In terms of per capita GDP Singapore comes top in Asia. Japan that used to be at the top in the world now ranks third in Asia after Hong Kong. GDP per capita is considered to represent the living standard of the country. When I visited Singapole a couple of years ago, I realized that Japan is really behind Singapore.
A comment I read recently points out that behind a rapid progress of Singapore after the devastation in the wake of the world war II is its education. Indeed PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment ) result shows that Singapore comes second after Shanhai, followed by Hongkong, Taiwan, Korea, Macao and Japan in this order. I am surprised that Asian countries dominate the list of PISA results.
Education is getting important at the time of high tech society. In particular Singapore's education emphasizes not only knowledge but also its application and creative use. And its education system starts with preschool children. Furthermore teachers are picked from among the best kids coming from their high schools. OECD expert note that in Asian countries parents priotize their children's education and in all tiers of public polycies education comes first.
It is understandable that a small cuontry like Singapore requires school graduates who are ready for job to catch up with advanced countries. But in a country with large population and various industries like Japan I think that students need basic knowledge to be applicable to any job they are offered after their graduation.