* As a general rule, the descriptions in Part 2 are based on trends up to fiscal 2022, but a part of the descriptions are based on trends and statistical data up to June 2023.
The Council for the Implementation of Education Rebuilding, which was convened in January 2013, has so far made 12 proposals, and various initiatives have been taken based on them. In addition, the Council for the Creation of Future Education, which had been convened in December 2021, following the abolition of the Council for the Implementation of Education Rebuilding, compiled its first set of proposals in May 2022 and its second set of proposals in April 2023.
The Central Council for Education that is an advisory council to the Minister of MEXT, also discusses important issues concerning the promotion of education and submits reports, etc. In light of these proposals and discussions and in the spirit of the Basic Act on Education, MEXT is promoting measures for education rebuilding based on the Basic Plan for the Promotion of Education. In addition, comprehensive research on education policy is underway at the National Institute for Education Policy Research, which is a national research institute.
The Great East Japan Earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of seven occurred on March 11, 2011. The earthquake caused an extensive tsunami on the Pacific coast and this gigantic tsunami led to significant damage, particularly along the Pacific coast in the Tohoku and Kanto regions. In addition, accidents occurred at the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station causing radioactive material to be released. The disasters caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the associated nuclear power plant accident are called “the Great East Japan Earthquake” based on the cabinet agreement on April 1 of the same year.
12 years have now elapsed since the earthquake. MEXT is working closely with the disaster victims in the damaged areas toward reconstruction and recovery from the earthquake disaster and revitalization of the areas by implementing measures such as the recovery of school facilities and financial support for attendance at school, providing mental health care for students, developing expert human resources who will support reconstruction, revitalizing the region by the support of universities and institutes and facilitating the nuclear damage compensation, etc.
Generally, lifelong learning refers to learning that takes place throughout the life of an individual at diverse places, and opportunities such as school education, education at home, social education, cultural activities, sport activities, recreation activities, volunteer activities, in-house training at companies, and hobbies.
MEXT is now conducting efforts promoting lifelong learning in the 100-year life era, including the promotion of re-learning for working adults to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for work throughout their lives, with the aim of maximizing each individual's lifelong "potential" and "opportunities."
The purpose of education is to perfect the character of each child. Education is indispensable for ensuring that children lead happy lives in the future. Education has another mission of fostering individuals who will lead the country and society in the future. The importance of education will remain unaltered no matter how the times might change. The importance of education has risen even more in recent years, in response to the rapid changes experienced by Japanese society, such as globalization, the emergence of a knowledge-based society, and the aging society with fewer children.
In order to improve children’s education under these conditions, MEXT is taking the following diverse measures aimed at securing educational opportunities and improving educational levels by:
Realizing the education that the National Curriculum Standards aim for
Promoting work style reform of schools
Promoting science and mathematics education to develop scientific and technological personnel
Improving education toward developing global human resources
Promoting career education and vocational education
Promoting the reforms of high school education
Improving textbooks
Addressing various problems in the student guidance such as bullying and chronic absenteeism
Improving moral education
Promoting human rights education
Keeping children healthy and safe
Improving the quality and ability of teachers and other personnel, and establishing instruction systems to achieve flexible and high quality education
Promoting early childhood education nurturing the foundation for lifelong character
Promoting special needs education in accordance with the educational needs of each child with disabilities
Improving local educational administration and community-based school development
Promoting the creation of dynamic schools that address the declining birthrate
Promoting the establishment and improvement of evening classes at junior high schools Improving financial support for pre-school children and students, and many other measures
Confronted with rapid changes including globalization and an aging society with fewer children, and the major changes in industrial and social structures that are expected to take place in order to realize Society 5.0, Japan must aim for a dynamic and sustainable society. In this context, higher education has a mission not only to support Japan’s society and economy through the development of human resources and the creation of new knowledge, but also to create universal values for mankind and contribute to solving the problems faced by the world. The government must recognize this mission and proactively implement reforms that meet the expectations of the people and society.
Based on the discussions at the Central Council for Education and the Council for the Implementation of Education Rebuilding, MEXT is working for steady realization of higher education reform. In addition, MEXT will promote a range of initiatives to diversify developments in higher education such as training medical staff, lawyers and other specialists, strengthening the functions of university hospitals as centers for regional medical care, establishment of professional and vocational universities (PVU) as higher education institutions that provide practical vocational education to train professionals, and improving colleges of technology (KOSEN) and professional training colleges.
