The Basic Education In Japan In Japan, education Is compulsory at the elementary and lower secondary levels. Most students attend public schools through the lower secondary level, vituperative education is popular at the upper secondary and university levels. Japan’s education system played a central part in Japan’s recovery and rapid economic growth in the decades following the end of World War II.
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 programmed for those children aged 3-5 resemble 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. 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.
By 1989 about 45% of all public Junior high schools had computers, including schools that used them only for administrative purposes. All course contents are specified in the Course of Study for Lower- Secondary Schools. Some subjects, such as Japanese language and mathematics, are coordinated with the elementary curriculum. Others, such as foreign-language study, begin at this level, though from April 2011 English became a compulsory part of the elementary school curriculum. The Junior school curriculum covers Japanese language, social studies, mathematics, science, music, fine arts, health, and physical education.
All students are also exposed to industrial arts and homemaking. Moral education and special activities continue to receive attention. Most students also participate in one of a range of school clubs that occupy them until around pm most kayaked (including weekends and often before school as well), as part of an effort to address Juvenile delinquency. A growing number of Junior high school students also attend Juju, private extracurricular study schools, in the evenings and on weekends.
A focus by students upon these other studies and the increasingly structured demands upon students’ time have been criticized by teachers and in the media for contributing to a decline in classroom standards and student performance in recent years. The ministry recognizes a need to improve the teaching of all foreign languages, especially English. To improve instruction in spoken English, the government invites many young native speakers of English to Japan to serve as assistants to school boards and prefectures under its Japan Exchange and Teaching Program.
Beginning with 848 participants in 1987, the program grew to a high of 6,273 participants in 2002. [9] The program was in a decline in recent years due to several factors, including shrinking local school budgets funding the program, as well as an increasing number of school boards hiring their foreign native speakers directly or through lower-paying, private agencies. Today, the program is again rowing due to English becoming a compulsory part of the elementary school curriculum in 2011. High School Even though upper-secondary school is not compulsory in Japan, 94% of all Junior high school graduates entered high schools as of 2005.
Private upper-secondary schools account for about 55% of all upper-secondary schools, and neither public nor private schools are free. The Ministry of Education estimated that annual family expenses for the education of a child in a public upper-secondary school were about 300,000 yen (US$2,142) in the asses and that private upper-secondary schools were bout twice as expensive. The most common type of upper-secondary school has a full-time, general program that offered academic courses for students preparing for to find employment after graduation.
More than 70% of upper-secondary school students were enrolled in the general academic program in the late asses. A small number of schools offer part-time programs, evening courses, or correspondence education. The first-year programs for students in both academic and commercial courses are similar. They include basic academic courses, such as Japanese language, English, mathematics, and science. In upper-secondary school, differences in ability are first publicly acknowledged, and course content and course selection are far more individualized in the second year.
However, there is a core of academic material throughout all programs. Vocational-technical programs includes several hundred specialized courses, such as information processing, navigation, fish farming, business English, and ceramics. Business and industrial courses are the most popular, accounting for 72% of all students in full-time vocational programs in 1989. Most upper-secondary teachers are university graduates. Upper-secondary schools are organized into departments, and teachers specialize in their major fields although they teach a variety of courses within their disciplines.
Teaching depends largely on the lecture system, with the main goal of covering the very demanding curriculum in the time allotted. Approach and subject coverage tends to be uniform, at least in the public schools. Training of disabled students, particularly at the upper- secondary level, emphasizes vocational education to enable students to be as independent as possible within society. Vocational training varies considerably pending on the student’s disability, but the options are limited for some.
It is clear that the government is aware of the necessity of broadening the range of possibilities for these students. Advancement to higher education is also a goal of the government, and it struggles to have institutions of higher learning accept more students with disabilities. Universities and Colleges As of 2005, more than 2. 8 million students were enrolled in 726 universities. At the top of the higher education structure, these institutions provide a four-year training leading to a bachelor’s degree, and some offer six-year programs leading to a reflections degree.
