The educational system in the Ryukyus began with the dispatch students to the Kokushikan in China around 1392. Higher education usually meant travel to China. Teijunsoku established the Meirin-Do School in Kume village in 1718 and began practical diplomatic and bureaucratic training for students including the language of Beijing, Confucianism and the drafting of diplomatic documents. In 1798 Hira Gakko public schools were established and the study of ancient Japanese thought and culture was established into the upper level schools. These schools became training institutes for high government officials. Local village schools were established in each village by 1846. However, the only students who were allowed to study there were children of samurai descendents. Other schools for the practice of writing and calculation were established for the children of district officials.