Health & Education
Education and health are directly and indirectly linked and can impact an entire people in the present and the future - generations from now (Skolnik, 2021). When people know to make an appropriate and informed decision regarding their health behaviors, good health outcomes are often the result (Skolnik, 2021).
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020)
The Educational System
Japan has one of the top educational systems in the world, with the foundations for its modern system originating before the second world (Abe, 2018). The current system is known as a 6-3-3-4 system, and in the United States, that means 6-years of elementary school, or shougakkou, 3-years of junior high school, also called chuugakkou, 3-years of senior highs school, or known as koukou, and then 4-years of university (Abe, 2018).
There is a period in the educational system known as gimukyoiku, or compulsory education, that starts around 6-years of age and lasts nine years (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020). This period includes the six years of shougakkou and three years of lower secondary school - or chuugakkou (Abe, 2018). After compulsory education has concluded, students are not required to attend koukou, or upper secondary school, to further their education (Abe, 2018).
Japan's compulsory education boasts a 100% enrollment rate with no illiteracy - everyone can read and write - occurring nationwide (Abe, 2018). And while upper secondary, or high school, is not mandatory for children, approximately 96% elect to attend, only a 2% dropout rate (Abe, 2018). Unlike compulsory education, the upper secondary has a nationally required entrance exam that is extremely competitive and on par with the United States' SAT or ACT.
Japan's higher education can last anywhere from two to four years depending on the type of institute, which often involves universities, junior colleges, and colleges of technology (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020). Japan offers higher education for everyone, no matter the level of education attained after compulsory education (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020).
Higher Education
(Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, n.d.)
Colleges of technology, or career and technical education (CTE), are educational opportunities for people who completed their compulsory education but not the optional upper secondary school (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020). These opportunities focus on vocational education and offer training in areas of "agriculture, technology, commerce, fisheries, domestic science, nursing, and welfare" (National Center on Education and the Economy, 2021). The CTE programs typically last between three to five years and end with a diploma that enables a direct transition into the workforce (National Center on Education and the Economy, 2021).
Junior colleges cater to those students seeking their associates after completing their upper secondary education (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020). These degree programs typically take between two to three years to complete with a focus on the humanities, social sciences and providing training for teaching (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020).
Similar to the junior colleges, the universities cater to those who have completed their upper secondary (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020). The universities in Japan - similar to the U.S. - offer a 4-year bachelor's along with a 2-year Master's, and 3-year Doctoral programs (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020).
Literacy Rate & Enrollment
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2020)
Enrollment Categories:​
-
Participation Rate (ages 6 -14):
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Participation Rate (age 15 - 19):
-
Upper Secondary/Vocational Programs:
-
Public Higher Educational Institution:
-
Private Higher Educational Institution
Higher Education Graduation Rates
-
Total (ages 25 - 64)
-
Upper Secondary/Vocational Programs:
-
Bachelor's or equivalent:
-
Master's or equivalent:
-
Doctorate:
JAPAN
100 %
21.6 %
22 %
21.1 %
78.9 %
​
52.7 %
​22.2 %
98.5 %
56.1 %
76.1 %
OECD Average
98.6 %
36.5 %
42.5 %
69.4 %
17.0 %
​
38.6 %
​38.4 %
66.2 %
68.2 %
66.2 %
(Data from OECD, n.d.-a and OECD, n.d.-b was used to create "Comparison Chart")
The Relationship Between Health & Education
According to Skolnik (2021), the relationship between health and education "is a powerful enabler of good health" (p.74) and validates the idea that education is a major component in preventing and managing illness. Health literacy is a concept that combines education and health to ensure good health outcomes and practices. Health literacy is the "ability of individuals to gain access to, understand, and use information in ways to promote and maintain good health" ​(Ishikawa, Yamaguchi, Nutbeam, Kato, Okuhara, Okada, & Kiuchi, 2018).
For example, smoking in Japan is the leading and the most modifiable risk factor for non-communicable diseases, and using anti-smoking measures, like education to help eliminate this health crisis (Tomioka, Kurumatani, & Saeki, 2020). The evidence indicates that educational levels have a significant and inversely related impact on the prevalence of smoking in the Japanese population (Tomioka et al, 2020). The data describes a significant amount of smoking initiations in the youth of Japan - around junior high - while university graduates have the lowest prevalence for smoking (Tomioka et al, 2020).
Often those who are less educated are not given the opportunities or resources needed to learn about the harmful effects of smoking. Those who only graduated from lower secondary may be prone to additional stress - from employment or marriage - and seek relief through nicotine (Tomioka et al, 2020). The problem with the lack of education about smoking is the misinformation that smoking is a stress reliever when the individual may be suffering from withdrawal symptoms (Tomioka et al, 2020).
References
Abe, N. (2018). The Japanese Education System. Retrieved from https;//www.thoughtco.com/the-japanese-education-system-2028111
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Ishikawa, H., Yamaguchi, I., Nutbeam, D., Kato, M., Okuhara, T., Okada, M., & Kiuchi, T. (2018). Improving health literacy in a Japanese community population—A pilot study to develop an educational programme. Health Expectations : An International Journal of Public Participation in Health Care and Health Policy, 21(4), 814-821.
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Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. (n.d.). Overview: Principles Guide Japan’s Educational System. MEXT. Retrieved from https://www.mext.go.jp/en/policy/education/overview/index.htm.
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Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. (2020). Education system in Japan. Embassy of Japan in the United States of America. Retrieved from https://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/education-system-in-japan.html.
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National Center on Education and the Economy. (2021). Japan. NCEE. Retrieved from https://ncee.org/country/japan/.
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OECD. (n.d.-a). Japan - OECD. Educational GPS. Retrieved from https://gpseducation.oecd.org/CountryProfile?plotter=h5&primaryCountry=JPN&treshold=5&topic=EO.
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OECD. (n.d.-b). OECD average. Educational GPS. Retrieved from https://gpseducation.oecd.org/CountryProfile?primaryCountry=OCD&treshold=5&topic=EO.
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Skolnik, R. (2021). Global Health 101 (4th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
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Tomioka, K., Kurumatani, N., & Saeki, K. (2020). The Association Between Education and Smoking Prevalence, Independent of Occupation: A Nationally Representative Survey in Japan. Journal of epidemiology, 30(3), 136–142. https://doi.org/10.2188/jea.JE20180195
