The aim of this paper is to examine 1. the transformation of reform policy regarding university ‘educationʼ in Japan and 2. the reaction of universities to the policy, and to consider 3. whether university education has been improved during the thirty years from the 1991 deregulation of the Standards for Establishment of Universities to the present.

 Regarding policy transformation, the reports from the University Council and the Central Council for Education as policy initiatives and the competitive funds projects for education as policy guidance are analyzed. The former has played the role of sticks and the latter that of carrots.

 Since the early 1990s, new educational methods such as faculty development have been recommended as tools for educational reform, and implementing them in universities has become mandated under the Standards for Establishment of Universities. Since the late 1990s, remedial education (or first-year education) and career education have been recommended as new types of education. The former is intended to resolve the gap between high schools and universities in terms of studentsʼ achievements, and the latter to smooth the transition problem from universities to the labor market. Neither is based on a given academic discipline; their main purpose has been to support students who can transition smoothly from high schools to universities and to labor markets. The context is the structural transformation surrounding universities, such as the increasing ratio of students undergoing higher education as the 18-year-old cohort shrinks, and the deteriorating employment situation. These policies have been expected to handle these problems.

 Competitive funds projects for education as policy guidance have continued from 2003 to the present. The topics of the projects have been narrowed and the requirements for application have become strict. Most universities, however, have applied for any of the projects in preference to losing their freedom.

 As for the reaction of universities, the degree of implementation of educational methods and contents and the activities of new academic associations established around 2000 are analyzed. It has not been easy for universities to implement new educational methods such as FD in universities, while new types of education such as first-year education and career education have been implemented in a short time. We find that these new types of education have played more important roles than educational methods during the social change after the bubble economy. Because universities have to train students to find jobs in the labor market.

 The activities of newly established research associations have focused on educational practices of university reforms and on sharing them among members. Their membership has increased in a short time, indicating that these practical associations are needed. They have functioned to enlighten and promote reforms.

 It seems that university education reform has progressed steadily. So we go back to the title: has university ‘educationʼ improved? The answer of the councils have been ‘No.ʼ Due to this negative reaction, universities have to reform their ‘educationʼ faster and more effectively. Would it be possible for them to do this without discretion?

 An overhaul of the unified university entrance examination in Japan was scheduled for the 2020 academic year. A number of changes were to be made, but the two considered the major pillars of the reform were the “active use of private sector examinations such as TOEFL” and “introduction of written questions for Japanese and mathematics.” As 2019 drew to an end, however, the postponements of these two proposals were announced in close succession. As this was immediately prior to the switchover to the new system, those involved with university entrance exams were shaken to the core.

 How did this situation come about? University entrance examinations are a matter of interest to most Japanese people, and thus far the following reasons have been given for the postponements. “It's because the difference between academic achievement tests and examinations for screening applicants is not properly understood,” “The period for preparation is too short,” “It's a mistake to attempt to reform education through tests,” “Universities did not actively participate in the reform discussions,” etc., etc. One further reason given was that “The views of researchers were not addressed.”

 The purpose of this paper is to consider why university entrance examination reform has come to drift aimlessly in this way. Further, the paper also discusses the problems apparent in both the proponents of the reform and the researchers who criticized the reform.

 The recent university entrance examination reform was pushed forward under the control of politicians and corporate officials, as well as university officials without professional expertise in education. The goal of the reform was, by changing the entrance examinations, to bring high school education more in line with the global era and to introduce changes that would enhance thinking and expressive capabilities. However, policy decision-making by those lacking the necessary professional knowledge left much to be desired. The cause of the current aimless drifting can be found, above all, in this ill-informed decision-making, but at the same time it should also be pointed out that there were problems with the methods used by the researchers who criticized the ineptitude of the discussions. The arguments of these researchers had the following three characteristics: (1) they focused criticisms of the reform on points that were easy to refute, (2) they criticized the reform without a good grasp of the realities, and (3) they shifted their arguments and criticized the reform without facing up squarely to the claims of the proponents. We can now look back and see that the result was that, without listening to what the researchers had to say, the proponents continued with their reform attempt until just before the two pillars were abandoned.

 This paper describes these circumstances in detail and concludes with a consideration of the matters requiring more care from the researchers when approaching the reform issue.

 As its decline in birthrate continues and Japan enters a new stage of the ‘popularization’ of its universities, the natural foundations of teacher training are being eroded, and teaching is becoming a less attractive career for many in the labour market. The issue of securing the required ‘quantity’ of teachers is invariably linked with that of guaranteeing their ‘qualityʼ. The number of applicants for the National Teacher Recruitment Examination (Kyōin Saiyō Shiken) is falling, and in particular, the decrease in the number of examinees from national teacher training faculties and universities will necessarily lead to a decline in the quality of new teachers.

