Diversity or Hierarchy?A Study on the Classifi-cation Reform of Higher Education in Japan
Appropriate classification of higher education institutions is important for promoting the diversity of higher education.Post-war Japan gradually developed a diverse classification system of higher education institutions.However,there is an increasing hierar-chical differentiation between elite universities and other institutions,and among elite uni-versities.This exacerbated especially when intensive reform took place,and caused the higher education system to be seemingly diverse but actually hierarchical.It harms the bal-ance of higher education and social equity in Japan.The key reason is that the government adopted a linear'externally designed and top-down'reform strategy which does not align with the nonlinear patterns of higher education.It disrupts the self-organizing process of higher education,leading to a continuous reinforcement of hierarchical trend and hardness to break through initially.China should lead an'internal emergence and bottom-up'reform of higher education classification as in the universal stage,supporting grassroots innova-tions in higher education organizations,and fostering a healthy ecosystem.
Japanese higher educationclassification reform of higher educationdi-versity of higher educationhierarchy of higher education
万方数据
维普
