Kamikaze attacks traded pilots and aircraft for limited effect

Would Japan have been better served by training pilots conventionally instead of using kamikaze attacks?

Probably, although the moral objection to sacrificing pilots may shape that tactical assessment.

Kamikaze operations are judged a waste of aircraft and courageous personnel. The answer also admits that a moral objection to sacrificing pilots may influence the tactical assessment. That caveat separates the ethical judgment from the claim about military effectiveness.