Abstract
This paper aims to indicate what is needed to promote more foreign language education other than English at Japanese high schools, based on past support projects conducted by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT). After investigating and analyzing the projects while taking into account the background of Japanese society, stable and more efficient measures for promoting language education were uncovered. The findings recommend making use of the strengths and characteristics of each organization concerned, that is, high schools, the prefectural and municipal boards of education, universities, and the MEXT. Specifically, the results indicate that it is important that the prefectural and municipal boards of education take a bigger role in the future to promote foreign language education.
