Polytechnic schools in Japan

Polytechnic schools (職業能力開発校, Shokugyō nōryoku kaihatsukō) in Japan are vocational education institutions for short and long-term programs, a group of public human resources development facilities under paragraph (1) (i) of Article 15-6 of the Human Resources Development Promotion Law. It involves designated private sector as well.

Administrator

In the strict definition of polytechnic schools, prefectures of Japan shall administer, Municipalities of Japan can establish them,^[1] but neither the Stare of Japan, Independent Administrative Institution, nor JEED ^{[notes 1]} Polytechnic Centers (高度ポリテクセンター)^[8] is among those to administer those tasks.^[1]

On the other hand, private entities supporting job seekers can install a vocational training facility for such accredited programs, as long as governors of prefectures authorize when such entities fulfill the criteria of ordinance of the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare in Japan.^[9] In that case, with the exception of the restriction of the use of such public facilities names,^[10] it is allowed to name such facility a vocational skills development school. Strictly speaking, While some facility is nicknamed polytechnic college but provides Polytechnic School programs, the official name of either Polytec Center or polytechnic College is limited to apply for facilities adminited by another JEED vocational training section or Polytechnic Centers (ja:職業能力開発促進センター).^[11]

Japan's human resources development policy

Among the departments of Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), Human Resources Development Bureau is in charge of vocational training as defined in "The mission, realizing social development through individual skills development" policy in Reference section, the White Paper, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (厚生労働白書) for the fiscal year 2016 (Heisei 28).^[12] The Bureau focused on vocational training programs for human resource to train skills and give knowledge, to answer as well as sustain the manufacturing industry, a leading industry in Japan.^[13] The Bureau also expanded the focus on supplying productive labour forces as defined in "Policy Information—Human Resources Development." for those markets with expected intensive demands in the care and welfare for elderly and young children, as well as for intelligence technology.^[14]

Structure and Measures

The government of Japan and Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare overviewed the administration of human resources development^[15] in "the 8th Basic Plan for Human Resources Development",^[16] which was updated to "the 9th Basic Plan for Human Resources Development".^[17]

The implement was divided roughly into three categories; "Developing and improvement of vocational abilities," "Vocational ability evaluation and promotion of trade skills" with "International cooperation". The Bureau surveys human resources development measured by fiscal year.^[18]

Information on the policy is presented in detail as chapter 6, Structure of Human Resources Development Measures,^[19] and seven measures to implement the plan for:^[20]

Overview of HRD Administration^[20]^[21]
Vocational Training^[20]^[22]
Support for the working career formation^[20]^[23]
Provision against young people^[20]^[24]
Job Card System^[20]^[25]
Vocational ability evaluation and promoting trade skills^[20]^[26]
Technical Intern Training Program and 8 International cooperation^[20]^[27]

Certificate systems for skills

While graduates of vocational schools/colleges will receive graduation certificates, there is not a full system to issue them diploma which both Semmonshi and kōdo-Semmonshi are given as academic degree. In May 1963 when they selected national team to attend the 12th WorldSkills Competition in Ireland (第12回技能五輪国際大会 (Dai 12-kai Ginō gorin kokusai taikai)), the first National Skills Competition of Japan (技能五輪全国大会 (Ginō Gorin zenkoku taikai)) was head in Tokyo by MHLW.^[28] The competitors are nominated through local chapters of the Vocational Ability Development Association and other recommenders, who are 23 years old or younger. As of 2017, entrants will compete with their skills in six categories, and the results are hoped to appeal their ability and excellence to those industries for machine, metal working, electronics, construction, service and fashion, and IT.^[29]

The competition had been held in Tokyo and Chiba prefecture till 1990, and since 1991 and the 29th competition, Aichi prefecture became the host for the event co-sponsored by the local government and the Japan Vocational Ability Development Association (JAVADA, Chuō Shokugyō Kaihatsu kyōkai (ja:中央職業開発協会)), a Special Civil Corporation under the jurisdiction of Human Resources Development Bureau (MHLW). Later on, the regulation changed to involve other prefectures as the host.^[28] The year before the international competition, the national competition is doubled to top the selection procedures for the national team.^[29]

