作者/Rong Zhang、Dennis McCorna
編譯/李明洋
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重量不重質，每況愈下的日本私立大學
高等教育的重要性在於促進經濟成長是眾所皆知的事，而且，在全球化、人口及科技的不斷變化衝擊著國家經濟的此時此刻，更加突顯出了高等教育的重要性。為了保持競爭力，一個國家就必須提升生產力，並且採取鼓勵創新的政策。日本正是這樣的一個國家。在經歷過前所未有的自然及人為動盪後，日本的經濟、社會及代表國家的精神均遭到極大的衝擊。
自2012年重新掌權後，現任首相安倍晉三乃祭出了所謂的「安倍經濟學（Abenomics）」，希望透過貨幣、財政和結構性政策這3支箭來重振日本的經濟。然而，最近經濟學界的權威人士對於安倍經濟學過去對日本經濟的疲弱表現給予了貶抑的評價。由於安倍先前祭出的兩支箭，也就是貨幣和財政政策，都沒能起到刺激經濟的效用，因此，安倍政策的支持者如今也只能將希望寄託在第3支箭上，也就是針對企業和勞動市場法則進行結構性的改革，同時也強調提升已然落後於歐美的日本高等教育品質，以提升國際競爭力。
然而，究竟應該如何提升日本的高等教育品質，儼然成為發生變化的人口結構，以及日益惡化的政府財政所應面對的主要課題。儘管包括整併國立大學、建立認證評鑑制度、擴大競爭性資源的分配，以及促進國際化等許多措施均已到位，然而，對於政府補助日漸減少的私立大學而言，這些措施卻未必具有正向的作用。此外，全球化已導致教育環境趨於惡化，而促使大學無不將招生重點放在學生的數量上，而非學生的素質上。
日本著名社會學家刈谷武彥認為日本高等教育的現況是一種「日本病（Japanese disease）」，並表示「除了少數幾所名校外，進大學已不再需要特別競爭，而且學生也喪失了讀書的動力。」之所以會有這樣的結果，主要是因為有許多私立大學沒有能力吸引到足夠的學生，使其面臨財政困難所致。
前多摩大學校長Gregory Clark也指出，私立大學必須確保招收到一定數量的學生，以維持學校財務的正常運作。然而，在2013學年度，將近半數的4年制私立大學無法招收到足夠的學生，以填補彼等學校的固定學生缺額。由於私立大學佔所有高等教育機構的75%以上，而且許多大專校院在過去10餘年來也相繼升格為4年制大學，致使這個問題的嚴重性更形複雜。
為了避免破產，並維持財務的正常運作，私立大學最常採用的策略就是向中國及其他亞洲國家的外國留學生招生，以填補空缺。這個策略十分迎合日本政府所喊出的，在2020年以前招收30萬名國際留學生的「30萬國際留學生計畫（300,000 International Students Plan）」。
由於私立大學將這些國外留學生視為學校存續的關鍵，所以許多大學都致力於強化提供給國際留學生的服務，例如提供大量的日語教育課程，提供生活問題的支持，幫忙解決住房問題，以及協助在日本找工作等。從本質上來講，學生就是大學的客戶，而大學就等同於產業。因此，教導學生的基本目標就是要滿足學生的需求，也可以將之視為讓學生知道他必然能夠拿到畢業證書。
然而，這種只著重學生數量的操作手法，意味著學術上的學習並不是大學裡最重要的事。舉凡任何對日本高等教育知之甚悉的人都知道，這樣的情況並不是什麼新鮮事，因為大多數的日本大學只要學生一被錄取，就不會對學生做多少要求。這樣的現象已經被許多著作提及，而且早已是眾所皆知的事。一旦學生進入大學，他們就不會讀書，只知道玩。對大多數的學生來說，大學生涯是在步入職場之前，唯一相對自由且得以悠閒的時光。
目前，針對「日本病」所提出的處方是一些針對日本學生進行補救教學，以及針對國外留學生進行日語特殊訓練的特殊教育計畫。這些內容同時也被拿來訓練大學新生獨立學習，以及激勵他們對校園生活產生興趣。此外，也提供學生攸關校園生活中各種面向的特殊指導方針，包括課程選修、學分取得、學費資助申請、實習及就業諮詢等。重點放在激勵學生，期望他們能夠投入更多的精力，並且努力學習。
雖然斷定這種處方的療效還言之過早，但是滋賀大學校長佐和隆光指出，之所以會有為數眾多的外國留學生前來日本攻讀大學和職業課程，主要是因為他們在本國的高等教育升學過程中受挫所致。這樣的論點正足以支持目前日本大學因不穩定的財務基礎，致使其不論學生的學業成就如何，只要付得起學費都（願意）招收的現象。
雖然經濟和人口結構的變化均超出了高等教育機構所能掌控的範疇，但在各個層面努力阻止教育品質的快速惡化，以解決現今日本私立大學所面臨的嚴重問題乃是當務之急。
在可見的將來，我們可以想像得到一所學術品質低劣的大學將不利於新生的招收，尤以外國留學生的招收為最，從而加劇學校財務的危機。現在正是日本大學和政治人物應該針對這些問題想出新的創新方法，真正地去解決問題，而不是只想要維持現狀。要讓私立大學做出改變，唯有讓他們瞭解到，維持現狀的結果只會是每況愈下（race to the bottom）。到最後，所有人都是輸家。
【作者介紹】
本文第一作者Rong Zhang博士為西日本工業大學(Nishinippon Institute of Technology)副教授，在日本執教超過15年。第二作者Dennis McCornac博士。丹尼斯McCornac博士為馬里蘭羅耀拉大學(Loyola University Maryland)訪問教授，曾在日本和越南的大學擔任教職，對亞洲教育極為熟稔。
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Private Universities in Japan: A Race to the Bottom?
