1, 2009) will be until the end of the year after ten years from satisfying the qualifications required for the certificate. The renewal of the valid period will be performed by the certificate administrator (the board of education in the prefecture or city where the school of employment is located), during which the following can be renewed.

[Persons who have attended over 30 hours and passed the examination in the certificate renewal course $ ^{*} $ at a university that will be established for the acquisition of the latest knowledge and skills.]

[Persons who the certificate administrator has recognized as not being required to attend the certificate renewal course because of having knowledge and skills (persons exempted from the course).]

If the person passes the course and renews his/her certificate before the expiration of the valid period, they will be shown to have the latest knowledge and skills, and all certificates they possess will be renewed. On the other hand, if not, all certificates will become invalid. However, even in the event that the certificates become invalid, the person is not required to reacquire credit at a university and will be provided with a new certificate upon completion of the renewal course.

Certificates acquired up to March 31, 2009, before the implementation of the renewal system, will not impose a new expiration date. And certificates they receive after the start of the renewal system will not either. However, currently working teachers who possess such certificates need to acquire the latest knowledge and skills, so they will be required to complete 30 hours of renewal courses every 10 years until each deadline.

## (3) Persons who can attend the certificate renewal course

It is necessary to provide adequate opportunities to attend the courses for working and prospective teachers and especially it is necessary to allow the widest range of persons to attend with regard to prospective teachers. Therefore, course attendance will apply to currently working teachers, prospective employees or teachers, and persons with past experience working as teachers with the exception of persons in guidance revision training.

## (4) Requirements where extension of the valid period or course completion deadline $ *2 $ will be allowed

In cases where the teacher is attending guidance revision training or it has been accepted that it is difficult to renew the certificate by the expiration date (or the course completion deadline) due to requirements established as unavoidable circumstances by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the certificate administrator may stipulate the extension of the expiration date of the certificate (or the course completion deadline) by an appropriate period.

The requirements will include circumstances where the person is on administrative leave, taking maternity leave or sabbatical, currently transferred overseas or affected by natural disaster. In these cases, an extension of about two years following the end of the circumstance is being considered. Additionally, considerations are being made such that when some amount of time has passed between the acquisition of the certificate and the start of actual employment as a teacher and the period from that time to the expiration of the certificate is less than the two years required for completing the courses, this could be seen as a requirement allowing extension.

## (5) Exemption from completing the renewal course

Completing the renewal course is exempted for persons who the certificate administrator has accepted to have adequate knowledge and skills and therefore does not need to complete the renewal course. Specifically, the inclusion of 1) recipients of the Excellent Teacher Award, and 2) persons in positions of director or senior adviser is being considered.