ABSTRACT
In this section I apply postcolonial theory in my review of policy measures developed by Japan’s Ministry of Education to internationalize Japanese education, as a means to uncovering the colonial map that underlies the kokusaika in the context of education.11 In its annually published white paper, Monbukagakusho (formerly Monbusho) succinctly addresses the question of how to cope with internationalization, along with other important educational issues. In Chapter 10 of the white paper published in 2002, Monbukagakusho (2002) discusses the need to continue to address the following four tasks to effectively respond to internationalization:
1. Cultivate a Japanese individual living in an international society (Section 2, Chapter 10) A. Promote education for international understanding B. Promote the teaching of foreign languages C. Improve educational programs for Japanese children living
abroad D. Improve educational programs for Japanese children who have
returned from a long stay overseas 2. Promote international exchanges to promote mutual understanding
(Section 3, Chapter 10) A. Promote the exchange of students B. Promote international exchanges of teachers and youth C. Improve the teaching of Japanese to foreigners D. Promote the teaching of Japanese to foreign students in Japanese
public schools E. Promote international exchanges and cooperation of culture F. Promote international exchanges of sports G. Promote bilateral exchanges
3. Cooperate on education development programs in developing countries (Section 4, Chapter 10) A. Domestic and international movements to promote education
cooperation today B. Basic policies for international education cooperation and forms
of cooperation C. Dispatch Japanese volunteers and experts to developing coun-
tries D. Develop human resources in development assistance
4. Promote international cooperation through international organizations (Section 5, Chapter 10) A. Participation in UNESCO’s projects and cooperation with
UNESCO
B. Participation in OECD’s education projects C. Cooperation with the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) in education projects D. Cooperation with the European Union (EU) E. Cooperation with the United Nations University (UNU) F. Cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO)
A Japanese Individual Living in an International Society Policy Measure I-1 aims at promoting Japanese students’ understanding of national history and traditional culture and encouraging them to nurture pride in and love for the nation, and at the same time, to cultivate abilities to live together with people of different backgrounds. Analyzing Monbusho’s middle-school curriculum guidelines published in 1989, Parmenter (1999, p. 456) has found that Monbusho emphasizes “the role of education in developing students’ self-awareness as a Japanese person and emotional attachment to the nation.” Developing self-awareness as a Japanese individual is seen as an essential part of learning how to deal with people of different cultures in the context of “education for international understanding,” not simply as an important goal of Japanese language and history education.
