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CHAPTER SUFFICIENCY OF TEACHING STAFFAND PROVISION OF SCHOOL FACILITIES

In order to improve the teaching materials and teaching equipment of compulsory schools the government has established "standards regarding teaching materials" and created a 10-year -plan to improve teaching materials starting in 1967. The estimated cost is 160,000,O00, 000 yen of which half is to be paid by the government. According to these standards 2,223 items, including slide projectors, tape recorders and pianos, which are necessary to carry out the teaching described in the course of studies will become available. Table 61 shows to what extent the schools are properly equipped. In terms of the standard elementary school with 18 classes and the standard lower secondary school with 15 c1asses the former has reached 48.0% of the standards and the latter 44.O%.

Table 6l. Degree to Which the Standards Regarding Educational Materials is satisfied in Public Elementary and Lower Secondary Schools (1969)

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Note: Actual numbers are given in Basic Table 58. Basic Table 58

With regard to materials for science education the attempted improvements are separate from the plan mentioned above and are based on the Law for the Promotion of 'Science Education. However the achievement is not very high. At the end of March, 1968 only 53% of the standards for elementary schools, 49% of those for lower secondary schools and 43% of those for upper secondary schools had been achieved.

Improvement of materials for mathematics education, such as table electronic computers, has been promoted since 1969.

In addition to those measures explained above there is a Law for the Promotion of Industrial Education based on which the government supplies a part of the expenses to acquire facilities or equipment for experiments or field training in vocational education in both local public and private secondary schools. This means in the case of lower secondary schools equipment necessary for experiments or field training in technical and homemaking courses can be acquired with governmental subsidies, and in case of upper secondary schools, necessary facilities or equipment for experiments or field training in vocational courses for agriculture, industries, trade, fisheries. homemaking and nursery can be acquired with governmental subsidies.

In addition to improving teaching materials and equipment on the basis of the "Standards for Teaching Materials" the Law for the Promotion of Science Education, the Law for the Promotion or Industrial Education and others, the important task introducing new teaching machines as they are developed by advanced technology should not be forgotten.