Japanese school

Japanese School may mean

• Education in Japan
• language school, a school for non-speakers of Japanese to learn the language.

Japanese overseas educational institutions

The word Zaigai kyōiku shisetsu (在外教育施設 "Overseas educational institution"), or in English, Japanese international school or overseas Japanese school, may refer to one of three institutions officially classified by the Japanese Ministry of Education (MEXT or Monbushō):

• Nihonjin gakkō (日本人学校), a full-time school outside Japan for the native speakers of Japanese which provides elementary and junior high school levels. Accredited by Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
• Hoshū jugyō kō (補習授業校) or Hoshūkō (補習校), a supplementary school outside Japan. It offers a part of Nihonjin gakkō's curriculum after school hours or on weekends. Accredited by MEXT.
• Shiritsu zaigai kyōiku shisetsu (私立在外教育施設), a full-time overseas campus of a Japanese private school, thus run by a Japan-based private school corporation. They may include primary school, junior high school, and/or senior high school components. Each one is accredited by Japan's MEXT.

See a list of the nihonjin gakkō and Hoshū jugyō kō.

It may also refer to a zaigai kyōiku shisetsu (在外教育施設), meaning "an educational institute overseas". The definition is vague and sometimes it includes Nihonjin gakkō and Hoshu kō, but this category refers to commercial or non-profit private institutions that offer Hoshuko-like programs. Although many of them are named "Hoshu kō" (meaning a supplementary school), their programs are considered as Juku (塾), not accredited by the Japanese government.