There are two types of public four-year colleges: the ninety- six national universities (including the Open University of Japan) and the thirty-nine local public universities, founded by prefectures and municipalities. The 372 remaining four-year colleges in 1991 were private. The overwhelming majority of college students attend full-time day programs. In 1990 the most popular courses, enrolling almost 40 percent of all undergraduate students, were in the social sciences, including business, law, and accounting. Other popular subjects were engineering (19 percent), the humanities (1 5 percent), and education (7 recent).
The average costs (tuition, fees, and living expenses) for a year of higher education in 1986 were 1. 4 million yen (IIS$II,OHO). To help defray expenses, students frequently work part-time or borrow money through the government- supported Japan Scholarship Association. Assistance is also offered by local governments, nonprofit corporations, and other institutions. According to The Times Higher Education Supplement and Г?Cole des Mines De Paris, the top-ranking universities in Japan are authenticity of Tokyo, Kyoto University, Koki University and Wasted The SQ Asia University Rankings Top 20
University at 8th,Took University at 9th, Nagoya University at 10th, Tokyo Institute of Technology at 1 lath, Shush University at 17th and University of Attacks at 20th. [14] Based on 2011 Times Higher Education – SQ World University Rankings, there are 33 Japanese Universities in the top 100 Asian University Rankings. Reference : http:// en. Wisped. Org/wick/Education_in_Japan When Japan opened herself to the world in 1868, one of the government’s high priority was catching up with Western standards in science and education.
The Japanese education system was reformed mainly according to the German and French model which experts regarded as most suitable and advantageous. After the second world war, the Americans reformed the Japanese education system after their own which consists of six years of elementary school, each three years of Junior and senior high school and four years of university or two years of Junior college. Compulsory education includes elementary school and Junior high school.
Over 90% of all students also graduate from high school and over 40% from university or Junior college. At universities the percentage of male students is higher than that of female dents while the opposite is the case at Junior colleges. The number of graduate university students is relatively low. The Japanese school year starts in April and consists of three terms, separated by short holidays in spring and winter, and a one month long summer break. A characteristic of the Japanese school system are entrance exams, and with them a high competitiveness among students.
Most high schools, universities, as well as a few private Junior high schools and elementary schools require applicants to write entrance exams. In order to pass entrance exams o the best institutions, many students attend special preparation schools Kook) besides regular classes, or for one to two years between high school and university (hobbit). The most prestigious universities are the national University of Tokyo and University of Kyoto, followed by the best private universities. Reference: http:// www. Japan-guide. Com/e/eye. HTML Reflection: The Education in Japan has compulsory level and others can still pursue higher education if they can. The levels of which that were compulsory were elementary and junior high school or lower secondary level. The high school or upper secondary level ND college were an option depending on the student. The education of the Japanese government where practical simply because students can work after finishing the elementary and Junior high school or lower secondary level, not all the students can afford to pursue high school or upper secondary level and college.
It is still important that a student finish college level depends on the student if he/she wanted to pursue college. Some may be contented of what they achieve but for some who struggles in life they have the higher chance to strive harder. Fortunately, even though high school or upper secondary level was not impulsion, 94% of the students in Junior high school entered in high school as of 2005. The students tend to enter high school because they have the greater chance to excel in economic stability.
The high school offers the courses for higher education as well as the technical and vocational courses which will help the students to find a Job after finishing the course. The growing number of the students who entered universities in Japan where already 2. 8 million as of 2005 in 726 colleges and according to The Times Higher Education Supplement and Cole des Mines De Paris, the top ranking universities in Japan are the University of Tokyo, Kyoto University, Koki University and Wasted University.
It was nice to know that many colleges in Japan where excelling in the whole Asia which will make them be proud of what they have. It was expensive to study in Japan but it will surely help you to be competent in the field of the study. I hope that here in my country, the Philippines, the privilege of the students who can study should not waste the time and money that they spend. We are Just lucky that we are not spending thrice as Japan spend Just to study with the best schools and universities. Maria C. Avail BASED – 4th year
