Japan and Germany under the U.S. Occupation: A Comparative Analysis of Post-War Education Reform [Paperback]

Focusing on the post war reconstruction of the education systems in Japan and Germany under U.S. military occupation after World War II, this book offers a comparative historical investigation of education reform policies in these two war ravaged and ideologically compromised countries. While in Japan large-scale reforms were undertaken swiftly after the end of the war, the U.S. zone in Germany maintained most of the traditional aspects of the German education system. Why did Japan so readily accept ideas and values developed in the allied countries while Germany resisted? Masako Shibata explores this question, arguing that the role of the university and the pattern of elite formation, which can be traced back to the period of the formation of Meiji Japan and the Kaiserreich, created the conditions for differing reactions from educational leaders in each country; this had a decisive impact on the proposed reforms. By examining these reactions through a sociological, cultural, and historical frame, an explanation emerges.Japan and Germany under the U.S. Occupationwill prove to be a valuable resource both to scholars of history and education reform.Masako Shibatais assistant professor in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Tsukuba University, Japan.

The volume is indeed fascinating and insightful . . . relevant and thought-provoking. Anni Baker, Wheaton College,H-German

Written in a comprehensive and accessible fashion. The Journal of Japanese Studies

Shibata draws widely yet eclectically on government documents, memoirs, and contemporary newspaper accounts. . . . Recommended. Undergraduate collections. S.F. White, Mount St. Mary's University,Choice Reviews

Masako Shibata's book,Japan and Germany under the U.S. Occupation, is an excellent comparative analysis of post-war education reform in the two countries. Shibata uses crucial findings from Japanese resources and German lãî