A Sociological Research on Educational Reform and Restructuring the Educational Process

20世纪80年代以来，许多发达国家都进行了激进的教育改革，一方面试图解决扩大后的教育体系中的各种矛盾和功能低下，另一方面也是为了科普沿着信息时代的兴起和经济全球化等社会变革而出现的新的教育需求。日本也不例外。本研究旨在探讨日本实施了哪些改革政策和方案，其背后的理念和意识形态是什么，这些政策和方案如何改变和将如何改变教与学的形式、功能和日常实践，以及这些改革将对儿童和青少年的生活环境产生什么样的影响。主要研究结果如下：（1）20世纪80年代以来的教育改革运动，可以说是日本近代教育史上的第三次教育改革，其指导思想是个人主义、精英主义和进步主义的混合意识形态。改革的指导原则和口号是学习个性化、扩大选择和放松管制。（2）日、英、美三国当前的教育改革运动既有相似之处，也有不同之处，它们都有教育私有化和市场化的共同趋势。日本强调个性，轻视效率，而其他两个国家则强调卓越和效率。（3）本研究从理论上探讨了这些改革和变化如何可能重构教/学实践，破坏学校和区域的共同体以及学校教育的公共性质。

Since 1980s, radical educational reforms have taken place in many advanced countries, trying partly to solve various contradictions and functional inefficiencies of the expanded educational system and partly to cope with the new educational demands which emerged along with such social changes as the rise of information age and the globalizing economy. Japan is no exception. This research intended to investigate what kinds of reform policies and programs have been adopted in Japan, what kinds of philosophy and ideology there are behind them, how those policies and programs have changed and will change the forms, functions and daily practices of teaching and learning, and what kinds of impacts those reforms will have on life environments of children and youths. Some of the major research results and findings are as follows :(1)The current educational reform movements since 1980s, which may be considered as third major educational reform in the Japanese history of modern schooling, have been guided by the peculiarly mixed ideology of individualism, elitism and progressivism. The guiding principles and slogans of reforms are individualization of learning, expansion of choice, and deregulation.(2)Ther are similarities and differences among current reform movements in Japan, UK and USA.There are common tendencies toward privatization and marketization of education in these three countries. Individuality is emphasized and efficiency is devalued in Japan ; whereas excellence and efficiency are emphasized in other two countries.(3)The research examined theoretically how these reforms and changes may restructure the practices of teaching/learning and undermine the community of school and region and the public nature of schooling.