.S. Commodore Matthew Perry forced Japan to abandon its seclusionist policy. Revolts by Japanese activists forced the resignation of the shogun government, and imperial government was restored under the young Meiji emperor in 1868. As a result, in less than half a century Japan was transformed from a secluded feudal society into an industrialized world power: "All became immersed in the systematic pursuit of the elusive keys to modernization, then locked rather securely in the values of the rapidly developing industrial nations of North America and Europe" (Duke, 1986, p. 16).
During the Meiji period (1868-1912), Japan's government imported foreign advisors and technology for industrial, commercial, and educational purposes. Official missions were sent to examine modern Western societies: "They sent out intelligent and well-prepared officials . . . to study foreign education, to collect materials bearing on the subject, and to serve as experts on education in foreign countries upon their return" (Beauchamp and Rubinger, 1989, p. 59). Japan was determined t
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