EDUCATION

The Japanese Prime Minister has apologized for the postponement of the planned introduction of private-sector English tests for university admission. (NHK)

An Ainu indigenous rights association in Hokkaido has filed a lawsuit against the University of Tokyo, seeking the return of remains of their ancestors stored at the university. (Japan Times)

The government decided Friday to put off the planned introduction of private-sector English proficiency tests as part of Japan’s standardized university entrance exams due to start next April, the education minister said, following his gaffe over the matter. (Japan Today)

The government will write family names first when using the Roman alphabet for Japanese names on official documents from Jan. 1, the education minister said Friday. (Japan Times)

A record 2,829,416 foreign people were registered as residents at the end of June as more and more technical interns and workers enter Japan amid a severe labor shortage, government data showed Friday. (Japan Times)

Japanese Bonsai Trees have been a part of Japanese culture for over 1000 years going back to the Heian Era. Today, we’ll visit the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum 大宮盆栽美術館 in Saitama to see some amazing tree! One in particular is a 1000 year old Ezo Spruce that has a lot of personality. (ONLY in JAPAN)

Fukuoka Prefectural Police have arrested a staff member at a kindergarten in Munakata City over the alleged abuse of a male pupil earlier this year, reports Kyodo News (Oct. 21). (tokyoreporter.com)

The number of foreign students who changed their visa status to work in Japan after graduating from universities or vocational schools hit a record high in 2018, immigration authorities said Wednesday, amid a chronic manpower shortage in the nation. (Japan Times)

Bullying cases reported at schools across Japan totaled 543,933 in fiscal 2018, up 31.3 percent from a year earlier and the highest level on record, according to an education ministry survey released Thursday. (Japan Times)

Japanese commercial banks have been snapping up zero-coupon debt issued by a state-backed scholarship body in the latest twist in the the Bank of Japan’s negative rate campaign where no-interest loans can be a good deal for lenders. (Nikkei)