Japanese Higher Education Institutions Research Articles

Associations Between DCD Traits, Perceived Difficulties Related to ADHD, ASD, and Reading and Writing Support Needs Among Students in Higher Education: A Pilot Study

Background/Objectives: Since the Act for Eliminating Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities was enacted in 2016, the number of students with disabilities in higher education institutions has increased significantly, creating a greater need for support. Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) often coexists with other neurodevelopmental disorders such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and reading and writing difficulties; yet, awareness of DCD remains low. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of DCD traits among Japanese higher education students and their relationship with ADHD, ASD, and reading and writing support needs Methods: A pilot study was conducted with 77 university students (mean age: 19.17 ± 0.68) in the Kansai region, using the Adolescents and Adults Coordination Questionnaire (AAC-Q) to screen for DCD traits, along with a questionnaire assessing difficulties related to ADHD and ASD, and a survey on reading and writing support needs. Results: The study found that 12.9% of students scored more than 1 standard deviation above the mean on the AAC-Q. Students in the DCD trait group (n = 10) reported greater difficulties related to ADHD and ASD than those in the non-DCD group (n = 67). Correlation analysis revealed a moderate-to-strong association between AAC-Q scores and difficulties related to ADHD and ASD among students in the DCD trait group. Conclusions: This study suggests the need to raise awareness about DCD traits and to provide comprehensive support for students with ADHD and ASD in Japanese higher education institutions.

Status of 21st-Century Liberal Arts Education: Curriculum Reform in Japanese Universities and Evaluation by Society

Ever since bachelor’s competencies were introduced as a reference standard in Japan, many Japanese higher education institutions have been exploring and practicing liberal arts education for the 21st century. This study posits that incorporating new elements into university education has been a significant trend in liberal arts education for the 21st century. Building on the results of a comprehensive survey, primarily involving universities and industry, this study provides an in-depth analysis of how 21st-century liberal arts education is evaluated and expected by companies and others. A questionnaire survey was administered to universities regarding their provision of 21st-century liberal arts education and the status of reforms toward this education, and to companies and other members of society regarding their expectations and evaluation of 21st-century liberal arts education provided by universities, as well as the content they evaluate as learning outcomes for university students and the qualities and skills they consider when employing them. The findings from the survey of universities and companies indicate that the average scores for curriculum reform and establishment of new courses at universities and host companies are relatively low, as indicated by the relatively low average scores for keywords that companies place importance on. Undeniably, universities’ efforts toward reform and the reality of such efforts should be conveyed to the public. Through dialogue with the industrial sector, we can understand the necessity of sharing and realizing openness to developing human resources through collaboration and innovation.

Challenges to Inclusive Education for Students With Disabilities in Japanese Higher Education Institutions

Objective: The purpose of the study was to elucidate the current challenges to inclusive education (IE) at the university level in Japan, thereby addressing the gap between policy and the provision of inclusion. Method: This qualitative case study of a private university supporting inclusive policies in Japan included content analysis of data collected through semi-structured interviews to ascertain themes. Results: The four identified themes were: inclusion practices as a conceptual challenge, conflicting practice of reasonable accommodations, inclusion management gaps, and barriers to and opportunities for inclusive education. Conclusions: There is a significant disconnect between legal obligation and actual implementation of accommodations. Results demonstrate the difficulties in accommodating students due to rigid procedural requirements for accommodation, such as self-reporting documentation by students. Implications: Contradiction between inclusion policy and practice related to students with disabilities hinders the provision of accommodation services to university students in Japan.

Perspectives on EMI among English Teachers at a Japanese Science University

Through the design and implementation of a survey, this paper has sought to better understand perceptions among educators in Japan concerning the readiness and necessity of English-taught programs in Japanese higher education institutions. The researchers surveyed both domestic and international teachers at a private science university in Japan and found that educators believe some struggles exist for Japanese students in English-taught classes. These struggles, specifically regarding cultural differences in teaching and learning styles, might hinder Japanese students’ acclimation to English-taught courses. The respondents also felt that English-taught programs were necessary and benefitted both international and domestic students.