Furthermore, to ensure that children do not abandon their higher education due to economic circumstances, MEXT is working to support their studies by offering reductions or exemptions of tuition, improving scholarship programs and supporting job-hunting activities and improvements to career education.
Private schools are schools that have a “public nature,” and along with national and public schools, they play a role in Japan’s education system. Private schools are each conducting unique activities based on their own philosophies, play an important role in the development and spread of education in Japan and the promotion of distinctive education and research in accordance with the increasingly diverse demands of its people, and support Japan’s school education in terms of both quality and quantity.
In light of the importance of the role played by these private schools, MEXT has positioned the promotion of private schools as an important policy issue by including the “development of educational and research infrastructure of private schools” as one of the basic measures in the Basic Plan for the Promotion of Education. MEXT strives to maintain and improve educational and research conditions and reduce the financial burden on students enrolled in private schools.
In order for private schools to gain the trust of society and achieve sustainable development in the future, incorporated educational institutions are expected to proactively work on effective governance reforms and maintenance and strengthening of their management bases, as well as promoting unique and attractive schools.
Japan promotes science and technology administration in coordination with relevant ministries under the basic strategies of the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation chaired by the Prime Minister. MEXT plans, devises and promotes basic policies on science and technology, formulates and promotes concrete plans on research and development, and carries out a wide range of initiatives based on the “6th Science, Technology and Innovation Basic Plan” approved by the Cabinet on March 26, 2021.
According to the Basic Act on Sport, enacted in 2011, sport is “a universally shared human culture which is crucial for citizens to lead a healthy and fulfilled life in terms of mind and body throughout their lifetime. Living life happily and fruitfully through sport is the right of all citizens.” The Act also positions sport as the one that plays a wide variety of role in a daily life of citizens, including fostering sound young people, rebuilding local communities, maintaining and improving mental and physical health, creating social and economic vitality, and enhancing Japan’s international status. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games (hereinafter referred to as “the Tokyo 2020 Games”), which were postponed by a year for the first time in history due to the COVID-19 pandemic then held amid various restrictions, had a great significance and we reaffirmed the importance of the “values of sport”, as the Tokyo 2020 Games achieved to:
- widely disseminate the various values of sport, such as the pleasure and joy of sport, to people in Japan and overseas;
- convey a message that we could unite to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic;
- create a big opportunity for realizing inclusive society, as the first ever city that hosted two Summer Paralympic Games,
Toward realizing these concepts, the Japan Sports Agency promotes sports policy in a comprehensive and integrated manner in coordination with other related governmental ministries and agencies and private enterprises, including improvement of Japan’s international competitiveness in sports, health promotion through sports, local and economic revitalization through sports, promotion of sport in a local community, international exchange and cooperation through sports, promotion of para-sports, improvement of physical education and so on.
In order to promote comprehensive cultural administration, the Agency for Cultural Affairs promotes the creation, development, succession, as well as enhancement of education of culture and the arts, fosters artists, and develops measures to realize an inclusive society, create innovations, and build national brands through culture and the arts. In addition, the Agency is engaged in various initiatives such as preservation and utilization of cultural assets throughout Japan, promotion of museums, promotion of regional cultures, promotion of food culture, promotion of measures for Japanese language and Japanese language education, promotion of cultural tourism, development of copyright policies, and operation of a system of religious corporations.
Against this backdrop, relocation of the Agency for Cultural Affairs to Kyoto progressed in accordance with the “Basic Policy on the Transfer of Governmental Organizations to Regional Areas” of March 2016, and operations in Kyoto began from March 27, 2023. The majority of staff members relocated on May 15 of the same year to start full-fledged operations of the Agency in Kyoto.
The relocation will be used as an opportunity to promote new cultural administration, including global development of culture and the arts, digitalization of culture and the arts, and preservation and utilization of cultural assets for tourism and regional vitalization.
In the midst of a situation in which the globalization of society and economies is progressing and the environment surrounding international society and Japan is rapidly changing, it is imperative that Japan further enriches its interaction and cooperation with other nations in order to ensure sound growth and make Japan an attractive country.
