126
lem solutions, rather than research reflecting Japanese higher education based on
international perspectives. In many cases, the higher education researchers that
were trained through the newly established academic approaches in the last two or
three decades have faced difficulty in directly applying what they studied to the very
practical nature of the jobs they have acquired as experts in teaching/learning
improvement, institutional research, and so forth. In this context, the graduate train-
ing in higher education research itself is now at the crossroads—it is now more
linked to the practices of higher education in Japan and in the world, but not neces-
sarily engaged in the active development of international research frameworks in a
traditional domain of higher education research. Actually, some experts, such as
those involved in faculty development, institutional research, and quality assurance,
are now starting to actively engage in international expert meetings, while it is too
early to identify the outcome in terms of quality literature from Japan.
Following are suggestions to improve the regional and global connection.
First, higher education researchers in Japan and Asia should develop their
regional academic platforms, such as the Higher Education Research Association,
which just saw its beginning in 2014. Second, the higher education research com-
munity should involve the academics and researchers who are actively engaged in
the international research community. Considering the interdisciplinary nature of
this research field, this approach would be more effective. Finally, the systematic
efforts to provide training and instruction to actively publish in English should be
strengthened, as seen in some social science fields these days. At this moment, how-
ever, such initiatives are slow and weak. Especially, it is crucial for them to find
training and job opportunities outside of Japan and to assure a more direct connec-
tion between domestic and international higher education research communities.
References
Allen, J., Inenaga, Y., Velden, R. van der, & Yoshimoto, K. (eds.) (2007). Competencies, higher
education and career in Japan and the Netherlands. Dordrecht: Springer.
Altbach, P. G., & Ogawa, Y. (Eds.). (2002). Special issue on higher education in Japan. Higher
Education, 43(1), 1–155.
Altbach, P. G., & Umakoshi, T. (Eds.). (2004). Asian universities: Historical perspectives and
contemporary challenges. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Amano, I. (1986). Koto Kyoiku no Nihonteki Kozo (Structure of higher education in Japan). Tokyo:
Tamagawa University Press.
Amano, I. (1990a). Henkyosei to kyokaijinsei (The marginal men in the periphery). Studies of
Educational Sociology, 47(1), 89–94.
Amano, I. (1990b). Education and examination in modern Japan. Tokyo: University of Tokyo
Press.
Arimoto, A., Cummings, W. K., Huang, F., & Shin, J. C. (Eds.). (2015). The changing academic
profession in Japan. Dordrecht: Springer.
Bao, W. (2007). Chugoku no Minei Koto Kyoiku Kikan (Private higher education institutions in
China). Tokyo: Toshindo.
Beppu, A. (1998). Doitsu ni okeru Daigaku Kyoju no Tanjo (Beginning of the academic profession
in Germany). Tokyo: Sobunsha.
A. Yonezawa