Yes, the demands of high school are much higher in Japan, but then apparently too many students, once free of high school and Mom and Dad pushing them, end up partying their college years away. Apparently most Japanese companies don’t pay attention to college grades, so long as the university has a good reputation. It’s burn out. Kids need to play and if they can’t do it while they are kids, they will do it later.
Decades ago Russia tried starting their kids in school a year earlier than usual, with the idea of getting them in the workforce sooner to beat the USA during the Cold War. The result was that kids stalled about mid-elementary school levels for a year or so. They gained nothing in terms of quality of kids and had only extra expenses. It appears Japanese kids are stalling during college. Human nature is something we often can’t manipulate like daylight savings time.
“......It’s burn out. Kids need to play and if they can’t do it while they are kids, they will do it later......”
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Agreed. In Japan the pressure on kids is very high. For boys, it’s to get to university. For girls, it to get married.
A wise old friend from New Zealand pointed out to me one day while shopping. ...He said. Something like, “the kids even play polite “.
Japan has its own demons to slay. But to get back on topic, education is vital to human progress.