Japan to launch one-year teacher certification program to address staffing shortfall
The Japanese government will create a postgraduate track that lets individuals without prior teaching experience earn a license in as little as a year, aiming to ease a teacher shortage.
Tokyo officials intend to introduce a fast-track postgraduate pathway that enables people lacking formal teacher training to obtain a teaching license within a year. Applicants must hold a bachelor's degree and will be selected through a university and board of education process. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology will treat relevant professional experience as equivalent to 20 academic credits, with further 36 or 37 credits required depending on the school level.
Lectures are scheduled for April-May, followed by school-based training until December, and licenses will be awarded between January and March. After licensing, participants may serve as instructors before being formally hired as teachers in April. An advanced permit becomes available after three years of teaching and additional postgraduate credits.
Why it matters
It seeks to quickly boost Japan's dwindling teacher workforce by opening the profession to career changers.
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