Meiji education system
Topic: Paths to Modernisation: Japan, China, Korea · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 7 "Paths to Modernisation"
Meaning
The Meiji education system was the modern school system Japan built from the 1870s. School was made compulsory for both boys and girls, fees were kept low, and almost every child was enrolled by 1910. The education ministry controlled the curriculum, the textbooks and the training of teachers. "Moral culture", meaning lessons in good behaviour and duty, was compulsory and taught loyalty to the emperor. The system spread literacy fast and created both skilled workers and loyal citizens.
Example
Children learnt Chinese characters together with the hiragana and katakana scripts, which made reading easier to learn. They studied new subjects alongside lessons in moral culture. By 1910 nearly all Japanese children were in school, which is an early example of modernising by building on tradition.
Don't confuse with
- Examination system of China: China's examination system tested a small number of candidates in Confucian classics through the "eight-legged essay" and was abolished in 1905. The Meiji system was mass schooling for all children, including modern subjects.
Related concepts
- Commodore Perry
- Treaty of Kanagawa
- Unequal treaties
- Meiji restoration
- Charter Oath 1868
- Fukoku kyohei
- Emperor system
- Imperial Rescript on Education
- Hiragana and katakana
- Satsuma Rebellion 1877