ABSTRACT
There seems to be a general consensus in Japan that education is a good thing. The idea that too much education will produce rebellious citizens, conceited snobs, family quarrels and insurmountable generation gaps has not played a significant role in educational policy in Japan since the Meiji Restoration1 (Stone 1970) —although it may well have existed in popular opinion along with the idea that too much education is wasted on girls and turns them into bad wives. As in many other countries, Japan since the 1960s has witnessed a tremendous growth in demand for education, and education policy has generally supported the view that education is good and more education is better.2