The importance of higher education in promoting economic growth is a well-known axiom of development and this role is only expected to increase as changes in globalization, demography and technology impact national economies. To remain competitive, a nation will need to improve productivity and adopt policies that encourage innovation. One nation requiring such actions is Japan, which has faced unprecedented upheavals, both natural and manmade, that have significantly impacted its economy, society and national psyche.
Following a return to power in 2012, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, has pinned hopes on his economic policy dubbed “Abenomics,” a three-pronged approach to reflate the economy through monetary, fiscal and structural policies. Recently, however, economic pundits have been having a field day downplaying Abenomics following the weak economic performance of the Japanese economy over the past quarter. The first two arrows, monetary and fiscal policies, have been less than stimulating, and supporters of Abe’s strategy have now pinned their hope on the third “arrow”: structural reforms including changes in corporate and labor market regulations as well as emphasis on improving international competitiveness. This includes improving the quality of higher education in Japan, which has lagged behind its American and European counterparts.
How to improve higher education in Japan, however, has become a major task given the changing demographics and the dire straits of the government’s fiscal position. While a number of initiatives such as incorporating national universities, initiating a certified evaluation system, expanding competitive resource allocations, and promoting internationalization are already in place, these initiatives have not necessarily positively impacted private universities, which have suffered from continued declines in financial support from the national government. In addition, one could also argue that globalization has contributed to the deterioration of the educational environment, as quantity rather than quality of students has become the focus of university admission.
Kariya Takehiko, a well-known sociologist, terms the current situation in Japanese higher education the “Japanese disease” and notes that “with the exception of a small number of elite colleges, getting into university is no longer particularly competitive and students have lost their incentive to study.” A major factor contributing to this ailment is large number of private universities in financial difficulties due to the inability to attract enough students.
Gregory Clark, former president of Tama University, has noted private universities need to secure a certain number of students to maintain themselves as viable economic entities. During the 2013 academic year, however, slightly fewer than one-half of private four-year universities were unable to enroll enough students to fill their quota for a fixed number of students. The extent of the problem is further complicated by the fact private institutions comprise over 75 percent of all institutions and over the past decade a number of junior colleges have been restructured into four-year institutions.
One common strategy adopted by private institutions to avoid bankruptcy and remain financial viable is to recruit foreign students, primarily from China and other parts of Asia, to fill the open spaces. These efforts to increase the number of international students are in line with the Japanese government’s “300,000 International Students Plan,” which sets a long-term goal of having 300,000 registered international students at universities by 2020.
As private universities look to these foreign students as keys to survival, a large number are working hard to strengthen services for international students, such as providing substantial Japanese-language education courses, support for daily life issues, and help with housing and job-seeking in Japan. Essentially, students are the clients of the universities and higher education is an industry. Thus, the fundamental goal of student instruction is the satisfaction of the students, which can be looked at as implying students need to be assured that they will eventually graduate with a diploma.
This focus on quantity of students, however, implies that academic learning may not be the top priority. And anyone familiar with Japanese higher education knows this is not a new trend, as most Japanese universities have always demanded little of their students once they are enrolled. This phenomenon has been noted by the authors’ experiences, and is a well-known feature of Japanese higher education. Once students get into college, they do not study but play. For most, it is their only stretch of relative freedom and leisure before entering the workforce.
Some of the current prescriptions to treat the “Japanese disease” are special education programs consisting of remedial education for Japanese students and special training in the Japanese language for foreign students. Training is also being provided to foster new students’ independence in learning and stimulate their interest in campus life. Special guidance regarding all aspects of campus life, including class registration, credit acquisition, and applications for financial support, internships, and employment inquiries is also made available. Emphasis is placed on motivating students in the hope that students will devote more energy and effort to the task of learning.
The efficacy of such medicines may be too early to determine, but Takamitsu Sawa, president of Shiga University, asserts that the majority of foreign students pursuing undergraduate and vocational curricula in Japan are doing so because they have failed to advance to higher education in their own countries. This supports the contention that universities with insecure economic foundations will admit students almost regardless of their academic achievements or readiness so long as they can pay the fees.
While there is no doubt that economic and demographic changes are beyond the control of the institutions themselves, efforts to staunch the rapid deterioration in educational quality will be required on all fronts to resolve some of the more glaring problems facing private university higher education in Japan today.
Down the road, it is also easy to visualize poor university academic quality being detrimental to the recruitment of new students, in particular foreign students, which would exacerbate the financial crisis further. It is time for universities and politicians to consider new and innovative approaches to these problems, which actually provide solutions rather than maintaining the status quo. Private universities can be the agents of change by understanding that maintaining the status quo will simply result in a grand race to the bottom. And the bottom is a place where no one can win.
【Author】
Dr. Rong Zhang is an Associate Professor at Nishinippon Institute of Technology and has been teaching in Japan for more than 15 years. Dr. Dennis McCornac is a Visiting Affiliate Professor at Loyola University Maryland. He has extensive experience in Asia previously holding university positions in both Japan and Vietnam.
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圖片來源：flickr@clio1789
原文經合作媒體：《The Diplomat》授權編譯，未經許可不得轉載
