DX High School Utilization Case Study: monoDuki LLC's Digital Human Resource Development and Supportive Partnership to Foster Ichiki Noge High School's "Self-Driving Capability"

monoDuki LLC (Headquarters: Kagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture, Representative: Shotaro Murakami) provided supportive partnership assistance to Kagoshima Prefectural Ichiki Noge High School, a certified DX High School, supporting everything from equipment selection to class and lecture planning, and lecture implementation. While DX High Schools are advancing equipment maintenance, there are cases where implementation in classes and design for continued use become challenges. monoDuki LLC supports operations that lead to practical learning that goes beyond mere experience, through designs tailored to the specific on-site conditions of each school.

1) Outline of Support

* Support Recipient: Kagoshima Prefectural Ichiki Noge High School
* URL: https://www.edu.pref.kagoshima.jp/sh/ichiki/
* Implementation Period: July 2025 - Ongoing (2nd year of Reiwa 7th year)
* Target: Students of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Environmental Horticulture
* Main Support Contents: Equipment selection (Meta Quest 3S, etc.) / Environment setup / Implementation of lectures for teachers and students / Follow-up support / PR article creation
* Objective of this Initiative: To promote the transition to smart agriculture and foster the "ability to self-drive" to solve problems independently using information technology

2) Common On-site Challenges in DX High Schools and the Positioning of This Case

In DX High Schools and other school settings, while the development and maintenance of digital equipment is progressing, situations arise where differences between schools are likely to occur, such as "equipment has been introduced, but we don't know how to integrate it into actual classes or research activities" or "the burden on teachers is large, making it difficult to design operations for continued use."

This initiative, tailored to Ichiki Noge High School's distinct "agricultural education" focus, aims to serve as a reference model for future educational DX promotion by providing a practical case study where equipment selection, derived from objectives, through to class implementation such as ideathons, was designed holistically.

3) Background and Process of Introduction

Kagoshima Prefectural Ichiki Noge High School aimed to strengthen research activities that combine agricultural education with information technology, triggered by their DX High School certification. At the core of this was the strong desire of the teachers to not just learn how to use digital equipment, but to figure out "how to solve problems in actual agricultural and livestock farming operations using the latest technology."

However, translating technology to a level where it could be utilized in "agriculture, the students' own domain," presented challenges such as engineering hurdles in the actual creation process and operational design for specialized equipment.

Therefore, monoDuki LLC proposed "supportive partnership assistance" to ensure students could master the latest technology as "tools to update their own agriculture," rather than simply delivering equipment, and this initiative began.

4) Support Details and Partnership Flow by monoDuki LLC

In this support initiative, we placed the highest priority on ensuring the introduced technology would ultimately be utilized in the "field of agriculture," and carried out the following activities:

1. Equipment Selection and Introduction Support Focused on Solving Field Challenges

We selected and performed initial setup for Meta Quest 3S (6 units) and built an educational management system. Furthermore, we developed an equipment environment that assumes "utilization in actual agricultural settings" by proposing the use of 3D scanning apps (Scaniverse) directly linked to grasping the spaces of farms, cow sheds, and pigsties, and by selecting high-performance PCs and 360-degree cameras.

2. Support for Planning Classes and Lectures Connecting "Agriculture × Latest Technology"

We conducted training for faculty and staff through hands-on sessions with the latest technologies. We supported the establishment of a learning attitude where teachers and students explore "the future possibilities of agriculture" together with a new perspective.

3. Implementation of Practical Workshops for Application in Agriculture

We held workshops for students themed "Agriculture × Technology." Through ideathons utilizing technology as a means, we explored how to make VR and microcomputers, not just mere digital tools, fun and efficient solutions for real-life challenges faced in daily practice (watering, fertilizer management, tractor operation, etc.).

5) Partnership Support Flow

The support provided by monoDuki LLC is largely composed of five stages.

① Hearing and Objective Clarification

Organizing the school's educational philosophy and research themes, analyzing student demographics and career trends, and clarifying "for what purpose XR/AI will be utilized."

② Program Design and Equipment Selection

Designing an XR/AI environment assuming its use, designing for connection to classes, research, and extracurricular activities, and selecting equipment by working backward from the objectives.
* The design starts from "what kind of learning do you want to achieve?" rather than being equipment-driven.

