Abstract
In Japan, the number of high school students applying for university education has remained at approximately 50%. As a result of the poor functioning of selection in university entrance examinations, enabling a smooth transition from upper secondary education to higher education constitutes a problem. Since the late 1990s, various measures have been examined and implemented while there has been severe social criticism of university education. However, there is one common element identified as the basis of this diversity: the “good intentions” of everyone involved. However, good intentions, in all probability, do not always bring about desirable results. In this paper, through an analysis of a questionnaire survey targeting university and high school students, which was carried out by the Research Division of the National Center for University Entrance Examinations, we examine what kind of results have been achieved by efforts and considered “good” by those involved, toward developing articulation between upper secondary education and higher education.
In this article, we analyze four concrete questions. First, do current university students face difficulty in their university study? Second, how can we understand the relations between the difficulty and the practice of learning? Third, to what extent do high school students acquire the practice of learning? Fourth, how can we understand the reasons why middle-class high school students, in particular, cannot master the practice of learning?
The following three points have been observed from the results. First, probably as a result of significant accommodations, based on “good intentions,” by the university staff, current university students feel interested in and are able to advance learning while thinking that it will be useful in the future. Second, in contrast, students are not necessarily learning with motivation; this situation has thus prevailed since high school. Data analysis revealed that 70% of middle-class high school students, in particular, only studied for 30 minutes a day in the first half of their time in high school. Third, the good intentions of those involved are also visible in the context in which a majority of the students currently have not been able to acquire the practice of learning during their high school education. In other words, various measures that focus on personality and aptitude for high school students whose aim is entrance into university at times distance high school students from learning.
In addition, in this article, we examine several points on which to focus when considering the conditions of articulation between upper secondary schools and higher education.
