Abstract
In lieu of a conclusion, this short closing chapter expands on some of the remaining questions surrounding the new curriculum and its implications. In particular, despite enthusiasm for the new curriculum and its potential to respond to a certain conception of the new knowledge society, uncertainty and the need for caution arise from the wider policy landscape and overall context of education. Evidence suggests that the new curriculum was drafted in reference to well-established pedagogic principles and genuinely aims for a child-centred education, building on previous attempts by the Ministry of Education. This trajectory of change is adjusted based on the global consensus of a shift towards a ‘new knowledge society’. In doing so, MEXT tends towards a humanistic position on the new knowledge society. Simultaneously however, the curriculum operates in a broader policy context which has incorporated decentralization and performativity mechanisms related to examination results, along with their potential to ‘activate competition’ between prefectures and perhaps at lower administrative levels. Nonetheless, study of the curriculum remains important as a signal of intent of the Ministry of Education, and as a set of guidelines for teachers, school administrators, and educators in local settings. Further research is needed ‘on the ground’ in schools to better understand how these translations are unfolding.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
Juku is often translated as ‘cram school’. Whilst many juku are cram schools, the purpose of premier juku extends beyond cramming. It is not unusual for such juku to implement engaging pedagogy to pre-teach and expand materials in advance of the public school curriculum, incorporating the public school into a resultant spiral curriculum. Juku can be enjoyable and social(izing) environments for children, depending on various factors.
- 2.
References
Arai, I. (2001). Yutori no manabi yutori no bunka: 21 seiki no gakushū shakai [Low pressure learning and low pressure culture: The 21st century learning society]. Kyōiku shuppan.
Ball, S. (2003). The teacher’s soul and the terrors of performativity. Journal of Education Policy, 18(2), 215–228. https://doi.org/10.1080/0268093022000043065
Ball, S. (2012). How schools do policy. Routledge.
Ball, S. (2018). The banality of numbers. In B. Hamre, A. Morin, & C. Ydesen (Eds.), Testing and inclusive schooling: International challenges and opportunities (pp. 79–87). Routledge.
Bamkin, S. (2021). Practitioner advocates in Japan: Bringing in knowledge of practice for policy translation. Journal of Education Policy. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2021.1941267
Benesse. (2016). 第6回学習指導基本調査 DATA BOOK: 小学校・中学校版 [Basic survey of instruction databook: Elementary and junior high schools]. https://berd.benesse.jp/shotouchutou/research/detail1.php?id=5080
Borjian, M. (2014). Language-education policies and international institutions: The World Bank’s vs Unesco’s global framework. Language Problems & Language Planning, 38(1), 1–18.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste (R. Nice, Trans.). Routledge.
Braun, A., Maguire, M., & Ball, S. A. (2010). Policy enactments in the UK secondary school: Examining policy, practice and school positioning. Journal of Education Policy, 25(4), 547–560. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680931003698544
Cave, P. (2018). Review curriculum, instruction and assessment in Japan: Beyond lesson study. Asian Studies Review, 42(1), 182–183. https://doi.org/10.1080/10357823.2017.1368117
Coleman, T. (2021). Digital divide in UK education during COVID-19 pandemic: Literature review. Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge Assessment. https://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/Images/628843-digital-divide-in-uk-education-during-covid-19-pandemic-literature-review.pdf
DeCoker, G. (Ed.). (2002). National standard and school reform in Japan and the United States. Teachers College Press, Columbia University.
du Gay, P. (1996). Consumption and identity at work. Sage.
Fernandez, C. (2002). Learning from Japanese approaches to professional development: The case of lesson study. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(5), 393–405.
Iwabuchi, K., Hodama, K., Onishi, Y., Miyazaki,S., Nakae, S., & Suzuki, K. H. (2022). Covid-19 and education on the front lines in Japan: What caused learning disparities and how did the government and schools take initiative? In F. M. Reimers (Ed.), Primary and secondary education during covid-19 disruptions to educational opportunity during a pandemic (pp. 125–151). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-81500-4_5
Kaneko, M. (1999). 反グロバリズム Han-gurōbarizumu [Against globalism]. Iwanami Shoten.
