Today the generally called educational system is 6-3-3-4 system which has 6 years in elementary school, three years in middle school, three years in high school, and 4 years in university. This system was inagurated by the school education law which was gpromulgating enacted in March 1947. By this, compared to the past system in which in higher school than middle school male and female go to different places, the idea of coeducation was born. 24~ Basically, there are children who go to kindergarden or nourishment school before going to elementary school. Elementary school and middle school are commonly known by the compulsory education because of the meaning of "parents ought to give thier children education." People graduate from this and advance to their own way. For example, as you see in the chart bellow, they go to high school, go to special school, find work, find a part time job,etc. Also, basically when they become high school junior they are divided to scientific course and literature course. Then from there they go to univeisity, go to juior college, go to special school, or find job. The rate of people who go to university is 31% as setting elemtary schol 100. In university, up to the present, there are liberal arts for freshman and sophomore years in national universities and other universities but recently it tends to be abolished. In brief, the specialization is going on. Also, after graduate it, they go to graduation school or find job. Owing to this educational system, the literacy rate in Japan become 100% and Japan had sudden economic growth. But today because the people who enter into high school and univesity increase beyond expectation, the keen examination war are played. For this, there are lively discussion in the country. It is the fact that whether it is good or bad, examination is inseparable from talking about Japanese education. Also, it is not certain that examination is cause, but recently we often hear on problem of bully. Now for these status quo, various aproaches and efforts to improvement are tried. grade age school education ..... 3-5 kindergarden,nourishment school ..... 1-6 6-11 elementary school elementary education 7-9 12-14 middle school elementary education 10-12 15-17 high school secondary education 10-15 15-20 special school secondary education 13-16 18-22 university higher education 13-14 18-20 junior college higher education 16-18 or 16-21 23-24 or 23-28 graduation school ..... ..... ..... each special school ..... Column -Centering on Examination War-

National University	Private University
Tokyo University Kyoto University Hitotsubashi University Tokyo Institute of Technology Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Tokyo University of Agriculture & Technology Hokkaido University Tohoku University Nagoya University Osaka University Kyushu University Tsukuba University Kobe University Hiroshima University Shiga University Chiba University	Keio University Waseda University Science University of Tokyo International Christian University (ICU) Sophia University Kansai University Kansei Gakuin University Doushisha University Ritsumeikan University Meiji University