"Use no more than 30cm of toilet paper each time"

Japan has a long history of an extremely stringent education system where students are punished for the smallest infractions such as sneezing more than three times or for not applauding your teaching when he/she enters the room. In others classes, I learned that during fascist pre-war government, the school curriculum was designed so that boys could become unquestioning, obedient soldiers and women would become “good wives and wise mothers.” It seems that these harsh rules are still enacting even 70 years after the war. Last year, an Osaka high school student brought a lawsuit because her school prohibited her from dyeing her hair brown.

Throughout the article, the author makes brash and forceful comments against the Japanese education system, using evidence from a couple of books written about the subject. For me, it was very difficult to actually judge how bad the education system because there are seemingly contradictory statements. For instance, the author says that its “a minority of schools that account for the problematic issues” but also claiming the the entire country’s educational system is flawed.

The topic of conformity has always been on my mind since coming to Japan. I find it really interesting that Japanese people won’t cross a one lane street if the light is red but no cars are nearby. We see evidence of the sacrifice of individual freedom through discipline in exchange for the collective good in all aspects of the Japanese society. For example, company employees work unpaid overtime and commit themselves to their company, even though it causes psychological stress and personal pain. I can’t help but think that the education system is the main reason for this type of behavior because it’s one of the most important formative times of a person's development. How can we do find the right balance of individual liberty and collective good?