DILEMMAS AND CHALLENGES FOR GOVERNMENTS, UNIVERSITIES, AND ACCREDITORS IN IMPLEMENTING AND EVALUATING THE CREDIT HOUR SYSTEM IN THE US AND JAPAN

This study examines and compares the methods used to address issues in the credit hour system of higher education in the U.S. and Japan. In the U.S., credit hours have been used as a means of determining federal funding allocations, but some institutions have engaged in malpractice such as credit hour abuse, fraud, and inflation. In response to the problem of misuse of federal financial aid based on credit hours, and the need for greater accountability for student learning outcomes, the federal government has recently redefined credit hours as well as encouraged institutions to seek federal approval for their competency-based education programs that decouple learning from the credit hour. Following the American model, Japan introduced a credit hour system in higher education after World War II to promote students' proactive learning outside of classes; however, this system has not functioned as well as it was originally intended: Japanese university students study for much fewer hours than what is required by law, and also in comparison to their cohorts in other countries. Additionally, the overwhelming amount of in-class study is one of the factors impeding out-of-class study. There have been discussions on what the credit hour system demonstrates with respect to academic activities and learning outcomes, and how it should be evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively in terms of both external accreditation and internal quality assurance. If credit hours are regarded as common currency, the recent U.S. movement to rethink its system can bring major changes in the manner of interpreting and assuring the quality of this currency. Based on document analysis, this study examines the U.S. and Japanese approaches to dealing with issues in the credit hour system, focusing on three stakeholders: government policymakers, higher education institutions,