③ Training and Program Implementation

Conducting training for faculty and staff, practical lectures for students, and implementing inquiry-based programs that involve repeated creation, verification, and improvement. For highly specialized fields like XR/AI, external experts and AI provide technical support. A system is in place to allow faculty and staff to focus on supporting student learning.

④ Achievement Presentation and Case Study Dissemination

Visualizing educational value and strengthening brand by disseminating achievements, such as presentations within the school, exhibits at open schools, and creation of public relations materials, to society.

⑤ Review and Future Utilization Proposals

6) Voices of Teachers and Students at the Adopting School

[Teacher Comments]

Mr. Nakahara, Department of Agriculture
"I had no prior experience with VR, but with each lesson, both the students and I felt directly that it was 'interesting.' I want students to develop the 'ability to self-drive,' where they don't just complete assigned tasks but form hypotheses and use people or resources to find solutions when they encounter difficulties. It is highly compatible with agricultural education, and I am very grateful that they proposed a plan tailored to the type of individuals we want to develop."

Mr. Suwa, Department of Animal Husbandry
"As the saying goes, 'the baker bakes the bread.' We need to rely on those with specialized technical skills and work as a team, otherwise, we won't have enough time. Having someone accompany us is extremely important. We need support in how to procure equipment and how to translate that into applications, data, systems, and programming, as these are areas where we are weak. I also think it would be beneficial if they could be involved in public relations when presenting the results to the world."

[Student Comments]

Uchida-san, 2nd Year, Department of Agriculture
"It was great to find new ideas on how to make daily practical training easier and more enjoyable by using microcomputers and VR technology to solve the biggest problems and difficulties I encounter."

Shirasaka-san, 2nd Year, Department of Animal Husbandry
"By interacting with people outside the school and experts, I hope to expand my own ideas, and through that process, I'd like to think about my future career."

Minezaki-san, 1st Year, Department of Environmental Horticulture
"I can think of many things that are difficult in our daily practical training, and I used to wonder if machines could really help with them. But after talking with the staff at monoDuki, they said, 'If you try, you can do anything; the possibilities are infinite,' which made me think that we could really promote smart agriculture."

7) Future Outlook

This initiative will not be limited to equipment introduction for a single year; both parties will continue to collaborate and provide ongoing supportive partnership assistance in subsequent years. Moving forward, we will foster students' "ability to self-drive" through creating after-school learning environments for students who require more than what can be learned in regular classes, and by providing technical support (e.g., brainstorming sessions) as external experts during the actual research and creation process.

monoDuki LLC will continue to deepen its collaboration with Ichiki Noge High School to establish a sustainable educational model that fosters students' problem-solving abilities by combining Ichiki Noge High School's unique agricultural education with the latest technology.

Support Suitable for Schools and Teachers Like These

* Wanting to proceed with equipment introduction for DX High School but unsure about the optimal selection for their own school.
* Struggling with how to integrate planned/already introduced equipment into comprehensive research periods or specialized subjects.
* Wishing to implement practical learning while minimizing the preparation burden on teachers (setup, manual creation, safety management, etc.).

Common Consultation Points (DX High School Utilization, Class Implementation)

Q. Can we consult even before the equipment is decided?
A. Yes, it is possible. We will organize from the optimal equipment selection according to the school's educational philosophy and the objective of "what kind of learning you want to achieve."

Q. Is it possible to consult only about lectures or only about equipment selection?
A. Yes, it is possible. We will provide support within the necessary scope, depending on the school's situation and budget.

Q. Can this be implemented for departments other than information technology?
A. Yes, it is possible. We will design it according to each school's characteristics, such as for agricultural departments like this case, or for research learning in general education courses.

Consultations Regarding DX High School Utilization and Class Implementation

monoDuki LLC provides support tailored to each school's situation, including equipment selection related to DX High School utilization, class planning, lectures as external instructors, and organization for internal explanations. Please feel free to consult us starting with clarifying your current situation, objectives, and implementation timeline.
https://forms.gle/fUYpDoWYWSNXrYrU9

Inquiries Regarding Coverage and Media Placement

We handle inquiries regarding coverage of this initiative, support for DX High School utilization and class implementation in school settings, and requests for commentary on educational DX. For coordination of interviews with adopting schools, we will respond within the scope of what is possible after consultation with the school.