Modern Technologies and Transformation of Social Work Profession and Education: Insights of Teachers of the Lithuanian and Japanese Higher Education Institutions

This article explores the attitudes of Japanese and Lithuanian social work program teachers towards the challenges posed by modern technologies that may transform social work profession and studies. Study data revealed that scientists from both countries admit that “taming” technologies and optimally “cooperating” with them is the main challenge of social work practice and studies. On the one hand, belief that technological development will provide more opportunities to fulfil the mission of social work was prevalent among the study participants, on the other hand, they had expressed concern that eventually the use of technology will change the essence of social work as a profession of human relations or will create modified forms of social exclusion. Additionally, a niche for the new role of the social worker was identified: to help the world “occupied” by technology remain “social”. Attitudes of research participants from both Lithuania and Japan can be linked to traditional concept of sociality and vision of social work as profession that belongs exclusively to area of human relations. B. Latour’s asocial sociality concept can be applied for broader look into this situation. This concept states that efforts to trace the contribution of actors of an inhuman nature to what belongs in the human world may be more successful when one ceases to view the world exclusively through human eyes and tries to reveal the inner perspectives of phenomena of a mixed nature.

Problem-Based Learning in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: A Perspective from Japan.

PurposeJapanese higher education institutions have long been striving for the globalization of medical education. Nagoya University (NU) adopted PBL as a means of enhancing intercultural awareness in globalizing medical education by working with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, under the Trondheim NTNU-Nagoya (TroNa) partnership for mobility and internationalization of child and mental health studies. This study aims to assess students’ attitudes towards PBL and to suggest future developments in this form of education by introducing common PBL scenarios experienced at NTNU and NU.MethodsTwo 90-minute PBL sessions were conducted at NU. Ten groups of medical students were formed, each consisting of up to 10 students, and students were asked to fill in a questionnaire developed to assess their understanding of, attitudes to and satisfaction with the classes. We investigated three different groups of questions on: NU medical students’ general impressions of PBL; their impressions of PBL in child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP); and their impressions of PBL in specific case scenarios. Correlations between each of the questions from the three groups were evaluated using multivariate analysis.ResultsOverall, a majority of the NU medical students were satisfied with PBL, while a small number preferred traditional lecture-style learning (5%). More than half of the students agreed that PBL increased their understanding and interest in CAP (53%), although some male students felt that the amount of time spent was insufficient (20.3%). Correlations were seen for students who thought that PBL enhanced their understanding of and interest in CAP. Regarding case scenarios, most students (82.5%) agreed that PBL helped them to develop clinical problem-solving skills.ConclusionThe study found an overall positive attitude towards PBL, PBL in CAP and the specific PBL case scenario presented.

Strategic Options for Campus Sustainability: Cluster Analysis on Higher Education Institutions in Japan

This study evaluates campus sustainability initiatives in Japanese higher education institutions over the 10-year period since a related important political declaration was made. Our findings show that implementation of sustainability actions was still largely lacking. This is one of the first extensive empirical studies on Japanese higher education institutions to examine data related to institutions that conform with the Assessment System for Sustainable Campus (ASSC). Our study aimed to identify key factors that promote robust campus sustainability among Japanese institutions. Our research question was “What are the strategic options of institutions that conform with ASSC?” We aimed to determine which fields best prompt Japanese higher education institutions to initiate campus sustainability initiatives. We applied cluster analysis to 42 cases collected by ASSC toward identifying groups of institutions with different strategic options. The analysis identified four groups: “lagging-behind”, “asset-driven”, “top-of-the-class”, and “networkers” clusters. An important finding of this study was that the asset-driven and networkers clusters showed significant positive scores with respect to asset management and networking. Our survey about institution size revealed two major findings: (1) despite the general dependency of campus sustainability on resources, both large and small institutions were capable of attaining the top-of-the-class cluster by adopting a holistic strategy; (2) small institutions are able to implement campus sustainability initiatives by focusing on asset management or networking.

