A study released by Japan'seducation ministry on Tuesday showed that a record 299,048 elementary and junior high school students were absent from class for 30 days or more in the year ending April 1, 2023, up more than 22% from the previous year.
Photo: Kyodo
Nearly 52% of students who responded to a ministry questionnaire said they did not want to go to school because they felt anxious or depressed. Other top reasons included disruption to student life caused by the pandemic and the loss of friendships, as well as a desire for more freedom to play.
The report also identified an alarming rise in bullying cases, including in high schools across Japan. A record 681,948 cases of bullying were confirmed, up 10.8% on the year, but that is almost certainly an underestimate as many cases go unreported.
Izumi Tsuji, a professor of cultural sociology at Chuo University and a member of the Japan Youth Research Group, admits that the number of truants and bullies surprises even experts.
“These numbers are much higher than we expected,” he said. “The main reason is the lingering impact of the pandemic, but even before that there was a big problem that schools were not good places for children.”
“An example of this is that students, especially in middle school, are required to do a lot of work. They have to attend all their classes, have after-school activities and club events, have regular tests, and they also need to participate in volunteer activities if they want to get into a good high school,” he said.
“The children are tired of going to school and being busy all the time. It is worrying to see children of this age under so much pressure and showing signs of stress,” he added.
“Bullying often stems from students feeling too much pressure and blaming it on other students,” he added.
Japan's adult population appears to be still feeling the effects of the pandemic and related economic problems over the past few years, with a separate government white paper showing that suicides rose by 874 cases to a total of 21,881 in fiscal 2022.
Some 14,746 men committed suicide during the year, the first increase in 13 years, while there were 7,135 suicides among women, up for the third consecutive year.
Mai Anh (according to SCMP)
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