 Education (neo-liberal market) policies based on school distrust and teacher distrust have accelerated the spread of ‘consumer behaviour’ towards school education, as well as the trend of ‘defensive education’ in response. As a result, Japanʼs teachers will be deprived of a sense of pride and value in the teaching profession, and talented young people will leave the field of teaching in even greater numbers.

 This paper considers these critical issues concerning teacher training and discusses the excessively high expectations and disappointment in the training of practical teaching skills, as well as the responses from universities regarding their teacher training programmes and pedagogy. The paper also discusses the various issues currently faced by faculties of education at regional national universities in Japan, and their responses thereto.

 This paper aims to reexamine the concept and actual situation of the Graduate Teachers College of Winnetka (GTCW, 1932-1954).

 Winnetka public schools are well known for the “Winnetka Plan,” the leading case of school reform in the progressive education movement. Previous studies have shown that Winnetka public schools and two private schools organized the GTCW, where schoolteachers acted as teacher supervisors and trained graduate students (student-teachers) for progressive schools. The GTCW was recognized as the leading case of school-based teacher education, because it produced ideal teachers, called “teachers as learners” or “teachers as researchers.” However, recent research has suggested the possibility that the GTCW was established for reciprocal learning between supervising teachers and graduate students. Thus, its establishment process must be reexamined from the viewpoint of the professional development of supervising teachers as well as graduate students.

 The findings of this study are as follows. The concept of the GTCW, in which supervising teachers (schoolteachers) trained graduate students in pursuit of their own further professional development, was presented by the superintendent of the Winnetka public schools and two principals of progressive private schools, North Shore Country Day School and Francis Wayland Parker School. They devised the GTCW as a new plan of in-service teacher education. The dean and supervising teachers realized the concept through the selection of entrants and design of teacher education programs. The supervising teachers selected entrants who had experience of academic study and/or a teaching career in relation to new education worldwide. They then prepared a problem-based teacher education program, in order to bring out entrantsʼ background experiences. In short, supervising teachers expected entrantsʼ heterogeneous backgrounds to bring about opportunities for reconstructing and enhancing their own professional thinking and skills. Their expectations were realized in the interaction between supervising teachers and graduate students. The supervising teachers reconsidered their curriculum design and discipline of practical research, the basis of their practices and professional decisions, in the process of educating graduate students.

 As has been discussed, Winnetka schoolteachers organized an environment for the promotion of their own professional development by means of interactions between supervising teachers and graduate students. It was a higher level of in-service teacher education than the standard model in which teachers undergo job training organized by others, such as researchers or administrators. In conclusion, this study appraises the GTCW as the leading case in which schoolteachers realized a higher level of in-service teacher education.

 The purpose of this study is to clarify what reappointment teachers think about their roles in their schools, focusing on their relationships with colleagues.

 Each local government has a different system of reappointment, while reappointment teachers have various working styles. Therefore, this study focused on reappointment teachers in elementary schools in βCity, αPrefecture, and interviewed 25 people about their job details and role consciousness.

 The working styles of the reappointment teachers in elementary schools in βCity fell into five types; (1) full-time reappointment teachers with managerial experience, who instruct novice teachers; (2) part-time reappointment teachers with managerial experience who instruct novice teachers; (3) full-time reappointment teachers who do not instruct novice teachers but have managerial experience; (4) full-time reappointment teachers without managerial experience who do not instruct novice teachers; (5) part-time reappointment teachers without managerial experience who do not instruct novice teachers.

 The study found three types of role consciousness among reappointment teachers in elementary schools.

 First, the teachers felt that their role was to nurture novice and younger teachers. For reappointment teachers of types (1) and (2), instruction of novice teachers was positioned as their main task. Although the reappointment teachers of type (5) shared this role consciousness, they felt that, as part-time workers, they lacked the time to carry out the task.

 Second, the reappointment teachers saw their role as supporting in-service teachers. The teachers of types (2) and (5) taught some classes and conducted individual teaching for children. The reappointment teachers of type (2) tried to engage with colleagues based on their awareness of having stepped down from managerial positions. Those of type (5) recognized their position as peripheral because they were part-time workers and “retired teachers.”

 Third, some reappointment teachers said that they could not find their own role as reappointment teachers. Some of the type (4) teachers felt no change in their role after becoming reappointment teachers, because they did the same jobs as before retirement. The others had lost sight of their roles, because they were negatively aware of their roles as reappointment teachers.

 According to the narratives of reappointment teachers, becoming a reappointment teacher means a loss of managerial status or membership in the organization of in-service teachers. This study suggests the consideration of how to utilize retired teachers. If the institution of reappointment teachers is to continue, it is necessary to consider systems in which they donʼt have to feel this loss, and where, even if feeling this loss, they can accept it and re-create a new role consciousness and teacher identity.