The Long-term Impact of International Study: Indonesian Graduate Students in Japan and Their Subsequent Academic Careers in Indonesia

This paper examines the international-student perspective of the long-term impact of international study. Based on a longitudinal ethnographic study, this paper focuses on the learning by Indonesian graduate students in the Japanese research and teaching koza communities at Japanese higher-education institutions, and it examines the long-term influence of studying in Japan on their subsequent academic careers in Indonesia. It was found that alumni selectively chose to adapt to the teaching and research practices that they had positively valued in their respective koza when settling into their subsequent academic careers in Indonesia. Overall, the former international students that were interviewed gave a positive evaluation of their experiences in Japan and had adapted the Japanese koza methods that they felt would work well in Indonesia. This paper clarifies some of the long-term impacts of international study on international students.

The Internationalization of Higher Education in Japan: Effective Organization for a Sustainable Internationally Cooperative Higher Education Program

The goal of this study is to explore the challenges of international collaboration in higher education activities in Japan by identifying the management frameworks and elements necessary to run sustainable, quality-assured, internationally collaborative activities. Internationalization was examined from three perspectives: collaboration between a university’s headquarters and its departments, program management, and quality assurance. A qualitative case study design was used that involved interviews with 48directors of collaborative international higher education programs. Regarding intra-university collaboration, it was found that there were four major system types divided into eight subtypes: 1. Top-down; (A) Leaving the job to departments, (B) Control, and (C) Ownership; 2. Bottom-up; (A) Approval and (B) Independent; 3. Acting as one; and 4. Cooperation; (A) Regional and (B) Field. The most frequent subtype was “Approval” and the most successful subtype was “Independent.” Regarding program management, many institutions have mature systems, but even these systems found it difficult to achieve accreditation by external agencies. To enable Japanese higher education institutions to survive in the global market, central leadership that encourages departmental independence is necessary. Entrepreneurialism, whereby not only executives but also academics and administrators explicitly seek out new strategies is a key element in Japanese higher education institutions.

Academic English and elite masculinities

This paper addresses the ways in which the teaching of English for academic purposes by ‘Western’ teachers in Japanese higher education institutions is shaped by gender and sexuality. The paper draws on findings from a 5 year ethnographic study of white Western teachers of English in Japan. Drawing on interview data with 18 male participants, the paper points to the way elite status is attached to the teaching of English for academic purposes (TEAP) in contrast with teaching general English; the way TEAP is reproduced as a male-dominated activity among English-native-speaker teachers; and the way white Western men teaching in these contexts display an enhanced professional masculinity. Discourses articulated by the men also serve to position gendered Others as illegitimate or unworthy participants in TEAP. Although the men's accounts tend to frame TEAP as a rational, disembodied, asexual occupation, the paper argues that gender and sexuality are deployed as identity gatekeeping tools that serve to police the borders of academic English as an elite, male-dominated professional category. In closing, I make proposals for transformation of gendered hierarchies in this context, but these would require shifts in deep-seated cultural, institutional, and interpersonal gender ideologies.

