Seiken Akamine of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) attended a meeting of the Special Committee on Okinawa and Northern Problems in the Lower House on July 9. He touched on a government proposal “to cooperate with the U.S. to improve English language education,” which assumes studying at universities on the premises of U.S. bases. The proposal is included in the….Read more

A representative of Spokane Community College (SCC) in the U.S. state of Washington visited the head office of the Okinawa Times on May 16. Okinawa Shogaku Senior High School (Okisho) is hoping to conclude an agreement with the American college on admitting students on the basis of recommendations.   SCC is a two-year college and 22 of its approximately 2,000 students….Read more

By MITSURU OBE, Nikkei staff writer   TOKYO — For ambitious young Asians, studying in the U.S. has long been a natural choice. They venture across the vast Pacific to pursue degrees with global cachet and, perhaps, take a shot at the American dream. Increasingly, though, the region’s students are making a radical decision: They are staying close to home. ….Read more

The number of Japanese students aiming to play sports at U.S. universities is increasing. Playing sports in the U.S. gives students opportunities to not only try to become professional athletes by participating in many games in an environment where the level of competition is high internationally but also to hone their English language skills and pursue studies. There are scholarship….Read more

The “Ryugin Kokusaika Shinko Zaidan,” a Bank of the Ryukyus foundation to promote international exchanges, has set up a scholarship program to award up to 2.4 million yen to a high school student and around two undergraduate or graduate students who are looking to study abroad. It will solicit applications from May 1 through June 29.   A high school….Read more

By Tatsuya Yokei   The race for students to get into universities is about to begin. On Jan. 13, a national test for university admissions will kick off. The University of Tokyo, commonly known as Todai, is at the top of Japan’s academic hierarchy. A great number of children start to study hard to get into Todai even from primary….Read more

Okinawa Shogaku Senior High School will conclude a partnership agreement with Gonzaga University, in the U.S. state of Washington, in October. Students of the Japanese school who meet comprehensive standards will be able to advance to the U.S. university without sitting for an entrance exam. The agreement will begin to be applied to students who graduate from Okinawa Shogaku Senior….Read more

For a while now, the Japanese people are said to be inward-looking.