Institutional Design and Policy Process of Municipality-Led Japanese Language Schools: An Analysis of the City of Goto’s Request for Proposals for the Establishment of a Japanese Language School (Provisional Name) (2019)

Abstract

This article examines the institutional design and policy process of a municipality-led Japanese language school, using the City of Goto’s Request for Proposals for the Establishment of a Japanese Language School (provisional name) (2019) as a case study. In this context, language education has emerged as a core component of local integration infrastructure. Based on qualitative document analysis, the study reorganizes the RFP into five analytical blocks: policy objectives, site and infrastructure conditions, operational and educational requirements, recruitment procedures, and screening and contractual arrangements. The analysis shows that the municipality conceptualizes the Japanese language school as a governance mechanism linking education, daily life support, community engagement, and institutional sustainability. The article argues that municipality-led Japanese language schools should be understood not merely as educational institutions, but as mobi­lity-aware integration infrastructure that shapes migrants’ future settlement trajectories.