Education in Japan
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After World War II, the Fundamental Law of Education and the School Education Law were enacted in 1947 under the direction of the occupation forces. The latter law defined the school system that is still in effect today: six years of elementary school, three years of junior high school, three years of high school, two or four years of university.
Education prior to elementary school is provided at kindergartens and day-care centers. Public and private day-care centers take children from under age one on up to five years old. The programmes for those children ages 3–5 resembles those at kindergartens. The educational approach at kindergartens varies greatly from unstructured environments that emphasize play to highly structured environments that are focused on having the child pass the entrance exam at a private elementary school.
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[edit] History
Main article: History of education in Japan
In the Edo period, the Yushima Seidō in Edo was the chief educational institution of the state; and at its head was the Daigaku-no-kami, a title which identified the leader of the Tokugawa training school for shogunate bureaucrats.[1]
Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the daimyō vied for power in the largely pacified country. Since their influence could not be raised through war, they competed on the economic field. Their warrior-turned-bureaucrat Samurai elite had to be educated not only in military strategy and the martial arts, but also agriculture and accounting. Likewise, the wealthy merchant class needed education for their daily business, and their wealth allowed them to be patrons of arts and science. But temple schools (terakoya) educated peasants too, and it is estimated that at the end of the Edo period 50% of the male and 20% of the female population possessed some degree of literacy. Even though contact with foreign countries was restricted, books from China and Europe were eagerly imported and Rangaku ("Dutch studies") became a popular area of scholarly interest.
After the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the methods and structures of Western learning were adopted as a means to make Japan a strong, modern nation. Students and even high-ranking government officials were sent abroad to study, such as the Iwakura mission. Foreign scholars, the so-called o-yatoi gaikokujin, were invited to teach at newly founded universities and military academies. Compulsory education was introduced, mainly after the Prussian model. By 1890, only 20 years after the resumption of full international relations, Japan discontinued employment of the foreign consultants.
The rise of militarism led to the use of the education system to prepare the nation for war. The military even sent its own instructors to schools. After the defeat in World War II, the allied occupation government set an education reform as one of its primary goals, to eradicate militarist teachings and "democratize" Japan. The education system was rebuilt after the American model.
The end of the 1960s were a time of student protests around the world, and also in Japan. The main subject of protest was the Japan-U.S. security treaty. A number of reforms were carried out in the post-war period until today. They aimed at easing the burden of entrance examinations, promoting internationalization and information technologies, diversifying education and supporting lifelong learning.
In successive international tests of mathematics, Japanese children consistently rank at or near the top (see TIMSS).[2] The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) is responsible for educational administration.
[edit] School grades
The school year in Japan begins in April and classes are held from Monday to either Friday or Saturday, depending on the school. The school year consists of three terms, which are separated by short holidays in spring and winter, and a one month long summer break.[3]The year structure is summarized in the table below.
