Formal Caring Alternatives: Kindergartens and Day-Care Centers

Ben-Ari explores the role and rationale of the Japanese state in structuring the preschool system, and shows that a focus on how children constantly question different structures of meaning is important. Japanese preschools enroll over 95 percent of Japanese children and are differentiated into kindergartens and day-care centers. Whereas kindergartens are educational institutions, day-care centers have a custodial role for children of working mothers. The main differences between preschools are based on class, government versus private institutions, and religious affiliation. The trend to smaller families has led to competition centered on attracting children on the basis of each institution's distinctive character.