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Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > JAPANESE GOVERMENT POLICICIES IN EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND CULTURE 1994 > PART I Chapter 2 Section 2 1

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PART I New Directions in School Education
Chapter 2. The Aims of the Five-Day School Week
Section 2. Implementation of the Monthly Five-Day School Week
1. Implementation in Public Schools


The monthly five-day school week was implemented on the assumption that it would be possible to maintain the present number of annual class hours under the new Courses of Study through various measures, including the careful selection of school events and the so-called free hours used at each school' discretion and reconsideration of shorter classes. The Ministry of Education, Science and Culture issued a variety of special requirements regarding the new system. These are summarized below.

1. Increased efforts must be made to achieve a thoroughgoing change in the underlying direction of education toward an increased emphasis on qualities and abilities that enable children to think, judge, and act independently.
2. Efforts must be made in each school to improve teaching, including improvement of teaching content and methods, in order to maintain educational standards without increasing children' workload.
3. Schools must work to meet the expectations of parents and other community residents and cooperate more closely with families and communities, with a view to fostering children' character development in cooperation with families and communities.
4. Consideration must be given to activities that enable children to build the foundation for character formation and achieve self-fulfillment in the context of their families and communities, and to activities that help children to learn about life and enhance their humanity. Most schools in Japan have worked actively to implement the monthly five-day school week on the basis of these requirements. The Ministry of Education, Science and Culture conducted a survey to ascertain the impact of the new system in public schools during fiscal 1992. The findings are summarized below. In regard to curriculum adjustment, most schools are working to ensure the required number of class hours for each subject through various means, including the careful selection of teaching materials, the enhancement of teaching methods, and the rethinking of school events and activities for free hours used at each school' discretion. Most schools report that there has been no significant increase in children' workload, thanks to the provision of individually targeted teaching and the enhancement and improvement of teaching content and methods. In addition, most schools are working with families and communities to promote understanding of the aims of the five-day school week. A private survey agency conducted opinion surveys in March 1992, prior to the introduction of the monthly five-day school week, and again in October 1993, after the system had been implemented. A comparison of the results of the two surveys shows that approval of the monthly five-day school week increased from 48.5% before implementation to 64.1% after implementation and that opposition fell from 44.1% to 24.3%. These findings are indicative of increased understanding of the system ( Figure I.2.1.).

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