Lessons from the Kokugo (National Language) Readers

Abstract

Kokusaika, or "internationalization," has been one of the most frequently used words in the Japanese media since the early eighties. Japan's increasingly active presence in the world economy has given rise to an active debate over the ways in which the citizenry of Japan will function as participants on an international stage in the twenty-first century. In Japan, as in other countries, awareness of the growing importance of international relations in national life has refocused attention on education. Official initiatives to meet the challenge began in August 1984 when Yasuhiro Nakasone, the prime minister at the time, established an ad hoc Council on Educational Reform to review existing educational practices and make recommendations for their reform. 1 Since then, efforts to enhance internationalization have focused largely on absorbing the increase in the numbers of foreign students, mostly from Asia, studying in Japan; providing for the education of Japanese children living overseas; instituting study abroad for upper secondary school students; and improving communication skills in foreign languages, primarily English.