Japan's coronavirus crisis sparks calls for revamping the school year

FILE PHOTO: College students shout slogans during a pep rally organized to boost their morale ahead of their job hunting in Tokyo, Japan March 1, 2017. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

TOKYO (Reuters) - Advocates of changing Japan's century-old tradition of starting the school year in April, when cherry blossoms bloom, are seizing on school closures caused by the coronavirus as a chance for reforms they say will internationalise education.

The proposed shift to a September start, in line with many Western countries, has huge implications for corporate recruitment, since most firms hire en masse after students graduate in April, when the financial year also begins.