Table Of ContentSOCIETY, SCHOOLS, AND PROGRESS SERIES
General editor: Professor Edmund J. King
OTHER TITLES IN THE SERIES
BARON, G.
Society, Schools, and Progress in England
CAMERON, J. and DODD, W. A.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Tanzania
CHIU-SAM TSANG
Society, Schools, and Progress in China
DIXON, C. W.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Scandinavia
FIGUEROA, J. J.
Society, Schools, and Progress in the West Indies
GRANT, N.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Eastern Europe
HEARNDEN, A.
Education, Culture and Politics in West Germany
KATZ, J.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Canada
KING, E. J.
Society, Schools, and Progress in the U.S.A.
KLEINBERGER, A. F.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Israel
LEWIS, L. J.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Nigeria
PARTRIDGE, P. H.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Australia,
Australian revised edition
PAULSTON, R. G.
Society, Schools, and Progress in Peru
SARGENT, J.
Society, Schools, and Progress in India
For other titles of interest please see the end of this book.
The terms of our inspection copy service apply to all
the above books. Full details of all books listed and
specimen copies of journals listed will gladly be sent
upon request.
SOCIETY, SCHOOLS,
AND PROGRESS IN JAPAN
BY
TETSUYAKOBAYASHI
PERGAMON PR ESS
OXFORD·NEW YORK·TORONTO
SYDNEY·PARIS·FRANKFURT
U. K. Pergamon Press Ltd., Headington Hill Hall, Oxford
0X3 OBW, England
U. S. A. Pergamon Press Inc., Maxwell House, Fairview Park,
Elmsford, New York 10523, U.S.A.
CANADA Pergamon of Canada, P.O. Box 9600, Don Mills
M3C 2T9, Ontario, Canada
AUSTRALIA Pergamon Press (Aust.) Pty. Ltd., 19a Boundary
Street, Rushcutters Bay, N.S.W. 2011, Australia
FRANCE Pergamon Press SARL, 24 rue des Ecoles,
75240 Paris, Cedex 05, France
WEST GERMANY Pergamon Press GmbH, 6242 Kronberg-Taunus,
Pferdstrasse 1, Frankfurt-am-Main, West Germany
Copyright © Tetsuya Kobayashi 1976
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in
any form or by any means: electronic, electrostatic,
magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without permission in writing from the
publishers
First edition 1976
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Kobayashi, Tetsuya, 1926-
Society, schools, and progress in Japan.
(Pergamon international library of science,
technology, engineering, and social studies):
(Society, schools, and progress series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Education—Japan. I. Title.
LA1311.K62 1975 370'.952 75-33312
ISBN 0-08-019936-4
ISBN 0-08-019935-6 flexicover
Printed in Great Britain by A. Wheaton &Co., Exeter
Preface
This book has been prepared in an attempt to introduce the reader to
some of the major features of national education in Japan. It consists of
three parts. The first historical part, composed of the first two chapters, is
designed to give the reader historical knowledge of Japanese education
from early times to about 1950. The author believes it necessary to
include such an historical section for a full understanding of the education
of a country such as Japan, which has a long history and its own cultural
tradition. The second part, the main body of the book, comprises five
chapters, each of which is devoted to a certain aspect of the national
education of contemporary Japan in the 1950s and 1960s. The final part,
covering the early 1970s, intends to provide the reader with some idea of
the prospects of Japanese education in the future. Throughout the whole
book attempts have been made to give an analytical explanation of the
relation between Japan's progress and its organized educational efforts,
particularly in the schools.
It is, of course, too presumptuous to claim that in this small book all
problems of Japanese education have been covered and treated in a
balanced way, but the author hopes that the book, written by a Japanese,
can offer some answers to the questions which non-Japanese readers might
have had.
In writing the book, the author is indebted to many individuals among
whom a few names should be mentioned for his special appreciation;
Professor Edmund J. King, the general editor of the series, who offered the
author a valuable opportunity to write this book; Dr. Benjamin C. Duke,
who read and commented on part of the original draft; and Mrs. Anne
Freifrau Grote, who corrected and typed the author's English manuscript.
The preparation for the book started and took place largely when the
author was Director of the Unesco Institute for Education, Hamburg, and
he would therefore like to dedicate the book to the UIE in memory of his
VII
viii Preface
pleasant association with the many friends who worked with him in the
cause of Unesco.
Kyoto TETSUYA KOBAYASHI, PhD,
Japan. Professor of Comparative Education,
Kyoto University
Director Unesco Institute
y
for Education, 1968-72
Note on Japanese names: in this book the names of the Japanese
individuals, except for the name of the author which is expressed in the
Western style, are written in the Japanese way, i.e. the family name first
and the given name last.