| Age | Grade | Educational establishments | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3-4 | Kindergarten (幼稚園 Yōchien) | Special school (特別支援学校 Tokubetsu-shien gakkō) | |||||
| 4-5 | |||||||
| 5-6 | |||||||
| 6-7 | 1 | Elementary school (小学校 Shōgakkō) Compulsory Education | |||||
| 7-8 | 2 | ||||||
| 8-9 | 3 | ||||||
| 9-10 | 4 | ||||||
| 10-11 | 5 | ||||||
| 11-12 | 6 | ||||||
| 12-13 | 1 | Junior high school / Lower secondary school (中学校 chūgakkō) Compulsory Education | |||||
| 13-14 | 2 | ||||||
| 14-15 | 3 | ||||||
| 15-16 | 1 | High school / Upper secondary school (高等学校 kōtōgakkō, abbr. 高校 kōkō) | College of technology (高専 kōsen) | ||||
| 16-17 | 2 | ||||||
| 17-18 | 3 | ||||||
| 18-19 | University: Undergraduate (大学 daigaku; gakushi-katei) | National Academy (大学校 daigakkō) | Medical School (医学部Igaku-bu） Veterinary school (獣医学部Juigaku-bu) Dentistry School (歯学部Shigaku-bu) Pharmaceutical School (薬学部Yakugaku-bu) National Defense Medical College (防衛医科大学校, Bōei Ika Daigakkō) | Community College (短期大学Tanki-daigaku） Vocational School (専門学校 Senmon-gakkō) | |||
| 19-20 | Associate | ||||||
| 20-21 | |||||||
| 21-22 | Bachelor | ||||||
| 22-23 | Graduate School: Master (大学院修士課程 daigaku-In；Shu-shi Katei) | National Academy: Master (大学校修士課程daigakkō; Shu-shi katei) | |||||
| 23-24 | Master | ||||||
| 24-25 | Graduate School: Ph.D (大学院博士課程 daigaku-In；Hakushi Katei) | National Defense Academy: Ph.D (防衛大学校博士課程Bōei Daigakkō; Hakushi katei) | Medical School: Ph.D (医学博士Igaku Hakushi) Veterinary School: Ph.D (獣医学博士Juigaku Hakushi) Dentistry School: Ph.D (歯学博士Shigaku Hakushi) Pharmaceutical School: Ph.D (薬学博士 Yakugaku Hakushi) | ||||
| 25-26 | |||||||
| 26-27 | Ph.D | ||||||
| 27-28 | Ph.D | ||||||
[edit] Junior high school
| International educational scores (latest, 2007) (8th graders average score, TIMSS International Math and Science Study, 2007) | ||||||
| Countries: (sample) | Global rank | Maths | Science | |||
| Rank | Score | Rank | Score | |||
 Singapore | 1 | 3 | 593 | 1 | 567 | |
 Taiwan | 2 | 1 | 598 | 2 | 561 | |
 South Korea | 3 | 2 | 597 | 4 | 553 | |
 Japan | 4 | 5 | 570 | 3 | 554 | |
 Hong Kong | 5 | 4 | 572 | 9 | 530 | |
 Hungary | 6 | 6 | 517 | 6 | 539 | |
 England | 7 | 7 | 513 | 5 | 542 | |
 Czech Republic | 8 | 11 | 504 | 7 | 539 | |
 Russia | 9 | 8 | 512 | 10 | 530 | |
 Slovenia | 10 | 12 | 501 | 8 | 538 | |
 United States | 11 | 9 | 508 | 11 | 520 | |
 Lithuania | 12 | 10 | 506 | 12 | 519 | |
 Australia | 13 | 14 | 496 | 13 | 515 | |
 Sweden | 14 | 15 | 491 | 14 | 511 | |
 Armenia | 15 | 13 | 499 | 17 | 488 | |
 Italy | 18 | 19 | 480 | 16 | 495 | |
| Maths Highlights from TIMSS 2007 Science Highlights from TIMSS 2007 | ||||||
Main article: Secondary education in Japan
Lower secondary school covers grades seven, eight, and nine, children between the ages of roughly 12 and 15, with increased focus on academic studies. Although it is still possible to leave the formal education system after completing junior high school and find employment, fewer than 4% did so by the late 1980s.Like elementary schools, most junior high schools in the 1980s were public, but 5% were private. Private schools were costly, averaging 558,592 yen (US$3,989) per student in 1988, about four times more than the 130,828 yen (US$934) that the ministry estimated as the cost for students enrolled in public junior high school. Teachers often majored in the subjects they taught, and more than 80% graduated from a four-year college. Classes are large, with thirty-eight students per class on average, and each class is assigned a homeroom teacher who doubles as counselor. Unlike elementary students, junior high school students have different teachers for different subjects. The teacher, however, rather than the students, moves to a new room for each fifty or forty-five minute period.
Instruction in junior high schools tends to rely on the lecture method. Teachers also use other media, such as television and radio, and there is some laboratory work. By 1989 about 45% of all public junior high schools had computers, including schools that used them only for administrative purposes. Classroom organization is still based on small work groups of four to six students, although no longer for reasons of discipline.