Education Reform in Japan

One of the most debated issues in modern Japan is education reform. Japan is world renowned for its demanding education requirements and high academic standards. In response to modernization after World War II, the Japanese made substantial changes to their education system: high schools and universities were built, technological research was encouraged, and compulsory education was strictly enforced. However, these advances have come at a price. The Japanese school schedule is long and tedious; schools run for fourteen hours a day, six days a week, 250 days a year. Further more, students attend juku, or cram schools, to prepare for jukenjigoku, or Examination Hell; deal with daily ijime, bullying; and face an insurmountable amount of pressure from their parents, teachers and peers to conform to strict societal rules and standards. Japan’s education system needs reform that addresses these issues, and eases the tremendous amount of stress that students face on a daily basis.

The most important reason to reform Japanese education is the stress it puts on students. Educators spend a majority of their time occupied with academics, which leaves little time for teaching basic human valu

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The implications reach far beyond formalized education; in a recent study of major Japanese companies, over 60% of new recruits came from the prestigious Tokyo and Kyoto Universities. As the saying goes, “the children of today determine the outcome of tomorrow”. Makeup, watches, jewelry, and socks are prohibited.

Yuki Furuya, who lives in a northern suburb of Tokyo, is a typical Japanese high school student. What about the child who is daily abused by a competitor’s ijime bullying? Is a childhood full of fear and anxiety worth some politician’s pride in an antiquated education system? The opponents to reform should revaluate their motives and look at the positive opportunities that reform could bring. Depending on one’s test results, one could end up at a nearby, prestigious high school, or five hours away in an inner city, ghetto school. Classes are limited to academic subjects only; physical education, art, and music have no place in Japanese education. (Complicated special need programs, little language aid to foreign students, and difficult teacher requirements are examples of these barriers to progress. Companies are struggling to find employees that can solve problems with new, creative solutions. The conformity has become appalling to many Japanese teens, and many have started to call American students, originally thought of as rebellious and recusant, guramakizu, the glamour children. We should not gamble with Japan’s future.

For many students, conformity, added to the stress of bullying, exams, and long school days is the last straw to break the camel’s back. Many wonder how students develop individuality or creative problem solving skills with such strict rules. Finally, she returns home at midnight, so exhausted that she can barely move. Victims of ijime face water torture, daily beatings, and terrifying threats.

Common topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 1210
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

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