Inclusive and Supportive Education Congress International Special Education Conference Inclusion: Celebrating Diversity? 1st - 4th August 2005. Glasgow, Scotland

home about the conference programme registration accommodation contact

Development of Special Needs Education in
Japan and Some Current Problems

• Special Education in Japan Before World War II

Special education began in Japan in the latter part of the 19 th century.   The first special school, a school for children who were blind or deaf, was established in Kyoto in 1878.   The first special class, a class for children with intellectual disabilities, was set up in 1890 in Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture.   In other words, special education for children who were blind or deaf has a 127-year history, and for children with intellectual disabilities, a 115-year history.

 The number of special schools and special classes for children with various kinds of disabilities increased until around 1930, but thereafter, the rise of militarism and the Second World War devastated special education.   At the end of World War II, there were still more than 100 special schools, but most of the schools had been destroyed by the air raids, and children with disabilities had been forced to move to rural areas where there were no schools for them.   All special classes were closed except for one in Tokyo, but then those children too were moved to rural areas.

 After the Second World War, special education had to be reconstructed, based on the philosophy of democratic education, which was introduced as part of the education policy of the Occupation.

• Development of Special Education in Japan Since the End of World War II

  In 1947, a new education law was enacted, and the system in which education was compulsory for six years of elementary school and three years of middle school was started.

 The development of special education after that time was rapid.   First, the special schools for children who were blind and special schools for children who were deaf were rebuilt.   Second, the number of special classes, mainly for children with intellectual disabilities, increased.   Third, in 1979, education at special schools for children with intellectual disabilities, physical disabilities, or health impairments, which had also increased in number, became compulsory.

 In 1979, the total number of special schools and of children studying in them was 837 and 88,847, respectively, and the total number of special classes and children was 20,865 and 115,711, respectively.

 The development of special education since the end of the Second World War can be divided into three periods:

- Development of special schools and special classes: 1947- 1979

- Introduction of integrated education, which might be considered to be “dumping”: 2000

- Development of special needs education: 2000 - present

After the Second World War, the efforts made to increase the number of special schools and special classes were done with confidence that this was the right way to educate children with disabilities.   However, around 1979, the integrated education movement began rapidly and radically, even though those favoring integrated education were in the minority.

 For instance, at Tokyo Gakugei University, where I was working at that time, a radical group of students, together with outside supporters, occupied the office of the President of the University, and demanded the breakup of the Department of Special Education, because it had promoted discrimination in education.

 In those days, I was the only faculty member in the University who had affirmed the importance of making education in special schools compulsory.   I believed that such a system would make it possible for every child, including those with severe and multiple disabilities who had been excluded from school education thus far, to receive appropriate education in school.

 However, despite my good intentions, the campus student newspaper wrote that Prof. Yamaguchi was a Ministry scholar who favored a discriminatory special education system.   One time, I was taken to the radicals’ office for a kangaroo court and on another occasion, we discussed this matter bitterly in a debate on NHK TV.

 The movement for integrated education was criticized in Western countries, because it was considered to be “dumping,” that is, putting children into an educational environment that was not prepared to deal with their special needs.   Integrated education was considered to be simply an impractical idea in Japan, because at that time not enough teachers were prepared to provide appropriate education for all children with disabilities in regular classes in regular schools.   As a result, the movement for integrated education faded away.

 Recently, instead of integrated education, a new movement has begun to shift from special education towards special needs (supportive) education.

 The above-mentioned three developmental periods could be analyzed from a dialectical point of view as follows:

- Thesis, fromthe end of the Second World War until around 1979: Expansion of the number of special schools and special classes was encouraged.

- Antithesis, 1979-2000: The integrated education movement was carried out partially but strongly.

- Synthesis, from 2000 to the present: Reform of special education, moving towards inclusive and supportive education, has begun.

 In the first period, we tried to increase the number of special schools and special classes.   This idea was basically right, but not 100% correct.   We were able to provide appropriate education for children with disabilities, but only in separate and discriminatory places, such as special schools or special classes.   In some cases, children had to commute to special schools in school buses, taking more than an hour each way, or they had to live in dormitories, because their school was too far from their home for them to be able to commute.   Our mistake was in disregarding the principle of the least restrictive educational environment (LRE).

Following that “Thesis” period, in the “Antithesis” period, it was claimed that all children with disabilities had to be placed immediately in regular classes in regular schools.   This was basically wrong, because it ignored the goal of giving appropriate education to every child, but, even so, aiming in the direction of the least restrictive educational environment was right.

 Now in the final period, we have begun to reform special education as “Synthesis“ to sublate the “Thesis“ and “Antithesis.“

 “Special Needs Education,“ or, preferably, “Inclusive and Supportive Education,“ the theme of ISEC 2005, provides appropriate education to all children, in the least restrictive educational environment, including those children who have the most severe and profound disabilities.

• The Special Education Reform Policy of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and Some Problems to be Solved

The movement to reform special education has been carried out by several special committees set up in the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

(1) Resource Rooms

 The first committee in the special education system, the Committee on Resource Rooms (i.e., part-time special classes), was set up in 1990, chaired by Kaoru Yamaguchi.   The committee submitted its report to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in 1992.

 Based on this report, the School Education Law was amended in 1993 so that resource rooms were included in the special education system, along with special schools and special classes.

