April Is a Time of New Beginnings

The entrance ceremony at Ebara Hiratsuka Gakuen for the 2015 school year.

April makes us feel energetic as the days grow warmer. It is also a lively time for the Shinagawa City Office, since April is a time of new beginnings in Japan. It is the start of a new school year, and school entrance ceremonies mark a completely new chapter of school life. Many companies also hold entrance ceremonies for incoming new employees, and many organizational and personnel changes come into effect. As a result, the number of people moving in or out of Shinagawa around this time because of enrollment of school or joining a company increases, so city offices are buzzing with people taking care of a variety of procedures.

Shinagawa City public elementary schools will hold this year’s entrance ceremonies on Wednesday, April 6, while junior high schools and compulsory education schools will hold theirs on Thursday, April 7. Among the fluttering cherry blossoms, scenes of young children starting school life with brand new Randoseru school backpacks and students in new uniforms they are not yet used to, are a major reminder in Japan that a new “year” has begun.

As the weather grows nice, why not use this opportunity to take on a new challenge?

Why Do Japanese Schools Start in April?

April is the start of a new “year” in Japan. At public institutions, it is also the start of a new fiscal year. This custom began in the Meiji era in order to solve problems associated with tax revenues. The April-March fiscal year was subsequently enacted into law and is still used today. Actually, the now-traditional April school start was not historical practice; the education system was encouraged to align with the fiscal year.

In the Edo era, private elementary schools and clan schools did not have a particular enrollment start. With the Meiji Restoration and the introduction of Western education to Japan, a September start became the norm. However, an April start was encouraged with the introduction of the fiscal year system and became official for elementary schools in 1900. In 1921, the former Imperial Universities switched from September to April enrollment, effectively making April enrollment the standard.