The gimukyoiku time period in Japan is nine years, six in elementary school and three in junior high, and the new school year begins in April. The three-term system is adopted, each term marked respectively by the summer, winter and spring vacations.
Every class has its own fixed classroom where its students take all the courses, except for ones in which practical training and laboratory works are carried out. At public elementary and junior high schools, lunch is provided on a standardized menu, and it is eaten in the same classroom. Nearly all junior high schools require their students to attend wearing school uniforms.
The Ministry of Education closely supervises curriculum and textbooks, and classes with much the same content are taught throughout the country. As a result, through uniformity and homogeneity, a high standard of education becomes possible.
The Japanese school system was reformed after the Second World War with reference to the American system. It is based on compulsory education of six years in elementary school and three in junior high.
High schools are usually referred to by the shortened form of koko, and are divided into regular schools for students aiming at higher education and vocational schools. An entrance exam is required to enter a school and, in addition to the exam score, successful students are determined by considering junior high grades. Today, the rate of students advancing to high school is 95%, with an increasing dropout rate of about 2%.
Most koko require uniforms. Club activities abound, most sports have national tournaments, and the tournaments for popular sports like baseball and soccer are generally televised. In the senior year, those hoping to go on to university are busy studying for the entrance exam, so they cut back on club activities.
Japanese daigaku are usually four years, but medical and dental schools are six years and junior college two. 70% of university students are male, but most junior colleges are women's colleges. After the Second World War, the present system was adopted, with the first two years focused on liberal studies and the major subjects concentrated in the last two years. However, because of job hunting in the senior year, students are unable to concentrate on their studies; and because in the nearly half century that has passed since the war aspects of the system have emerged that do not fit with reality, the necessity of reform in the university system and curriculum is being suggested.
In contrast to the high international regard for Japanese elementary and secondary education, Japanese university education has not obtained high marks.
In 1989, the percentage of female students who went on to universities have exceeded that of male students', and have continued to be so until today.
The increase in the number of returnee children indicates the increase of the Japanese going overseas, and the growing number of people who take The University Entrance Qualification Examination indicate the increase of people who quit high school and aim at going to university by themselves.
From an international point of view, the rate of Japanese university students advancing to daigakuin is low and the educational standards of Japanese graduate schools are not that high. In particular, the expansion of facilities and cultivation of talented students in the field of basic scientific research are their task. Several reasons are offered for this low rate: it is extremely difficult to obtain a doctorate, it is a disadvantage to look for a job in the average company at an older age, and it is difficult for a newcomer to find a faculty position because faculty members at Japanese universities are tenured for life.
The term shogai-kyoiku came into use in Japan after 1970s. Its objective was not to reform the school system to guarantee shogai-kyoiku; it became institutionalized with the objective of offering places where housewives and the elderly could acquire education to fulfill their individual inner lives. With the advent of the aging society and the increase in free time from the reduction in working hours, this institution has taken on renewed interest.
Accompanying the advance of Japanese companies abroad, children born or raised abroad have increased. However, these children after returning have often been alienated in classes because of their academic and linguistic abilities, so school authorities have adjusted gradually to a special attitude of acceptance. Schools also have increased that have adopted an entrance exam policy for kikokushijo. Recently, with linguistic ability and an international outlook in high demand, appreciation toward kikokushijo is growing.
After the Second World War, Japan's best and brightest people did ryugaku with funds from American foundations, and on returning to Japan they contributed to Japan's restructuring. Recently, with the rise in the value of the yen, Japanese students doing ryugaku have been increasing every year. High school and university students doing language study abroad for a few weeks to a month have also increased. English-speaking countries like America and Australia make up the majority of ryugaku destinations. In addition, since it is easier to take a doctorate in Europe and America, ryugaku for graduate school has also increased.
Senmongakko, as distinct from schools with regular curricula, are schools that cultivate the necessary knowledge and skills for special vocations. There are two kinds of special schools for graduates of junior high schools and high schools, technical colleges and special training colleges. There are others called miscellaneous schools for professional education in all sorts of fields, such as language, fashion, nursing and cooking.Cram schools too are included among these schools.
Japan is a society in which one's academic background carries great meaning for future success in life, but in recent years students choosing such senmongakko over universities have increased. It is a consequence of that the credential society is gradually collapsing and the range of choices has diversified.