Any type of education implemented by a modern nation-state is, at least in part, a
tool for socializing its people. In this regard, Japanese language and literature education,
kokugo, has played an important role in Japan by emphasizing nationalism and the
integrity of a Japanese identity. According to Ishihara (2007) and Lee (1996 [English
translation 2010]), kokugo, since its inception in 1900, has promoted moral awareness
and assimilation of Japanese ideals across the country. However, responding to
unsatisfactory test results in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) in
2003 and 2006, Japan’s Ministry of Education Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
(MEXT) adjusted kokugo education policies. A decision was made to place more
emphasis on language skills rather than on the traditional kokugo approach that had been
in place from the beginning of the Meiji era (1868-1912). Based on an analysis of
Wakaru Kokugo Yomikaki no Tsubo (WKYT) (Understanding Kokugo: The Secrets of
Reading and Writing), an educational television program for elementary school kokugo
classes by Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), this thesis discusses how language skill
development has recently been introduced into the kokugo curriculum and Japanese
kokugo education policies. This thesis also uses the historical-structural approach of
critical language policy research developed by Tollefson (1991, 2013) and Street (1993)
to analyze how this modified kokugo education has the potential to affect the social
development of students.