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Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > JAPANESE GOVERNMENT POLICIES IN EDUCATION,SCIENCE AND CULTURE 1989 > PART1 Chapter3 2

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PART 1 lssues and Perspectives of Elementaryand Secondary Education
Chapter 3. Elementary and Secondary Education in Selected Countries
2. The United States of America


The decline of academic achievement and the loss of discipline are the most serious issues in the United States. The average score of the Scholastic Aptitude Test, for example, kept lowering until the beginning of the l98O's. Moreover, drugabuse and premarital pregnancies among the youth have become widespread and proved to be the main cause of high school dropout. As measures to improve educational content and method, common core curriculum and the tightening of high school graduation requirements such as the increase of the required amount of study are being introduced. Concerning the improvement of the civic competence of students, the introduction of public service activities is attempted. Also for the improvement of the quality of teachers, various attempts are introduced at various states, including the more rigorous entrance requirement of teacher training courses, the improvement of the contents of courses, the introduction of minimum competency tests for teachers, and the experiment and the introduction of merit pay for teachers.


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