The importance of literacy has been recognized through international frameworks and forums such as Education for All (EFA) and World Conference on Adult Learning and Education (CONFINTEA). In Japan, there is a general assumption of ‘literacy for all’ being achieved, and thus, no national literacy survey has been conducted since 1948. To plan and implement a national literacy survey under the Act on Guaranteeing Compulsory Education promulgated in 2016, this paper intends to draw inspirations from similar surveys carried out at international and national levels. International surveys include the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) conducted by OECD and the Literacy Assessment and Monitoring Programme (LAMP) coordinated by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Though literacy issues are often considered as challenges of developing countries, several OECD member countries have conducted national surveys such as Germany, France and the Republic of Korea. While PIAAC provides cross-national literacy conditions of participating countries, the national level surveys have made it clear that these countries are committed to understanding the living conditions and practices of people with literacy difficulties and reflecting this in their policies. In the context of educational development, Japan has been engaged in international cooperation by supporting developing countries in the field of basic education through international organizations such as UNESCO and bilaterally through Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), academics and NGOs. However, such international experiences and findings have not been well reciprocated with domestic discussions and practices to guarantee basic education in Japan. To ensure guaranteeing basic education for all in the country, learning from various approaches is important through comparative and joint research with developed countries, as well as practical experiences of educational development under international cooperation programmes. By reaffirming our own position through such joint research, we can make progress in future policy, practice and research towards a society that recognizes and respects diversity.
