The education ministry plans to boost the number of teachers and other faculty members at public elementary and junior high schools in Japan by 60,000 on a net basis by fiscal 2018 to create smaller classes while dealing with students according to their learning levels, ministry sources said Tuesday.
As part of its medium- to long-term guidelines for faculty deployment, the ministry also plans to cut the maximum size of a class to 30-35 students from the current 40. This would be the first class-size reduction move since fiscal 1980, when they were cut to 40 from 45.
The planned addition of faculty members comprises an increase of 20,000 in the eight years from fiscal 2011, which starts next April, with a goal of providing more thorough education through smaller classes. Separately, 40,000 more employees in the five years from fiscal 2014 are being sought to improve special classes for students with disabilities and to teach students according to their abilities.