The measurement of children’s academic achievements and the explanation of differences between social classes should not be dismissed by sociologists of education. Although inequality is a major theme of the field, the sociology of education has lacked empirical evidence on the structure of disparities in academic achievements. This is partly due to the difficulties involved in collecting sufficient data on academic achievement through schools.

In and after 2002, studies were begun on the relationship between academic achievement and social class in Japan. At the time, schools were being heavily criticized within the context of the debate over falling children’s academic achievements. Some significant surveys were administered at that time, though they were small in number. However, they left some important issue to be solved. The first is that analyses of the determinants of academic achievement are inadequate for clarifying what factors will diminish class differences in achievement. The second concerns the reliability and validity of the variables collected. In particular, variables on the economic conditions of households are lacking. Finally, the surveys were conducted only in large cities.

This paper examines the factors that affect children’s academic achievements, and the extent of the effect of such factors, through an analysis of the data of the Japan Education Longitudinal Study 2003 (JELS2003). JELS2003 was conducted in two areas: one a middle-sized city within the capital metropolitan areas, and the other a small local city. It also contains variables about the economic conditions of households.

The major findings of the paper are as follows.

1. In the small local city, the differences of academic achievement between social classes were relatively small.

2. In the middle-sized city within the metropolitan area, children’s academic achievements were affected by the level of monthly educational expenses, level of educational expectations of the child, and income level of the family.

Inequalities in children’s academic achievements in our society should be grasped in the context of the substitution of “parentocracy” for meritocracy.

In this paper, I give an account focusing on the life stories of the studentsߣ mothers who attend the AmerAsian School in Okianwa. I describe the interactions Japanese mothers have experienced in the process of raising their children. In addition, I refer to the parenting educational strategies written in the book, Axis of the Educational Strategies of People Who are Transnationally Mobile (2013) by Shimizu Koukichi and others; to arrange the experiences of the mothers who are raising Amerasian children into phases. Mothers who are raising Amerasian children have experienced many hardships and struggles through unintended moves. In this case study, those experiences are granted a positive meaning, and as an agency are presented as a deed to help out other mothers and children. When we see the family stories that the mothers have given meaning to, and when attention is focused on the self-help network of the parents; as individuals the mothers are not wealthy considering their “capital,” but in relationship and interactions they are committed to education.

As people increasingly make diverse choices regarding education, the phenomenon of Japanese students attending gaikokujin-gakkou—non-Japanese schools—has emerged recently. This study aims to reveal the reasons for these choices and the difficulties children face because of these decisions. Specifically, this paper examines the case of nine Japanese students attending a new Korean school—“T-school.”

Students who have difficulty in public schools select T-school as a place that enables them to pursue “international” subjects and make a fresh start. In addition, students choose this school based on its accessibility to all regardless of ethnic or socioeconomic background and community factors such as commuting distance or favorable relationships between T-school and the local community. These results show that gaikokujin-gakkou can play important roles which have not been fully grasped in previous research: providing more diverse students who have had difficulties in public schools with a new place, guaranteeing their right to an education and meeting their diverse educational needs.

Conversely, this study also clarifies the difficult experiences experienced due to such educational choices such as strained relations with Japanese public schools wherein students must be enrolled to obtain an official junior high school equivalent diploma (T-school and most other gaikokujin-gakkous are not officially recognized in Japan)，restricted high school options, and struggle over students’ sense of belonging. To solve these problems, it is necessary to elucidate and promote an understanding of the reality of various students who have been excluded in previous research. Research such as this will contribute to the accumulation of evidence to legitimately evaluate the role of gaikokujin-gakkou and critically highlight the rigidity and exclusivity of the current Japanese public education system.