Along with the economy, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to "revive" the nation's public school education since he returned to the government's helm two years ago. As on many other issues on his agenda, he has resorted to a top-down approach on education reforms, many of which involved changing the systems in ways that strengthen the roles of government authorities in public school education.
In January 2013, less than a month after taking office, Abe created what he termed a conference for action on reviving the nation's education. A panel of experts under his direct auspices was tasked with setting the basic direction on his education-related agenda ranging from introduction of moral education as part of the formal school curriculum to changes to the local board of education system and university entrance exam reforms. The Central Council for Education, an advisory panel to the education minister, worked on specific measures along the direction set by Abe's conference.
Abe, who during his first stint as prime minister in 2006 revised the Fundamental Law of Education to include teaching children the "love of our country and homeland" among the purposes of education, has retained his passion for the state's greater involvement in public school policies. One example was the change introduced in January to the education ministry's guideline for screening of school textbooks to say that references to events in the nation's modern and contemporary history should reflect the national government's views and Supreme Court rulings.