A trivial matter of student council in anime

[Fireminer]

Since most of anime out there is about high school students, you'll surely find a student council at one point or another. But what for? Here is the list that I could think of:

1. With Romance: A collective of different personalities that ensure high compatitude to each other.

2. With Comedy: Your loveable fool now shoulders the responsibility of a president (Horizon).

3. With Action: The Elites, cream of the crop (Mahouka, IS, DxD,...)

4. With War: A group of youngsters try to stand up and make their point (Valvrave)

I notice that in most of the case, a seat in the council guarantee your status, that you're the best in something, and the teachers allow you to rule over the other. But, you had to make a campaign, to sweep away the people believe first. Very similar to real life, and quite a different to the standard model in Vietnam, China and some other: the voting is mostly inside each class, while teachers (and in some cases, like Vietnam, members of Communist Youth party) handpick a number from the list. However, they are still under strict regulation and mostly act as a bridge between students and the school board, or organizers of events.

So, do you think the anime's student council mirrors enough real life so that we could compare it to the system in other country?

[Infinite Zenith]

The student councils from where I am (in the North American system), at the high school level, don't have anywhere near the same influence as they do in most anime: the members were ordinary students of all sorts, usually those with an interest and willingness to contribute to the school spirit. Instead of being hand-picked by instructors or voted into a position by classmates, they volunteer their own time towards council activities, and positions are granted based on internal voting. While they are vital in helping plan school events (community activities, sports events, open houses, art exhibitions, concerts), being a part of the student council doesn't confer status.

The system in North America is completely different than the organisations seen in anime; the way I see it, this represents a good chance for students to gain some leadership experience while working in conjunction with other council members and instructors to organise things. As a part of the student council in my graduating year, where I helped organise the graduation ceremonies and banquet, I didn't notice additional social status gains associated with the job, but there was a sense of satisfaction that I contributed to something. With all due respect, I prefer the system I've experienced over the systems I've seen across anime, mainly because the system in anime tends to be more exclusive and may stratify some individuals into a certain social standing or preclude a chance to learn and improve, while the system I know encourages more participation and learning, giving people a chance to become stronger leaders before entering the real world.

[IceHism]

Student council is different in America. In my past school, all they do is plan events. They have no power.


However, Japan and east asia is a completely different story. Most schools don't even have janitors in japan and students have to clean up after themselves. Because of things like this, student councils usually have more power and have status because the students are more autonomous. In anime, this aspect is extremely exaggerated so the current result is what you have now. Just cause student council in japan is not like your country's system, doesn't mean its weird or wrong.

[KanbeKotori]

I was in the student council during my school days and I can say that the student council and school work like partners. The teachers and staff aren't able to fulfill everything on their own cos of their teaching responsibility so the student council worked hand in hand helping the school. That being said we do have some power. As we represent the student body, we are the platform that bridge the students and the school so we get some deciding power for smaller events. Larger events that affect a wider scale of course would have to be consulted with the school staff first but anything other than that, we usually hold the power to decide.

[SeijiSensei]

From my extensive examination of Japanese student councils via the medium of anime, I've come to the conclusion that a requirement for becoming the iincho is that you look like this: http://www.crunchyroll.com/bakemonog...-part-1-610921

Is that accurate?

[Fireminer]

Ok, so from these I could deduct that the role of SC in anime is overatted (like everything else).

But one of the most intriguing part of SC is the role of the Treasury. They tend to have a lot of power, and in some cases (like Horizon), directly responsible to the school's facilities. So, does this the same as with RL, or we could just treat this as a sign of over-independence?

[Kotohono]

Originally Posted by Fireminer

But one of the most intriguing part of SC is the role of the Treasury. They tend to have a lot of power, and in some cases (like Horizon), directly responsible to the school's facilities. So, does this the same as with RL, or we could just treat this as a sign of over-independence?

In the college setting at least, the treasury is responsible for how to budget and divide up funds among various student organizations at some Universities it's not a lot, while at bigger ones it becomes a fairly significant amount of money (maybe 5-15% or more of the actual budget in some cases), but far from control of all the University's money.

Though in High School they have some money control, but it's not really significant.

[Triple_R]

I was Student Council President one year in my high school.

The Student Council at my school had the ability to fund-raise (through holding a school dance, for example), allocate its own funds to different school groups (such as school sports teams), start some initiatives, and organize some events and special functions. We did have a fair bit of influence, really. Still, there was a School Council of teachers and adults/community leaders that could overrule us in the event of a disagreement, but I don't recall any arising while I was on the Student Council.

I doubt most RL Student Councils are as completely autonomous and overpowering as most seem to be in anime, but I can still relate somewhat to them from my own time on a student council. Ultimately, I think anime student councils are a bit distorted by the general trend in anime of "adults don't matter". I would think that at the vast majority of schools, it's the teachers and the parents of students that have the final say on anything of considerable importance.

[aohige]

Many Japanese schools DO give control of club budgets to the student council.
That is not fictional at all, this is a FACT. This was true back when I was in school in Japan, and it still is today.

Commonly student council have a large influence in budgeting official clubs and school festivals (sports fest and culture fest). School trips is excluded, this is mainly controlled by the school itself. Student council only helps the teachers in small tasks when it comes to school trips (since the amount of money involved is far higher than mere club budgets and festivals, and the risk involved is greater).

[erneiz_hyde]

Originally Posted by aohige

Many Japanese schools DO give control of club budgets to the student council.
That is not fictional at all, this is a FACT. This was true back when I was in school in Japan, and it still is today.

Speaking of which, I've always wondered. Where did that budget money came from?

[aohige]

Originally Posted by erneiz_hyde

Speaking of which, I've always wondered. Where did that budget money came from?

There are two separate source of income for club activities.
Budget paid by the school, and payments billed to the students of the club.
Generally students of a sports activity club would pay a decent sum amount to cover various expenses, and the rest is covered by the school.

Student council has to report the details of costs for the expenses to the school, so the budget paid by the school is justified. Naturally, the more paid by the school the better, so the clubs has to prove itself's worth. Big clubs like baseball and soccer are going to be supported without any issues, but smaller clubs may need to work harder to justify receiving budgets from the school.

[Ithekro]

The student council for Girls und Panzer would have a lot of money via having to deal with the tank club's funds. But those schools are crazy large if they include the entire city-ship as the school.

[Fireminer]

At least they don't use French tanks.

Also, I'd want to ask about the matter of Veto and Vote. Do they use the Ellectoral Collage system (like Vietnam), or a direct menthod?

[aohige]

Originally Posted by Fireminer

At least they don't use French tanks.

Also, I'd want to ask about the matter of Veto and Vote. Do they use the Ellectoral Collage system (like Vietnam), or a direct menthod?

The major positions are usually elected by direct votes.
The lesser roles may be elected, or simply chosen by the elected. It depends on the school.
From my experience I've seen the latter more often, a lot like POTUS choosing the staff team.