Curriculum in Japan

Presented To
Dr.Nadeem
Presented By
Sana Akram

Facts and
Figures

Japan

4 major islands and

over 4,000 smaller
islands
Primarily
mountainous terrain
Population:
127,417,200
Capital City: Tokyo
Currency: Yen
Language: Japanese

Japan has a rich Asian culture and history.

The country is made up of 4 large islands

and over 4,000 smaller ones. Due to the
mountainous terrain only 15% of its land is
cultivable.
The largest cities are found along the
coastline and are home to the majority of
the citizens.

of
Japanese Education

Math and Science foundation of students

Society committed to academic excellence
Respect among students
Teacher culture focused on designing and implementing

Focus of Educational
Reform
Emphasis on Individuality - this is significantly

different from the current system that emphasizes

harmony and uniformity. They will focus on
creativity and have more hands-on activities for
children.
Emphasis on Life Long Learning - this will
bring about change in the current system from
rote memorization to learning how to learn and
higher level thinking.
Emphasis on preparing students who can
plan and cope with change and succeed in
the information age and global society there is political pressure for students to acquire
the skills to compete internationally. There is a
move to provide students with comprehensive
international learning; to help students
understand other cultures, history, and values.

Structure and Governance of

Schools
System is organized as follows:
6
3
3
4

years
years
years
years

of
of
of
of

elementary school
junior high school
high school
college

Compulsory education from ages 5-14

240 day school year with a 6 day school week
approximately 30 days devoted to out of classroom
experiences
MEXT Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science, and Technology regulates educational
system

Primary and secondary

Education

Primary education
Primary education is provided by primary

schools ( shogakko), which lasts 6 years

and is intended for children of ages 6 to 12
(Grade 1-6). Pupils can enter the system if
they have reached the age of 6 as of 1 April.
The curriculum consists of Japanese, social
studies, mathematics, science, life studies (a
combination of social studies and science, only
offered in Grade 1 and 2), music, arts and
handicrafts, homemaking, and physical
education. In addition, a great deal of
attention is devoted to moral education.

Secondary education
The curriculum consists of the following

subjects: Japanese, social studies,

mathematics, science, music, arts, physical
education, industrial arts and home
making, foreign language, elective subjects
and moral education. This is an important
period for Japanese pupils, as their school
results determine whether they will be
accepted to a good upper secondary school
in the 3 upper grades of secondary
education.

Public School Curriculum

in Japan

There is a national curriculum for public

schools in Japan, although recent reform

efforts are attempting to increase the
amount of local control in the schools.
The nationally mandated curriculum has a
heavy emphasis on reading and writing.
Japan has a literacy rate of 99%.
The students do participate in classes such
as music and physical education during the
school day but the majority of these
activities take place after school hours.

There is a nationally mandated moral

curriculum in place in Japan.

The themes are equality, effort, trusting
relationships, and harmony.
These thoughts are changing now with
some of the reform efforts.

Higher Education in Japan

Japan is the worlds largest source of study abroad

students
Both younger and older students (ages 12 50+)
Economic downturn and need for life long learning

There is a push to increase the number of foreign

exchange students
to aide in the development of Japan and
international relations.
The number grew from 10,000 in 1983 to 64,000
in 2000.
Rapid decline in birthrate has higher education

scrambling for ways to fill

future seats and find financial security.

References
Beauchamp, E.R. (2003). Comparative Education Reader. New York, New York:
RoutledgeFalmer.
Bjork, C. (2005, April). Education reform in Japan: competing visions for the
future.
Phi Delta Kappan, 619-626.
Bjork, C. (2009). Local implementation of Japans integrated studies reform: a
preliminary analysis of efforts of decentralize the curriculum. Comparative
Education, 45(1), 23-44.
Deasy, R.J. (1986, September). Education in Japan: surprising lessons.
Educational
Leadership, 38.
Education in Japan. Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.education-injapan.info.
Education System in Japan Facts and Details. Retrieved March, 20, 2010, from
http://factsanddetails.com/japan.
Gainey, P., & Curtis, A. (2002). The Japanese education system: globalization
and
international education. Japanese Studies, 22(2), 153-167.
Kai, K. (2009). The modification and adaptation of Montessori education in
Japan.
The International Journal of Learning, 16(7), 667-676.

Question???