School Ordinance - Gakkourei

It is a general term for the Imperial University Act, promulgated in March 1886 (Meiji 19), and the Elementary School Act, Middle School Act, and Normal School Act, all of which were promulgated in April of the same year. In a broader sense, it can also include the Elementary School Act of the 1880s, the High School Act, and the various School Acts of the 1890s (Vocational School Act, Girls' High School Act, Private School Act, and Technical School Act).

The Imperial University Act, as it states, "The purpose of the Imperial University is to teach academic arts and sciences in accordance with the needs of the nation and to explore their depths," suggested the framework of a nationalistic education system and the functions of education and research, and established five specialized universities, including a law school, and a graduate school. Until the Imperial University was established in Kyoto in 1897 (Meiji 30), the only Imperial University was located in Tokyo (the former University of Tokyo). The Elementary School Act established a two-stage system of four-year elementary school and two-year high school, with four years of elementary school being compulsory. In addition, three-year elementary schools could be established depending on the local conditions. The Middle School Act had a dual structure of vocational and academic advancement, and accordingly established a five-year ordinary middle school and a two-year high school. The former was to be one school in each prefecture, the latter a preparatory step to the Imperial University and an institution for training leaders for the upper classes, and five schools were established in five districts across the country. The Normal School Act saw the ideal teacher as one with the temperament of obedience, faith, and dignity, and established one higher normal school in Tokyo and one ordinary normal school in each prefecture. The former was to train ordinary normal school principals and teachers, and the latter was to train public elementary school principals and teachers. In this way, the School Act aimed to establish a school system from the center → prefectures → cities, towns, and villages as national education based on the principle of national wealth and strength, in preparation for the development of a modern national system. Although various revisions were made thereafter, the school system formed the basis of the National School Act of the Showa era.

[Hiroki Otsuki]

"Fifty Years of the Education System" (1922), compiled and published by the Ministry of Education; "Research on the History of Educational Administration in the Early Meiji Period" by Akimoto Kaneko (1967, Kazama Shobo) ; "Education in the Meiji Period" by Shin Naka (1967, Shibundo, Japanese History Paperbacks)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

1886年（明治19）3月公布の帝国大学令、同年4月公布の小学校令、中学校令、師範学校令の総称であるが、広義には、明治20年代の小学校令、高等学校令、30年代の諸学校令（実業学校令、高等女学校令、私立学校令、専門学校令）を含む場合もある。

　帝国大学令は、「国家ノ須要(すよう)ニ応スル学術技芸ヲ教授シ及其(その)蘊奥(うんおう)ヲ攻究スルヲ以(もっ)テ目的トス」とあるように、国家主義教育体制の枠組みと、教育、研究の機能を示唆し、法科大学などの五つの分科大学と、大学院を設置した。1897年（明治30）京都に帝国大学が設立されるまで、唯一の帝国大学は東京にあった（旧東京大学）。小学校令は、尋常小学校、高等小学校の2段階、四・四の8年制とし、尋常小学校4年間は義務化された。また土地の情況に応じて3年制の小学簡易科を置くことができた。中学校令は、実業方面と進学方面の二重構造からなっており、それに対応して、5年制の尋常中学校と2年制の高等中学校を設けた。前者は各府県に各1校、後者は帝国大学への予備階梯(かいてい)および社会上流の指導者養成機関とし、全国を5区に分け5校が設置された。師範学校令は、順良、信愛、威重の気質を教師像の典型と見立て、東京に高等師範学校1校を置き、尋常師範学校は府県ごとに各1校とした。前者は尋常師範学校長および教員、後者は公立小学校長および教員を養成するものとした。このように学校令は、近代国家体制の整備に向けて、中央→府県→市町村の学校体系を、国家富強主義に基づく国体教育として確立しようとするものであった。学校制度としては、以後、種々の改正がなされながらも、昭和の国民学校令に至るまでの根幹をなした。

［大槻宏樹］

『文部省編・刊『学制五十年史』（1922）』▽『金子昭基著『明治前期教育行政史研究』（1967・風間書房）』▽『仲新著『明治の教育』（1967・至文堂・日本歴史新書）』

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