Youth under 20 years of age are eligible to enter two separate national competitions. The first is Youth Competition for Monozukuri (Jakunen monozukuri kyōgi taikai (ja:若年者ものづくり競技大会)), also sponsored by JAVADA since August 2005. The second is open for a student at a technical high school and the upper secondary school, specialized course (ja:専門高等学校 senmon kōtō gakkō) in their own national monozukuri contest for high school students (kōkōsē monozukuri kontesuto zenkoku taikai (高校生ものづくりコンテスト全国大会)), nicknamed Koshien for Work skills (ものづくり甲子園), organized by the National Association of Principals of Technical Senior High Schools (ja:全国工業高等学校長協会) under the jurisdiction of MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology).^[30] Those studying at standard high schools with integrated course (ja:総合学科 sōgō gakka) are also invited to enter at that competition.

For physically handicapped students, they have the Abilympics, or the Ability Olympics (ja:全国障害者技能競技大会 Zenkoku shōgaisha ginō kyōgi taikai) sponsored by the Japan Organization for Employment of the Elderly, Persons with Disabilities and Job Seekers (JEED, Kōrē shōgai kyūshokusha koyō sien kikō (独立行政法人高齢・障害・求職者雇用支援機構)).^[31] There are chances to proceed and participate in the International Abilympics (IA) every four year organized by the International Abilympic Federation.^[32]

MHLW sets a policy to "visualize graduates' abilities" with the National Trade Skills Testing System for Shokugyo kaihatsu gakko graduates aiming the manufacturing industry.^[14]^[33] Those aiming at service industries including fashion, hair dressing and curinary business, they will take national tests and receive certificates as a proof of their skills in each profession. Model cases have been sought since 2013,^[14] for example sales staff in retail sectors as in major department stores. Another challenge for the MLHW to target is to provide instructors for education services at private preparatory schools, and the scheme was expected to start in the following fiscal years.^[14]

Diploma for vocational skills

To contrast, the doplima system of Japan, or an academic degree, is governed by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, aiming originally to improve the reputation of a vocational school graduate, and to promote lifelong learning. Diploma will be issued to those who had completed a particular specialized course successfully designed for two years' study. A vocational school, or one that Ministry categorises either a "Semmon-gakkō" (専門学校)^{[notes 2]} which means a "professional training college, post-secondary course", and a "Senshū-gakkō" (専修学校), a "specialized training college, general course".^{[notes 3]}^[36] Sōichi Tanaka, then the head of the Lifelong Learning Policy Bureau (Shōgai gakushū seisaku-kyoku), MEXT, sealed and published the Act 17–349 on 9 September 2005 to Mayors, the heads of Board of Education in each prefecture, as well as the presidents of national universities offering Senshu gakkō (文科生第349号　平成17年9月9日　各都道府県知事, 各都道府県教育委員会, 専修学校を置く各国立大学法人学長殿, 文部科学省田中壮一郎.).^[37] ^{[notes 4]}

History

1947 – Employment Security Law was enacted, and vocational training center was defined in Article 27.
1949 – Employment Security Law revised to publicize vocational training centers.
1958 – Employment Security Law (1958) was enacted, and the general vocational training center was defined in Article 5.
1969 – Vocational Training Law was enacted, and the special vocational training school was defined in Article 15. Prefectures of Japan were able to set up advanced vocational training schools as defined in Article 16.
1978 – Vocational Training Law was revised, and special vocational training school and advanced vocational training school was turned into vocational training school as defined in paragraph (1) of Article 14.
1993 – Vocational training school became Polytechnic school defined in Paragraph (i) of Article 15-6 of Human Resources Development Promotion Law.

Varied names among prefectures

While there are 166 prefectural polytechnic schools all over Japan,^[38] they are named in different format as follows. The majority of those are called "xy college", while there are no regulating laws or regulations for colleges.