Kariya, T. (2011). From credential society to ‘learning capital’ society. In H. Ishida & D. H. Slater (Eds.), Social class in contemporary Japan (pp. 87–113). Routledge.
Kariya, T. (2012). Education reform and social class in Japan: The emerging incentive divide. Routledge.
Kato, J. (1994). The problem of bureaucratic rationality. Princeton University Press.
Katsuno, M. (2016). Teacher evaluation policies and practices in Japan: How performativity works in schools. Routledge.
Katsuno, M. (2019). The relationship between teachers’ working conditions and teacher quality. In Y. Kitamura, T. Omomo, & M. Katsuno, Education in Japan: A comprehensive analysis of education reforms and practices (pp. 87–103). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2632-5
Kobari, M. (2018). Active learning—gakkō kyōiku no risō to genjitsu [Active learning: Ideals and realities in compulsory education]. Kodansha.
Koretz, D. (2017). The testing charade: Pretending to make schools better. Chicago University Press.
Kyōkasho kenkyū sentā [Centre for Textbook Research]. (2021). 学習者用デジタル教科書紹介サイト Gakushūshayō dijitaru kyōkasho shōkai saito [Introduction to digital textbooks for learners]. https://textbook-rc.or.jp/digital/
Lewis, C. (2002). Lesson study: A handbook of teacher-led instructional change. Research for better schools.
MEXT. (2014). 新しい時代にふさわしい高大接続の実現に向けた高等学校教育、大学教育、大学入学者選抜の一体的改革 について (答申) (中教審第177号) [Integrated reform of high school education, university education, and university selection to achieve high school-university connection suitable for a New Era (Report)]. https://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chukyo/chukyo0/toushin/1354191.htm
MEXT. (2017). 教員勤務実態調査 (平成28年度) の集計 (速報値) について (概要) [2016 Survey of work time in schools: Summary]. https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/uneishien/1297093.htm
Meyer, H.-D., & Benavot, A. (2013). PISA, power, and policy: The emergence of global educational governance. Symposium.
MOE. (1993). 新しい学力観に立つ教育課程の創造と展開 (Working Paper). Atarashii gakuryokukan nitatsu kyōiku-katei no sōzō to tenkei. MOE.
MOE/CCE. (1996). 二十一世紀を展望した我が国の教育のあり方について Nijūisseiki wo tenbōshita wagakuni no kyōiku no arikata ni tsuite [The new vision of our education towards the 21st century]. MOE. https://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chuuou/toushin/970606.htm
Nitta, K. (2008). The politics of structural education reform. Routledge.
Spring, J. (2015). Globalisation and education: An introduction (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Takayama, K. (2008). Japan’s Ministry of Education “becoming the Right”: Neo-liberal restructuring and the Ministry’s struggles for political legitimacy. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 6(2), 131–146. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767720802061439
Takayama, K. (2013a). OECD, ‘Key competencies’ and the new challenges of educational inequality. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 45(1), 67–80. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2012.755711
Takayama, K. (2013b). Untangling the global-distant-local knot: The politics of national academic achievement testing in Japan. Journal of Education Policy, 28(5), 657–675. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2012.758833
Takayama, K. (2021). The global inside the national and the national inside the global: ‘Zest for Living,’ the Chi, Toku and Tai Triad, and the ‘Model’ of Japanese Education. In W. Zhao & D. Tröhler (Eds.), Euro-Asian encounters on 21st-century competency-based curriculum reforms (pp. 229–247). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-3009-5
Tanaka, K., Nishioka, K., & Ishii, T. (2016). Curriculum, instruction and assessment in Japan: Beyond lesson study. Routledge.
UNESCO. (1972/2013). Learning to be. UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000223222
UNESCO. (1996). Learning: The treasure within. UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000109590
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bamkin, S. (2022). From Enthusiasm to Caution: Remaining Questions Surrounding the New Curriculum. In: Okada, A., Bamkin, S. (eds) Japan’s School Curriculum for the 2020s. Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, vol 67. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-2076-9_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-2076-9_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-19-2075-2
Online ISBN: 978-981-19-2076-9
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)