Japanese Government Policies in Education, Science, Sports and Culture 2000[Trends in Educational Reform Section 2 Q7 Criticism Over Lowering of Academic Ability and the New Courses of Study]

According to the International Mathematics and Science Study of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), the academic ability of Japan's children has maintained the top level in all three surveys conducted since 1964, and is on the whole strong internationally. However, problems have been pointed out, such as the fact that the ratio of Japanese children who like mathematics and science, as well as the ratio of Japanese children who wish to enter mathematics and science related careers, are at the lowest level internationally.

Under the new Courses of Study, based on these circumstances of children's learning, at elementary and lower secondary schools, education content is reduced by about 30% for each academic year. However, most of this is transferred to later academic years or school levels and taught systematically along with the material traditionally taught at these levels in order to make the material easier to understand for children. Put another way, the change is not so much one of reducing quantity, but rather one of spending ample time in order to firmly instill the material.

In addition, the range of elective courses at lower secondary schools has been expanded, enabling students to study in line with their interests and inclinations. At upper secondary schools, the number of compulsory course credits has been reduced, offering students a wide range of elective courses that they can select in accordance with their interests, career inclinations, and level of proficiency, and which enables each of them to amply develop their abilities. Thus, students can study subjects in more depth-as deeply as their level of motivation takes them. The standard of educational content at the upper secondary school graduate level is as before, and there will be no lowering of academic ability due to the new Courses of Study.

However, recently, the gist and aims of the new Courses of Study have not been thoroughly understood, and some aspects have been misunderstood. For example, it has been said, "Instead of 3.14, 3 will be used for", and "The number of English words learned at lower secondary schools will be 100," but these are misconceptions. It is necessary to have a full understanding of the new Courses of Study. (For details, see the "Answers to questions regarding the new Courses of Study").

The fact that there are university students who cannot perform calculations using fractions has been mentioned as a typical example of the decrease in academic ability. However, it is a fact that calculations including fractions are taught at elementary schools. Thus, the problem here is one of knowledge that is taught but not acquired. In the new Courses of Study, the aim is to have students firmly acquire basic abilities and skills through repeated instruction, based on their careful selection.

The new Courses of Study states that for elementary school Grade 5, "3.14 will be used for π, but depending on the purpose, consideration will be made to allow the use of 3." It is clear that 3.14 will be used. This item is the same in both the new Courses of Study and the existing Courses of Study.

By using 3 depending on the purpose, children can use it appropriately as needed for estimating approximate areas, while they avoid the burden of making more difficult calculations than necessary. The time saved is utilized for thinking.

The formula for the area of a trapezoid will not be used.

This is because once children learn how to calculate the areas of squares, rectangles, triangles and parallelograms, they will be able to figure out the area of other such trapezoidal shapes themselves by using the already learned methods. (This kind of ability to think on one's own is just the kind ability that should be acquired). Therefore, we decided to stop teaching the mere memorization of the formula for the area of a trapezoid.

The kanji characters learned in elementary school will not be reduced.

The number of kanji characters taught in elementary school (1,006) is the same in both the new Courses of Study and the existing Courses of Study. Since it takes longer for students to acquire kanji writing skills than reading skills, the revision keep reading instruction the same and increase the period for teaching writing from one year to two years so that students can acquire writing and usage abilities. Through this revision, children will be taught to be able to write the 825 kanji taught through elementary school Grade 5 by the end of Grade 6, and the additional 181 Grade 6 kanji in lower secondary school.

The new Courses of Study states that at the time of graduation from lower secondary school, students have acquired the ability to write 1,006 kanji. The same is stated in the existing Courses of Study.

The total number of words will be about 900.

The existing Courses of Study calls for a total of about 1,000 words, including a required vocabulary of 507 words, while new Courses of Study reduces the required vocabulary to 100 words and the total to about 900 words.

This is because the discretion of individual schools to decide what words to teach has been expanded, in order to allow them to devise their own ideas for practical teaching by thinking of situations in which to use everyday conversation, such as greetings and requests.

Furthermore, over 900 words can be taught in the English course at each school that is taught as an elective, depending on learning activities.


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