Système éducatif au Japon

The 30 percent solution

It’s simple. Higher standards will generate higher achievement. Currently, the standards at Japanese high schools are sickeningly low.

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In order to get into most universities in Japan, students need a letter of recommendation, a pass on an entrance exam, or a successful interview. That’s it. While some universities have more stringent guidelines and need to see impressive grades from prospective students, most attach greater significance to one-time exams and letters of recommendation, which are granted not only too easily, but too early as well. Our recommendation letters were sent out in September, which means students have already gotten all they need from their schools with three months of classes left.

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Japanese kids aren’t lazy. The work and dedication they put into their extracurricular activities—participating in “clubs,” running booths at open-campus events, learning moves for school-wide dance competitions—are incredible. Children of any age will put gallons of sweat into something if they are going to gain from it, so the connection between effort and benefit needs to be made tangible because at that age most kids will not see it on their own. Such lack of perspective will always be a cornerstone of youth. It should not be the hallmark of this country’s Education Ministry.