Empowering Women in Management of Japanese Higher Education Institutions: Analyzing Challenges and Possibilities

Empowering Women in Management of Japanese Higher Education Institutions: Analyzing Challenges and Possibilities

English Language Development in JAIST Japan

Japan is a country in which the mother tongue is sacred. However, globalization has made English language increasingly important in Japanese higher education institutions. In support of globalization, the Japan Ministry of Education has introduced “Global 30” and Gendai Programs. Henceforth, there is development of English language in Japanese higher education institutions. As our preliminary research, we analyze the approach taken by Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) to develop an English language program. We choose JAIST because they are the leader for internationalizing an educational program in advanced science and technology in Japan particularly for postgraduate studies. The findings show that JAIST leaders first emphasize contribution to the advancement of world science, in accordance with rapid internationalization since the 1990s. The contribution is the continuous development of English programs for science and technology. Second, they cultivate potential scientists by acceptance of foreigners as students, postgraduates and faculty members; collaboration with visiting researchers; agreements on academic exchanges with foreign universities and institutes; and holding international symposia. These steps further create an internationalized environment in JAIST. These two approaches lead to the continuous development of English language programs in JAIST. Hence, there is integration of Japan’s science and technology in internationalization.

How the digital era has transformed ILL services in Japanese university libraries: a comprehensive analysis of NACSIS‐ILL transaction records from 1994 to 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to identify and examine the factors that affected the scale of ILL photocopy requests between Japanese university libraries from 1994 to 2008.Design/methodology/approachBased on the newly developed conceptual framework to interpret the rise and fall in ILL, more than 10 million requests, sent through a nation‐wide system called NACSIS‐ILL from 1994 to 2008 were quantitatively analyzed.FindingsThe number of photocopy requests for articles in foreign journals started to decrease in 2000, due to the dramatic increase of e‐journal titles made accessible through “Big Deal” contracts that came into effect in 2002 as well as other similar trials prior to it. On the other hand, requests for articles in domestic journals, mostly written in Japanese, continued to increase until 2006. The main factor for this increase was the expansion of journal title coverage in bibliographic databases, which enabled users to retrieve more references. However, requests decreased in 2007, because of advances in digitization in the Japanese academic environment.Research limitations/implicationsThis research proposes a conceptual model to understand document demand and service patterns observed in nation‐wide ILL services. It also successfully draws a comprehensive picture of ILL in Japanese higher education institutions, based on more than 10 million request records over 15 years, and it shows how the number of ILL requests correlates with the availability of requested journals in electronic form.Originality/valueThis research proposes a conceptual model to understand document demand and service patterns observed in nation‐wide ILL services. It also successfully draws a comprehensive picture of ILL in Japanese higher education institutions, based on more than 10 million request records over 15 years, and it shows how the number of ILL requests correlates with the availability of requested journals in electronic form.

The Promotion Process of Administrative Staff to Middle Managers through Experience-based Learning in Japanese Higher Education Institutions

The Promotion Process of Administrative Staff to Middle Managers through Experience-based Learning in Japanese Higher Education Institutions

Ideologies of internationalisation and the treatment of diversity within Japanese higher education

Drawing on various sources of official discourse and public commentary pertaining to the recent implementation of two large-scale strategies aimed at internationalising student and academic staff populations within Japanese higher education institutions, this paper will present a number of broad multifaceted perspectives addressing those issues which may hinder the success of the two strategies. Announced in 2008 and 2009 respectively, the ‘300,000 international students plan’ and the ‘Global 30’ Project aim to enable 30 select universities to attract 300,000 international students to Japan by 2020. The 30 institutions, known as centres for internationalisation will each strive to recruit between 3000 and 8000 international students from across the globe. However, since the late 19th century Japanese attempts at the importation of ethnolinguistic diversity into the education system have been greeted with accusations of insincerity and the masking of a predominantly self-serving nationalistic agenda. The current paper will also seek to assess whether the self-serving nationalistic argument is still valid in relation to contemporary internationalisation efforts.

