The Central Council for Education, an advisory body to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, was established in January 2001 as part of the central government reform, deliberating on important matters related to the promotion of education and issuing reports. In addition, the Council for the Implementation of Education Rebuilding, which was convened in January 2013, has so far made 12 proposals, and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (hereinafter referred to as the “MEXT”) has implemented various initiatives 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 “Roles of Universities, etc. , and Society as a Driver of Japan's Future” (first proposal) in May 2022 and “J-MIRAI: Japan-Mobility and Internationalization: Re-engaging and Accelerating Initiative for future generations” (second proposal) in April 2023. The government will continue its efforts to steadily implement the proposals.
Furthermore, in light of these proposals and discussions and in the spirit of the Basic Act on Education, MEXT is promoting education policy based on the Basic Plan for the Promotion of Education. In addition, the National Institute for Educational Policy Research, a national research institute, conducts comprehensive research on education policy.
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 workstyle reforms at school
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 responsive to the individual 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
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 is promoting 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 students do not abandon their higher education or schooling 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 “improvement of educational and research infrastructure at private schools” as one of the basic measures in “the Fourth 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. Furthermore, based on the conclusions of the February 2025 report of the Central Council for Education titled "Future Vision for Improving Japan’s “Collective Knowledge and Wisdom” -Reconstructing the Higher Education System- (Report)", MEXT has established the “Review Meeting on the Future Role of Private Universities in Partnership with Society toward 2040” to examine the roles expected of private universities and specific measures for their further development.
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 (CSTI) 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. Toward realizing these concepts, the Japan Sports Agency promotes a wide range of sports-related measures - such as health promotion, the enhancement of physical education in schools, reform of extracurricular sports activities, the promotion of para-sports, revitalization of local communities and regional economies, international exchange and cooperation, and the improvement of Japan’s international competitiveness -- in a comprehensive and integrated manner in coordination with other related governmental ministries and agencies and private enterprises.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs, in promoting comprehensive cultural administration, advances the creation, development, and succession of culture and the arts; enhances education; fosters artists; and develops measures to realize an inclusive society, create innovation, 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 properties throughout Japan, promotion of museums, promotion of regional cultures, promotion of food culture, promotion of measures for Japanese language, promotion of cultural tourism, development of copyright policies, and operation of a system of religious corporations.
Amid rapid advancement and globalization of society and economies, the environment surrounding both the international community and Japan has been undergoing significant change, including the increasingly assertive posture of authoritarian regimes challenging the existing international order and the growing influence of developing and emerging countries, collectively referred to as the Global South. It is important that Japan further enriches its interaction and cooperation with other nations and international organizations to ensure sound growth in the future and make Japan an attractive country. To this end, MEXT is continuously promoting international exchanges of students and researchers and strengthening international cooperation in various fields through ministerial attendance at international conferences, meetings with dignitaries from partner countries and regions, information-gathering conducted through Japanese embassies, etc., and support for international organizations such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), in a manner that takes into account the needs of partner countries and regions.
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,” for realization of personalized and self-regulated learning and collaborative learning that unlocks the potential of all children, that is suitable for children living in the Society 5.0 era.
MEXT aims to create safe, secure and high-quality school facilities and is prompting measures to extend the lifespan of aging school facilities and to improve earthquake-resistance, including non-structural elements. 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 situations 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.
In addition, to ensure a safe and secure living environment for children and students, MEXT is working to enhance disaster prevention and mitigation measures, such as improving disaster prevention education, strengthening disaster prevention functions of school facilities and other disaster prevention measures, emergency measures in response to disasters, support for disaster recovery/restoring, and promoting research and development related to disaster prevention.
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 station accident are called “the Great East Japan Earthquake” based on the cabinet agreement on April 1 of the same year.
Fourteen years have now passed since the earthquake. MEXT remains committed to supporting the victims in the affected areas in their efforts toward recovery and reconstruction by providing assistance such as the restoration of school facilities, financial support for school attendance, mental health care for children and students, the development of human resources who will play a key role in reconstruction, the revitalization of affected communities through the involvement of universities and research institutes, and the facilitation of nuclear damage compensation.
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 government as a whole is currently advancing various administrative reforms. 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. The government as a whole is promoting Evidence-Based Policy Making (EBPM). Therefore, MEXT is actively applying EBPM to analyses of the current status of policies, identifying challenges, and clarifying policy objectives, targets, and outcomes through the preparation of Reports for Administrative Programs Review, etc. in order to improve MEXT policies. MEXT is working to establish an environment that more effectively facilitates the promotion of EBPM and the securing and cultivation of human resources. In addition, 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. 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