Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > Japanese Government Policies in Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology 2001 >Capter1 Section2.2

It is an important role of education to help each and every person acquire basic academic abilities necessary in social life, help individuals' diverse talents grow and foster creative human resources who can take active parts in various fields of society.

  To accomplish this mission, it is necessary to do away with the uniform approach to education and convert the educational system into one that encourages the development of individuality. In elementary and secondary education, taking into account the natural differences in personalities and abilities of children, schools need to provide guidance according to children's differing levels of skills and understanding and offer extra catch-up lessons or advanced learning lessons when necessary. Schools also need to cultivate children's willingness to learn through experiential activities and the problem-solving approach to learning.

  It is also necessary to shift to a flexible educational system that accommodates the individuality and diverse capabilities of children or students, including the further promotion of unified lower and upper secondary school education, improvements to the so-called early university entrance system and the promotion of university entrance examinations that appropriately evaluate various qualities of students.

  In the field of higher education, the roles of undergraduate universities and graduate schools should be reviewed with a view to strengthening their educational and research functions, including the establishment of professional schools within graduate schools to train and educate future leaders with strong ambitions and judgment and who will contribute to the development of society. At the same time, it is necessary to establish a system that encourages students to take their higher education studies more seriously, including stricter screening of academic achievements, and also to promote education that helps students develop stronger views about future jobs with the aid of internships and other methods.