CHAPTE R 1
Historical Background I:
Japanese Education in the Pre-modern Period
EDUCATION IN THE FORMATIVE PERIOD OF THE NATION
Japan is made up of four main islands and several hundred smaller ones,
and stretches in an arc, 1500 miles long from north to south off the coast
of north-east Asia. This geographical position has had a significant effect
on the character of the nation and its culture throughout its history. This
was particularly true in its formative period. Because of its insularity,
Japan is often compared to England, another island country on the
opposite side of the Eurasian continent. It is interesting to note that both
nations appeared in history in consequence of the impact of a superior
culture from the continent.
In the case of Japan, this superior culture came from China, where by
the third century BC its ancient culture had reached one of its peaks under
the empire of the Sing and Hang dynasties. The encounter of the Chinese
culture with the Japanese indigenous one was a slow process, extending
over several centuries. One of the obvious reasons for this slowness is
Japan's insularity. The Strait of Korea, the closest access to the continent,
is 110 miles across, four times wider than the Straits of Dover. In ancient
times, when the technique of navigation was primitive, it was wide enough
to hinder any massive invasion, but allowed gradual influence from the
continent. The impact of the Chinese civilization on the Japanese islands
had thus become apparent by the fourth century AD.
The Chinese civilization brought into Japan superior weapons and tools
which were not known hitherto in Japan, and which helped the transform
ation of the primitive society into a more superior one under a centralized
power which had in its grasp the conveniences of a new civilization. By the
fourth century Japan was already in the process of political unification in
1
2 Society, Schools, and Progress in Japan
which the ancestor of the present Imperial House attempted to make its
hegemony over the local clans and to establish a centralized state which
was eventually completed by the Taika Reform (AD 645).
Such a process was also assisted by other elements in the Chinese
civilization, notably the writing system, the Chinese higher learning, and
Buddhism. These elements provided the political rulers with the instru
ments of consolidating their rules. The first official record of the
introduction of the literary culture into Japan was the visit of a Korean
scholar in the Chinese classics to the Imperial House in 513. He was later
succeeded by another Korean colleague who taught the Chinese classics at
the Imperial House for some time. In 552 a Korean mission brought with
them a Buddhist image and sutras. These events may be only a few
examples of the greater flow of the Chinese civilization through Korea into
Japan which should have been taking place since an earlier time. These
elements of the Chinese civilization were accepted by the rulers in Japan as
the symbol of their power as well as being a tool of government.
It was the Crown Prince Shotoku who for the first time attempted to
form the government according to the Chinese pattern. While he was a
youth he learnt about the Chinese classics and Buddhism from a Korean
scholar in the Imperial House. During his office as regent (593—622) his
efforts were devoted to setting up a government run by the bureaucracy in
the place of the old loose federation of clans, and for this purpose he
looked to China for guidance. In 603 an hierarchical system of twelve
ranks was set up with the idea of appointing the officials by merit of
service, an idea which sprang from Chinese political thought.
His adherence to Chinese learning appeared in his Constitution of
Seventeen Articles, a set of injunctions issued in 604 which included
quotations from various sources in Chinese classics. In 608 he sent a group
of young students and priests away to study to the new ruler of the Sue
Dynasty in China with the obvious intention of thus making the learning
of the Chinese classics and the Buddhist scriptures the foundation of the
new government. He himself devoted much of his time to scholarly pur
suits, and named his newly built temple the Temple of Learning, implying
his personal study as well as the place of his teaching. It is recorded that he
often lectured on the sutras, while encouraging the youths of the court to
learn from the Korean scholars attached to it.
Japanese Education in the Pre-modern Period 3
His political success in setting up a consolidated government is
questionable, but for our purpose it is enough to note that a great deal of
educational activity took place in this politically formative period of the
Japanese nation as a result of its contact with the literary culture of China.
Such educational activities which were aimed at training youths in the new
civilization took place informally without any formal system of education,
such as was to be seen in the following period when the influence of the
Chinese systems of government and education were more dominant.
The Taika Reform of 645 finally brought about a centralized govern
ment in Japan with the hegemony of the Imperial House over the
traditional clans. The reform was led by Prince Nakano-Ohe, who later
became Emperor Tenchi, and Nakatomino Kamatari. Both had studied
under Minabuchi Shoan, who was among those sent to China by Prince
Shotoku with a mission, and who had studied there for thirty-two years.
Among the students who studied in China together with Minabuchi were
Priest Min and Takamukono Kuromaro who on their return to Japan were
appointed to the rank of "national doctor". Undoubtedly on their advice,
the leaders of the Taika Reform attempted to build a centralized State on
the model of contemporary China under the T'ang Dynasty. One of the
things which they did immediately after the political takeover was to
establish the legal system, which took over half a century to complete.
