Gifted science education in the context of Japanese standardisation

In Japan, a nation recognised for its scientific and technological creativity, “fostering innovative talent” has recently become an important catchphrase. With the advent of the twenty-first century, various policies continue to be implemented in Japan concerning science education for gifted children. For example, after starting with twenty-six schools in 2002, the number of Super Science High Schools (SSH) increased to 203 by 2015. Yet the word “gifted” (sainou) was incorporated into education policy only relatively recently in Japan. For most of the post-war period, nationwide science education has been conducted according to a stan-dardised one-size-fits-all approach.