Abstract: Around the end of WWII, in order to eradicate militarism and extreme nationalism that had distorted Japans development, the US formulated a series of reform measures targeting Japan. Through a process of “breaking the old” and “establishing the new,” these measures aimed to rebuild Japan into a democratic nation. Among them, education reform was given an important position.The formation of American educational reform policies toward Japan spanned both wartime and postwar periods. After a wartime debate between “moderate reform” and “radical reform”, the “positive reform theory” was formed after the war. The core of these policies was embodied in “Four Education Directives” and the Report of the US Education Mission to Japan. The essential goal of these policies was to eliminate the influence of militarism and extreme nationalism, and to establish a new education system grounded in freedom and democracy, supporting individual development of children and adolescents.Through the implementation of these policies, Japan’s education system underwent the transition, shifting from authoritarianism to democracy.

Key words: occupation of Japan, educational reform, Four Education Directives, the US educational mission