Page 12 - Japanese Growth and Education: 演講人：Motohisa Kaneko教授

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universalized in the 1920’s.

The high basic skills in reading and writing commonly shared by the whole
population provided the basis for the dynamic economic growth. Business
enterprises made substantial investment on education and training of the

workers. The high levels of basic skills rendered in the schools system was
then combined with specific knowledge and skills required for the job. The
combination proved to be effective especially in raising the level of technology

and efficiency in the manufacturing sector.
It should be added that the Figure also demonstrates that after WWII, per
capita GDP started increasing rapidly, to the point that the paths of the three
countries finally started converging. This process of accelerated growth is the

subject of the following section.

“J-Mode”

The type of the link connecting between economic growth and education
gradually formed during the interwar period functioned to a fuller extent after

WWII. This I would call a “J-mode.”

Postwar reforms and accelerated growth

Before dealing with the function of J-mode, it is important to note the

social and economic environment of postwar Japan.
The end of WWII left Japan with a devastated economy. At the same time,
it forced every aspect of Japanese institution to change, that facilitated a fresh

ground on which a new mechanism of development grew. The pervasive land
reform eroded the class structure of prewar period, raising the aspiration of