In light of the reaffirmation of the importance of international exchange and cooperation amidst the ongoing global epidemic of COVID-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, MEXT, while utilizing new means, is continuously promoting two-way human exchange by developing human resources who can play an active role in the international community and strategically accepting excellent students and researchers from overseas. In addition, through the attendance of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology at international conferences, meetings with dignitaries from various countries and regions, and information gathering by Japanese embassies in various countries, MEXT is strengthening its efforts for international cooperation in various fields, taking into account the needs of the partner countries and regions. Furthermore, various initiatives are being carried out in cooperation with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), United Nations University and other international organizations.
Today we are in a great social transformation including the advent of Society 5.0. The term “Society 5.0” suggests almost “discontinuous” dramatic change of society where artificial intelligence (AI), big data, Internet of Things (IoT), robotics and other frontier technologies are further advanced and introduced to every industry and area of social life. In Society 5.0, advanced technologies including AI may change ways of education and learning.
Nowadays, the use of ICT has become commonplace in all sections of society, and for children living in the Society 5.0 era, ICT devices such as smartphones, tablets, and computers are considered "must-have items," along with pencils and notebooks. 1 device for 1 student environment is now the "standard" for schools in the Reiwa era.
MEXT is working on initiatives, such as the “GIGA School Program,” to realize personalized and self-regulated learning and collaborative learning that is suitable for children living in the Society 5.0 era and that brings out the potential of all children.
MEXT aims to create safe and high-quality school facilities, and is promoting measures to extend the lifespan of aging school facilities, to improve earthquake-resistance including non-structural elements, and to strengthen disaster prevention functions. In addition, it is important to aim for the development of school facilities, which serve as the foundation for learning, in a way that is appropriate for the new era. To realize a rich educational environment in response to changes in social and local conditions, MEXT is promoting barrier-free school facilities, environmentally conscious maintenance, etc., and supporting the creation of high-quality schools.
Even regarding facilities such as national universities, to create a safe and secure educational and research environment and enhance their functions in response to the sophistication, diversification, internationalization of educational research, MEXT is promoting focused and systematic maintenance, such as strategic renovations focusing on earthquake resistance and improving aging facilities, as well as working to improve the campus environment.
The promotion of comprehensive and systematic disaster prevention measures is important to respond promptly and appropriately to natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons, tornadoes, severe rains, and volcanic eruptions, and accidents.
MEXT has taken initiatives for disaster prevention and mitigation measures to ensure the safety and security of students, such as the improvement of disaster prevention education and the reinforcement of disaster prevention functions of school facilities, for advancing emergency measures in response to disasters, for supporting disaster recovery, and for promoting research and development related to disaster prevention and mitigation.
The Japanese government set up the Administrative Reform Promotion Headquarters, in which all Cabinet members participated, in January 2013, in order to achieve the administration of the Japanese government rationally and efficiently, and in a manner focused on citizens and based on the demands of the times. The whole government is advancing administrative reforms of various types at present. MEXT has also enhanced the efficiency of its operations and budgets and promoted their effective application.
In promoting effective and efficient administration, the government is asked to proactively reconsider its policies in response to effects generated by existing policies and subsequent changes in social and economic conditions. MEXT has evaluated individual policies and the operations of incorporated administrative agencies objectively and strictly from various viewpoints, including necessity, effectiveness and efficiency, through the Policy Evaluation System and the Incorporated Administrative Agency Evaluation System. MEXT has revised the policies and operations constantly, based on the verification results. In addition, Evidence-Based Policy Making (EBPM) is being promoted throughout the government; MEXT is taking initiatives to improve the environment for promoting EBPM, secure and nurture human resources, and implement EBPM by analyzing the current status of policies, identifying issues, and clearly defining objectives, goals, and outcomes of policies through the creation of logic models and administrative project review sheets, etc. for policy improvement. By continuing to promote these initiatives, MEXT is aiming to promote and use a cyclic-type administrative control (the PDCA cycle), measurement and evaluation of results (Check), their reflection on subsequent planning and designing (Action), in addition to planning and designing (Plan) and execution (Do) in administration.
Furthermore, MEXT is currently in the process of reviving the trust that was lost following a series of scandals. Therefore, MEXT is reforming itself to create a new MEXT trusted by the citizens, based on the “Action Plan for Vitalization of MEXT” formulated in March 2019.
Education Policy Bureau Policy Division