The Taiho Code of 701 was in fact the development of earlier codes
which had been found to be incomplete because of their blind adoption of
the Chinese law books. Although it was still Chinese in principle, the Taiho
Code was readjusted to a reasonable extent for local needs. It consisted of
twelve criminal codes and thirty administrative codes of regulations, the
latter of which contained an Education Code ^gaku-rei.
The Education Code was composed of twenty-two chapters which,
according to the Chinese pattern, laid down the state system of education
made up of a central grand school and provincial schools. The grand
school, daigaku-ryOy was given two functions; on the one hand, it was a
centre of moral indoctrination where Confucius was worshipped and
where his doctrines on government and morals were disseminated among
the government officials as well as the people. On the other hand, it was a
school for potential bureaucrats whose qualifications were first of all the
mastery of Confucian doctrines in government and morals.
4 Society, Schools, and Progress in Japan
Seven doctors and assistants taught from Confucian books of history
and Confucian philosophy and laws as well as the basic reading and writing
skills necessary for the mastery of Chinese literature. Four hundred
students between the ages of 13 and 16 were to be selected from among
the sons of the government officials. On passing the examination, students
were to be recommended to the offices of the government.
In each province a provincial school was to be set up for the sons of the
government officials and the influential men in the province. The number
of the students varied according to the size of schools. From a "provincial
doctor" the students received a similar but somewhat inferior education
from those in the grand school.
The idea behind the Education Code was to supply government officials
from among promising youths who were to be selected by their abilities
and to be trained in the new knowledge and skills of government which
had been introduced from the Chinese continent.
The idea of recruiting youths by ability was, however, to be limited by
the reality of society. Thus the schools were open only to the sons of
government officials and influential men in the provinces. Furthermore a
loophole was provided for sons of the higher rank officials who were
legally exempt from the examination for a government appointment. This
was clearly a compromise made by the new government to meet the
demand of the traditional families or clans who insisted on occupying
posts in the government as their hereditary right.
Nevertheless, it is worth while noting that the first Japanese school
system was set up with three distinctive characteristics which have since
then been observed in most of the Japanese school systems through the
ages, and which have, indeed, become almost inherent characteristics of
Japanese schools. These three are the following: firstly, the schools were
set up on the initiative of the government for the training of personnel
necessary to the state, secondly, from an individual point of view, the
schools provided a way to social success for ambitious youths, and thirdly,
the schools taught the elements of a new civilization abroad, and thus
functioned as an effective tool for allowing Japan to "borrow" a culture.
EDUCATION FOR THE ANCIENT ARISTOCRACY
The period of overwhelming sinonization of some three centuries was
followed by one of readjustment during which the indigenous Japanese
Japanese Education in the Pre-modern Period 5
culture absorbed the implanted Chinese one and developed itself to a
higher level. This period began roughly at the end of the ninth century
with the discontinuation of the official missions to the Chinese Imperial
Court. By this time the Tang Dynasty was about to fail, and political
unrest on the continent made official missions difficult and less attractive
to the Japanese leaders.
The official disconnection with China did not mean a complete
separation from the Chinese culture: trading ships continued to move
between the continent and the Japanese islands, and priests and students
in their private capacities visited China for study, but the elements of
culture which they brought back were more limited in their sphere of
influence, such as in the field of higher learning and in the style of life of
the upper classes.
On the other hand, this official disconnection gave Japan the
opportunity of integrating these foreign cultural elements with the
indigenous ones, without it being overwhelmed by foreign influence, and
thus Japan could develop the uniqueness of its individual culture to a
higher level. This situation continued until the middle of the nineteenth
century with one interruption in the sixteenth century when Japan's
foreign relations policy tended once more towards being an active one.
A good example of the cultural adaptation was a system of writing. The
Japanese language is totally unrelated to the Chinese, and, as mentioned
earlier, no letters existed in Japan before the Chinese writing system was
brought into Japan around the sixth century. While the ability to write
Chinese in its classical form continued to be given a scholarly prestige until
quite recently, Japanese had already begun in the seventh century to use
certain of the Chinese ideographs in writing its tongue, not for their
meaning, but for their sound value.
By the tenth century a Japanese system of writing had evolved in which
Chinese ideographs were abbreviated and used for phonetic value. The
innovation of this phonetic system, or kana, gave Japanese a freer way of
expression and communication, a fact which accounted for the flourishing
era of Japanese literature from the tenth to the twelfth century, but which
certainly must have had a far-reaching effect on every aspect of the
Japanese civilization.
Another example was the development of Buddhism, which was
introduced to Japan also around the sixth century, and which had become
