On 18 September 2024, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) published a summary of issues by the “Council of Experts on the Ideal Nature of the Future Courses of Study, Curriculum, and Evaluation of Learning”.The Council held its first review meeting on 22 December 2022, holding a total of 15 meetings between then and 17 September 2024.

The contents of the summary of the issues are as follows.

Introduction… 2 1. Vision for the society of the future, and implementation status so far of the overall objectives of the curriculum guidelines (1) Vision for the society of the future… 3 (2) What the current curriculum guidelines aimed for, and implementation status of their overall objectives… 4 (3) Issues with the implementation of the current curriculum guidelines… 6 2. Qualities and abilities, bearing in mind the vision for the society of the future and current issues (1) Qualities and abilities framework in the curriculum guidelines… 8 (2) The qualities and abilities which form the foundations for　learning… 9 (3) The nature of learning, bearing in mind the consolidation of the foundations for digital learning in schools… 9 3. The aims, content, methods, and evaluation for each subject etc. (1) Ways of putting together effective aims and content aimed at nurturing the qualities and abilities… 10 (2) Future course of action, bearing in mind the current status of the evaluation of learning and the qualities and abilities which should be nurtured… 12 4. Flexible courses of study which include children who have diverse personalities, characteristics, and　backgrounds (1) The statements in the current “Individually-oriented instruction” and the nature of enrichment… 13 (2) The nature of flexibility in courses of study… 13 (3) The nature of partnerships and links between stages of school… 15 5. Putting in place measures and conditions to guarantee the steady implementation of the overall objectives of the curriculum guidelines (1) How to avoid imposing an excessive burden in school settings when implementing the courses of study… 15 (2) The nature of textbooks and teaching materials… 16 (3) The actual state of curriculum management and how to take this forward in the future… 17 (4) Support for schools and the consolidation of environments for smooth implementation of the courses of study… 18 6. Policy formation and development for the realization of the overall objectives of the curriculum guidelines (1) The formation of the curriculum guidelines, explanations, etc… 18 (2) The process of revising the curriculum guidelines, and how to share them with and disseminate them among schools and boards of education… 19 (3) Alignment with social needs… 19

If we excerpt the statements relating to special needs education, in “Realizing a rich and happy life for each one of the diverse children in a just society” under “1. (1) Vision for the society of the future” we find “The number of children needing educational support, including children and students who are the target of special needs education, foreign children and students, etc., and children with unique talents, is increasing, and the diversity of children is becoming apparent”. It goes on to say, “It is important to include such a diversity of children in school education, and to enable them to live rich and happy lives by better nurturing their qualities and abilities while developing their strengths, including those of children who show an exceptional interest in and curiosity about a particular field or have a unique talent”.

Furthermore, “4. (2) The nature of flexibility in courses of study” states “When thinking about instructing children who need individual support or especial care, such as children and students who are not attending school, it is important not only to ‘focus on their difficulties’, but also to keep in mind the perspective of ‘developing their good points’. Regarding particularly the diverse children whom it is difficult to include when a school is drawing up one course of study, consideration should be given to how best to treat them within the course of study and how to put in place an environment incidental to this, with the aim of constructing an inclusive educational environment leading to the nurturing of their qualities and abilities while developing these good points.”

Please see the website below for details [Japanese only]
:https://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chousa/shotou/184/mext_01892.html

Edited and published by the Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities.

Published on September 20th, 2024.