Field-based learning that takes students out of the classroom and into real-world settings is gaining traction in Japanese education, with students from Dalton Tokyo Junior and Senior High School and Minerva University in the United States visiting the Unosumai district of Kamaishi in Iwate Prefecture in November as part of an inquiry-based learning program to trace the aftermath of the March 11 disaster. (News On Japan)

Foreign nationals have been appointed as drivers on local bus routes for the first time nationwide, using Japan’s Specified Skilled Worker program, in a move aimed at easing chronic labor shortages in the sector. (News On Japan)

Kyoto University has been selected as a candidate for designation as an “University of International Research Excellence,” a national program that provides government funding to institutions aiming to conduct world-class research. (News On Japan)