 Since then, the number of children receiving special education in resource rooms has increased year after year, reaching 33,652 (0.3% of all compulsory school-age children) in 2003.

 One significant change since this amendment went into effect is that the number of children enrolled not only in resource rooms, but also in special classes and special schools has increased very rapidly.   At present, 171,540 (1.6%) of all school-age children are receiving special education;   in special schools (51,955 children, 0.5%), special classes (86,933 children, 0.8%), or resource rooms (33,652 children, 0.3%).

 It seems to me that resource rooms function as a bridge between regular classes and segregated special schools and classes, and unify these into one system.   I think this is a very important step towards inclusive education.

(2) Learning Disabilities (LD) and LD-Like Disabilities

   In 1992, after the Committee on Resource Rooms had discussed educational provisions for children with LD and LD-like disabilities, in order to react to a petition from a group of parents of children with learning disabilities, another committee, the Committee on LD and LD-Like Disabilities, was set up, also chaired by Kaoru Yamaguchi.   The final report of this Committee was issued in 1999, after seven years of discussions.

 The main points of the Committee’s report were:

• Children with LD were described as follows: “Children with LD have basically no intellectual developmental delay, but have difficulties in learning and in using skills such as speaking, listening, reading, writing, calculating, and reasoning”
• A tentative plan was presented for how to identify these children.
• The teaching types and places for these children to learn were listed, including special care by regular class teachers, team-teaching, individualized teaching, resource rooms, and itinerant teaching by specialists.

(3) Towards Special Education in the 21 st Century

   The next Committee, “ Towards Special Education in the 21 st Century,” chaired by Hayao Kawai (currently the Commissioner for Cultural Affairs) was set up in 2000 and made its final report in 2001.  

In this Committee’s report on how to provide appropriate education for children with special educational needs, a major point was this definition: “Special Supportive Education is positive training for children with LD, AD/HD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), etc., who are in regular classes and who need special supportive education, in addition to training provided to children in special schools and special classes.”

• Special Supportive Education From Now On

The latest Committee, “ How to Provide Special Supportive Education From Now On,” was set up in 2001, chaired by Dr. Noboru Kobayashi (a pediatrician).

In this Committee’s final report, several rather innovative reform plans were presented:

• Abolition of special schools that are separated according to type of disability and instead establishment of community schools that provide support for those students and function as educational support centers in the community for the regular schools, as well as providing special education in the centers.  
• Establishment of special educational support rooms by combining special classes and resource rooms.
• Appointment of special educational needs coordinators in every primary, secondary, and special school.
• Setting up of in-school committees to discuss the needs of all children with learning difficulties, supported by all teachers.
• Preparation of an individual teaching program for every child with special needs.
• Improvement in the quality of teachers.
• Coordination between relevant agencies.

• Midterm Report by the Central Council for Education in the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology

Based on the final report of the Committee on “ How to Provide Special Supportive Education From Now On,” a working group set up by the Central Council for Education in the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to discuss special supportive education, issued a “Midterm Report“ in December 2004, in which almost all the same issues as the Committee had discussed were presented, organized along similar lines.

 Responding to a request from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, I submitted my opinions for this Report and described some problems to be solved.   My comments were as follows:

• As a whole, the Report is well organized and explains the policy of special supportive education precisely and concretely.
• It is good to be able to continue the present type of special schools and special classes for the time being, if they are necessary.
• It is a pity that there is no statement about the principle of inclusive education, which is now an international trend; it has been advocated in the U.N., including UNESCO, and is now spreading throughout the world, including developing countries. Some statement about the principle of inclusive education should be included in the final report.
• I especially recommend two measures: dual placement and open rooms:

● Dual placement means that children in special schools and special classes are also enrolled in regular classes in regular schools in their community, so that the other children and the teachers in regular classes in regular schools, and the people in the community, accept them as members of their class, school, and community.

● Open room aims for all children who have difficulty in their classes to be given support at any time.   It forms a bridge between the resource rooms and regular classes.   I believe it is one of the most effective steps towards inclusive education.

4. Regionalism and Parent Power

I am pessimistic as to whether the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology will accept my proposals, because changes between midterm and final reports are usually limited to minor ones.

Rather, I expect that these reforms will be realized by local governments:

A proposal for dual placement appeared in the reports of committees in Saitama Prefecture, the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, and Yokohama City, and dual placement is already partially in process.

Open rooms have been set up in several schools in Kobe City, Yokkaichi City in Mie Prefecture, Kasuyacho in Fukuoka Prefecture, and other places, supported by volunteers like retired principals, students specializing in special education, and parents of children with disabilities.

 Special Supportive Education Plans are being prepared in small towns such as Shiki City in Saitama Prefecture, Ashibetsu City in Hokkaido, and Tokai Village in Ibaraki Prefecture.

One of the best plans, prepared in Miyagi Prefecture, included the following:

• Special Supportive Education should be firmly based on the principle of inclusive education.
• All children must be registered in regular schools in their community .   Special supportive education should be considered if necessary, and could include support in regular classes, resource rooms, special classes, or special education outside of the regular schools (what formerly were special schools).

 I hope that these local government plans will be realized in the near future.   I believe that the most powerful influence will be the parent movement.

 Regionalism and parent power are two major keys to the future success of Inclusive andSupportive Education, which, if realized, will lead to a complete reformation of compulsory school education in Japan   

home . about the conference . programme . registration . accommodation . contact