Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > Japanese Government Policies in Education, Science, Sports and Culture 2000 > Trends in Educational Reform Section 1 2

In recognition of the above, MESSC is currently moving forward with radical educational reform from the following four perspectives.

Firstly,

In education from now on, it is imperative to reform the trend of overemphasizing intellectual education and the cramming system of education, and to cultivate in children a "zest for living" with which they learn, think and act for themselves in a comfortable atmosphere. For this purpose, it is also vital to ensure that children can firmly learn the rules and other elements of social life from infancy and to enhance emotional education that cultivates an enriched humanness blessed with a sense of justice, sense of ethics and a compassionate mind.

Further, amidst the rapid progression of internationalization, it is indispensable to raise Japanese people who have an enriched international mindset while at the same time attach great importance to Japan's history, tradition and culture. To this end, a great emphasis on emotional education is required.

Secondly,

Across the entire system of education, it is necessary to rectify the overemphasized egalitarianism and uniformity prevalent to date and to initiate a shift toward education that respects the individuality and ability of each and every child. From such a perspective, it is vital to realize a school system in which children are able to make diverse choices based on their individuality and in which they can be given a second chance at any stage of their education. This can be achieved by expansion of the scope of curriculum selection, as well as initiating a multi-channel school system (such as the promotion of unified lower and upper secondary school education), and allowing greater flexibility in university entrance age requirements and transfer systems.

Thirdly,

Reforms have been made for the purpose of decentralizing the administrative systems which support school education since overemphasized egalitarianism and uniformity of school education arise from the malfunction of educational administration systems and operations. In view of this, it is essential that individual local governments and schools conduct independent school operations for which they will be wholly responsible.

Fourthly,

In order for Japan, a nation lacking natural resources, to maintain its competitiveness within the international community and ensure a highly vibrant society, it is vital to work to develop outstanding human resources who can serve as an impetus to the nation, and to further improve the level of basic research and cutting-edge technology as we aim to establish Japan as a nation based on the creativity of science and technology. Therefore, it is essential to further advance the promotion of university reform and research activities.

In addition, as we head into the 21^st century, a matter of increasingly urgent importance is a response to internationalization and informatization. To this end, it will be necessary to further improve such areas as the education of foreign languages and information education.