Figure 1.--The Gyosei Elementary School choir is pictured here in their winter uniform performing at an outdoor Chrisdtmas event.

The Gyosei winter uniform is the Prussian cadet uniform worn at junior and senior highschool. The only difference is that the Gyosei boys wear smart short pants rather than the long pants worn at the secondary schools. It is unusual in Japan for elementary schools to adopt the cadet uniform.

Origins

Japanese school uniforms like the ones worn by the Gyosei choir during the winter are based on the uniforms from the countries that the Japanese most admired when they began their moderizing process in the late 19th century. The boys' unifiorm was, like the ones worn at Gyosei, based upon Prussian cadet uniforms. The girls' uniform was the sailor suit based on the British naval uniform.

Uniform Standards

The Gyosei school has very strict uniforms. Note how the boys all wear precisely the same shoes, all neatly polished. Also note that the short pants are all about the same length as are the socks.

Figure 2.--The Gyosei witer uniform is the blue cadet uniform normally worn by secondary school boys. The Gyosei bots, however, wear short rather than the long pants worn at secondary schools.

Garments

Details in the boys' uniform are as follows.

Caps

The Prussian-style cadet uniform is normally worn with a peaked cap. I'm not sure if the cap is part of the Gyosei uniform.

Jacket

The jacket is the Prussian-style cadet uniform normally only worn at junior and senior highschools in Japan. Gyosei is the only school I know of that wears the cadet uniform. The jacket is a heavy weight jacket more appropriate for the cold winter weather in Tokyo than the light-weight more comfortable looking summer uniform.

Shirt

I do not know what shirts the boys wear as their cadet jackets button at the neck.

Short pants

The boys wear the short cut short pants that most Japanese boys wore until the mid-1990s. Normal boys wear in Japan is now the long baggy shorts popular in Europe and America.

Socks

The boys wear matching short ankle socks. For some reason the winter socks look to be shorter than those worn during the summer.

Shoes

The boys all wear the same black boot-like shoes. Note how neatly polished they all are.