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Abstract
Ever since the Imperial Ordinance of 1886 laid the foundations for Japan's university system and Mori Arinori declared that the fundamental purpose of the university was to serve the interests of the state and contribute to national strength, Japan's higher education system has been inextricably linked to national interests. This, however, does not necessarily mean it served the public interest, as our paper will demonstrate. We will approach this topic historically focusing first on the pre-Meiji historical legacies, the development of higher education in Japan will then be detailed with the beginnings of Western influence in higher education, especially the role played by Germany and France, and the consequent strong role of the state. A third reform stage will be examined, focusing on the post-Second World War role of the USA and the expansion of both public and private universities. Finally, the major reforms of the 1990s will be discussed, the new Standards for the Establishment of Universities (SEU) and the implications for both public and private higher education in a demographic climate of declining population. The goal of the paper will be to disentangle the concepts of education and the state, education and the public good, and powerful antecedents and current drive toward marketization.
Notes
1. Although there will be some discussion of the private higher education sector, the bulk of this paper will focus on the national/public higher education sector, the universities or daigaku.
2. The focus in this paper is on the public sector. It should be noted that the private sector, much larger and more diffuse, has also been undergoing significant change, largely due to the declining cohort for HE admission. The private sector is in an increasingly precarious financial situation yet, even here, the Ministry continues to follow interventionist policies that are making things worse. A new type of ‘public–private cooperation’ university (koshi kyoryoku) has appeared, publicly established and privately managed, largely regionally based and designed to discourage the outflow of young people from more rural areas. They represent an institution that diminishes the distinction between public and private HE (Kinmonth Citation2005).
3. In the Asahi Shimbun 27 April Citation2001 issue Koizumi stated: ‘This cabinet is striving to create education reform that cultivates awareness and pride in Japan's traditions and culture, as well as an appreciation of the meaning of being Japanese. On the other hand, such reform should also facilitate deeper understanding of international society. Both education and judicial system reform remain priorities for this cabinet.’
4. Although there are several prestigious private universities involved in significant research, most of the accomplished works have been produced in the national universities (Yonezawa Citation2000).
5. The author has interviewed three private university presidents who all indicated that they thought most of these reforms were for the most part cosmetic and that real change would be very difficult to come by.