Construction trial of a practical education curriculum for game development by industry–university collaboration in Japan

Games together with manga and anime as represented by Japanese technological advances are highly evaluated in other countries. In recent years, games have been developing at a fast rate and a deep understanding of the game development procedures is needed in order to keep up with the advancements in technology. Yet, there has been no consistent education program designed specifically for game production in the Japanese higher education institutions. In contrast to this, game education is on the rise among American and European Universities. A curriculum framework has even been created by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) with positive progress shown by cooperating with the industry. As very few efforts have been made so far in Japan to develop an education program for game development, there was no common ground where production methodology could be designed and taught. Due to this the industry developed its own unique production styles, and production methods became a trade secret, complicating the relationship between the universities and the industry. Current game development education in Japan consists mostly of lectures conducted by part-time teaching staff hired by several colleges. In response to this, at the Tokyo University of Technology (TUT), we have designed a curriculum in collaboration with Premium Agency, Inc. that aims to offer training in the practical aptitudes that are demanded by the game development industry. We have added lessons to the traditional faculty curriculum, combining lectures and exercises in a game development context, leading to the number of students that are acquiring knowledge in game development skills such as programming, CG and planning to grow year by year. As a result, the development of this game oriented curriculum has been strongly welcomed by the game industry.

Higher education for sustainable development in Japan: policy and progress

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review key developments and the role of governmental support in the field of education for sustainable development (ESD) in higher education in Japan.Design/methodology/approach – This is an analytical review paper on policy and practice, using an evaluative perspective to consider developments, challenges and prospects for ESD in higher education in Japan and the significant drivers for existing and ongoing activities.Findings – This paper reveals the significance of the initiatives taken by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Ministry of the Environment for the development of ESD in Japanese universities. Government policies and funding supports have been critical, but the current dependency on them also poses a significant challenge for the continuous development of ESD in Japanese higher education institutions over the longer term. Analysis suggests that encouraging leadership development for sustainability amongst univer...

Internationalization of University Curricula in Japan: Major Policies and Practice Since the 1980s

This article begins by discussing the context and major policies as well as the rationales related to internationalization of the university curricula in Japan. It then touches on internationalization of the curricula in Japanese higher education institutions at home and on development of cross-border curricula that are both imported into Japan and provided in higher education institutions abroad. The article concludes by arguing that internationalization of the university curricula in Japan has changed to the extent that it no longer plays the minor and unimportant role in attracting and hosting international students that used to be expected in the early 1980s. Currently internationalization of the university curricula in Japan is not confined merely to the development of language education for both international students and Japanese students at home but also involves a variety of cross-border educational initiatives.

Corporatization of National Universities in Japan: Revolution for Governance or Rhetoric for Downsizing?

As in a number of other countries, Japanese higher education institutions have faced pressure to reduce costs and respond to ‘market pressures’. This has included proposals by the national government to introduce competition, ‘agencify’ or corporatize universities and give management autonomy for universities in a hope that this will improve efficiency. The proposals however, are considered not a linear development but a radical change, because they go beyond an organizational reform as agencification that has been already adopted into some public services in 2001. Consequently, this paper analyses why this new policy change has suddenly happened and examines whether the new framework will be able to improve performance through enhancing autonomy. Investigating the process, we show that the corporatization of national universities has been progressed as the rhetoric for enhancing university autonomy and excellence, while the reality has shifted into a public sector reform as downsizing under the fiscal stress and the government control on performance might be much stronger.

University reform in the post-massification era in Japan: analysis of government education policy for the 21st century

Japanese higher education institutions have experienced major reforms in the 1990s. These reforms were voluntarily promoted by the universities, and were aimed at transforming research-oriented faculties, or research centered organizations, to teaching and student centered universities. However, at the turn of the millennium, a new reform movement emerged, more economic centered, more market conscious and more influenced by the policy shift toward deregulation. In the 21st century, Japanese higher education institutions will face retrenchment, post-massification, and globalization. This paper examines government higher education policy and Japanese higher education reform movements in the globalization and post-massification eras. First, issues surrounding Japanese higher education in an era of post-massification will be set out. Secondly, the direction of higher education policy will be examined and compared with the higher education policies of some Western countries. Finally, the impact of the policy shift toward higher education institutions and the existing structural problems around Japanese higher education will be analyzed.