55 Enryō gave up on negotiating with Higashi Honganji and decided to establish the school on his own. Before discussing that, however, it might be helpful if we look at the state of higher education in Japan at the time. Japan’s modern education system began in the Meiji era. Before that in the Edo period the gentry would study at the fief schools, but many ordinary people also had an interest in education. Therefore, there were many places that provided opportunities for learning such as temple elementary schools, schools at teachers’ houses, and private academies (mostly run by Confucianists). Japan’s literacy rate was said to have been the highest in the world. However, these were things that de-veloped naturally throughout the course of Japan’s history and did not constitute compulsory education. The Meiji government introduced a French-style education system based on the principle that “all citizens should receive education uni-formly, without distinction between the gentry and commoners.” This was the result of the School System act that was promulgated in 1872. It called for the establishment of one elementary school for every six hundred people (total: 53,760 schools), one middle school for every 130,000 people (total: 256 schools), and eight universities nationwide (later revised to seven). However, due to the weak finan-cial base of the government, it was extremely difficult for them to execute the plan and it took several decades to realize. III. The Philosophy Academy Era (1) The Beginnings of Higher Education
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