Importance and purposes of education The origins of the Japanese commitment to education lie in the Confucian and Buddhist heritage in which great respect is accorded learning and educational endeavor as means to personal and societal improvement. Today, there is a clear consensus that education is essential for both individual and national development and that it requires active, sustained commitment of energy and resources at all levels of society. Parents and children take education seriously because success in school is a crucial determinant of economic and social status in adult life. Government policymakers and business leaders view the content and quality of public education as central to national cohesion, economic development, and international relations. To the Japanese, education has always had important goals in addition to acquisition of academic knowledge, intellectual growth, or vocational skills. Moral education and character development are also among the central concerns. There is a strong consensus that schools have the obligation and authority to impart fundamental Japanese values as the foundation of proper moral attitudes and personal habits. Respect for society and the established order, prizing group goals above individual interests, diligence, self-criticism, and well-organized and disciplined study and work habits are all traits, which are believed to be amenable to instruction. The child's learning experiences at each level from preschool through 12th grade reinforce their acquisition. Japanese teachers believe that the proper development of these values, attitudes, and habits is fundamental to success in the classroom as well as in adult life.