tapas.” The program also includes a concluding exercise in which children set personal and class goals to connect what they have learned with their daily lives.
MysticLand is based in Mumbai and provides teaching materials to approximately 180 private schools. The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding for a business partnership in 2026 and have since been developing the materials. On the Japanese side, Gakken is supervising the project from the perspective of moral education program design.
The companies plan to conduct the pilot through the end of December 2026, then use feedback from children, teachers and schools to expand the target grades and the number of participating schools from the following fiscal year onward.