[Feature: The Present State of Regional Migration] "Education x Regional Revitalization" Led by Migrants: The Noto High School Revitalization Project Today

2021/07/05

Noto will soon disappear. According to the "Masuda Report" published in May 2014 by the Japan Policy Council (chaired by former Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Hiroya Masuda), eight out of nine municipalities on Ishikawa Prefecture's Noto Peninsula were designated as "municipalities at risk of disappearance." Among them, Noto Town, located near the tip of the peninsula, saw its population drop from 28,000 in 1990 to 16,000 as of May 2021—a decrease of approximately 40% in 30 years. Furthermore, it is predicted that in 20 years (2040), the population will fall to less than 9,000, and by 2060, it will drop to approximately 4,000 (estimates by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research).

Fifty years have passed since the Emergency Measures Law for Depopulated Areas was passed by the Diet in 1970, marking the government's first serious confrontation with depopulation issues. However, many municipalities on remote islands and in mountainous areas have been unable to stop the decline. In the 2015 census, Japan's total population finally began to decrease. As we enter an era where most regions in Japan will face population decline, Noto Town can be seen as a "Frontier of Challenges" that is ahead of its time.

Despite this seemingly dire situation, the town is full of richness. The eastern side of the Noto Peninsula faces Toyama Bay, while the interior consists of hilly terrain about 300 meters above sea level. Blessed with the bounty of the mountains and sea, primary industries are thriving. The rich "food" culture—including rice grown with clear water, fresh seafood landed daily, and fermented and brewed foods that make expert use of these ingredients—satisfies the hearts of residents and visitors alike.

In March 2018, I moved from Tokyo to Noto Town with my wife and three children. To participate in the "Noto High School Revitalization Project" promoted by the town, I resigned from a private company and took up a post as a member of the "Local Revitalization Cooperator" program. This program is an initiative by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications to encourage people to move from urban areas to disadvantaged regions like depopulated areas. Members engage in "local cooperation activities" such as developing and promoting local brands and products, working in agriculture or forestry, and supporting residents, with the goal of permanent settlement. Members are commissioned by local governments for terms of one to three years.

I didn't originally have a connection to Noto. I graduated from the Keio University Faculty of Business and Commerce in 1999 and joined NGK Insulators, Ltd. In 2005, I moved to Benesse Corporation and later became a researcher at the Benesse Educational Research and Development Institute. While researching the present and future of Japanese education, I encountered the "High School Revitalization Project." I resonated with the project's goal of solving regional issues through education and developed a lasting interest in it.

Meanwhile, in 2005, I encountered Noto by participating in a rural experience program in the Iwaguroma district of Anamizu Town, organized by the NPO Inaka-Jikan. Before joining Inaka-Jikan, I knew almost nothing about Noto. However, as I worked alongside the people of Noto—planting and harvesting rice, working in oyster farming, and sharing drinks and conversation—I was drawn in by the beauty of nature and the fascinating lifestyles of the people I met. Before I knew it, I was visiting Noto three or four times a year, and eventually, I began to wish I could live there.

With rapid population decline and a falling birthrate, high school consolidations are happening nationwide. It is said that about 50 high schools are consolidated every year; a simple calculation suggests that one in six or seven schools will disappear over a decade. These consolidations primarily affect schools on remote islands, in mountainous areas, and in regional cities. For these communities, there is a risk that the only high school within commuting distance will close. If that happens, it becomes difficult to commute via public transport, and it becomes the norm for 15-year-olds to leave their hometowns upon entering high school. Furthermore, the absence of a high school in a town raises the psychological hurdle for the child-rearing generation to migrate or settle there. It is highly unlikely that a region will be chosen by families if their children are forced to leave at age 15, or if the family has to move again to a municipality with a high school.

We want to preserve high schools, which are vital to their communities, for the future. The "High School Revitalization Project" is being implemented nationwide not just as an educational policy, but as a strategy for promoting migration and regional revitalization. This policy aims to make high schools—particularly those in depopulated areas—attractive places where children want to go and parents want to send them, serving as hubs for developing the human resources who will lead future local societies. Originating from efforts at Shimane Prefectural Oki Dozen High School in 2008, this project spread across the country in the 2010s and has now expanded to more than 70 high schools and regions.

Furthermore, according to joint research (2019) by Professor Shinji Fujioka of Hokuriku University (at the time) and Project Assistant Professor Yukihiro Nakajima of the Keio University Graduate School of Media and Governance (at the time), the economic impact of Ishikawa Prefectural Noto High School on Noto Town was estimated at 2.1 billion yen annually. This accounts for 5% of Noto Town's total economic scale of 45 billion yen. As it has become clear that the existence of a high school has a significant influence on regional economic activity, the High School Revitalization Project is attracting even more attention.

The reason I moved to Noto Town was not only because it was a place I had "always wanted to live," but also because the High School Revitalization Project, which I had been following, was being launched in this town. Having reasons to move to Noto for both personal and professional reasons felt like destiny.

At the root of this project, which Noto Town has been tackling since 2016, is a deep sense of crisis regarding the declining enrollment at Noto High School—the town's only high school—and the loss of vitality, bustle, and economic stability that would occur if the school were to disappear.

As the child-rearing population flowed out, the number of students continued to decline. The three high schools and one branch school that once existed in the town underwent repeated consolidations until Noto High School became the sole high school in 2009. Even then, student numbers continued to drop. The enrollment capacity, which was four classes when the school opened, has decreased to two classes (80 students), and even meeting that capacity has become difficult.

It was clear that if the student decline continued, the school's survival would be at risk in the near future. Additionally, because there are few higher education institutions or large employers in the town, and because young people were leaving without developing an attachment to their hometown, the town could not expect young people to settle or return (U-turn) to lead the community, causing the town's vitality to fade further.

To overcome this critical situation, Noto Town began collaborating with the prefectural Noto High School, crossing administrative boundaries. In 2016, they launched the "Noto High School Revitalization Project" to ensure the school's survival and development while nurturing young "human resources" for the town's future. Simultaneously, they began operating the "Town-run Machinaka Hosu Juku" in a renovated former community center about one kilometer from the high school.

The Machinaka Hosu Juku has two major roles. The first is to provide academic support and a rich learning environment to help students achieve their desired career paths. Noto Town lacks the prep schools and Juku that are taken for granted in cities. This Juku, which provides after-school learning opportunities for high schoolers, helps bridge the regional gap in educational opportunities and eases the anxieties of the child-rearing generation regarding the educational environment. The five staff members currently involved are graduates of institutions like Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and Ritsumeikan University, possessing teaching licenses and experience at urban Juku. They use their experience and personalities to provide individualized support tailored to each student's academic level. A unique feature of this town-run Juku is its close communication with Noto High School to support student learning, career choices, exam preparation, and recommendation-based admissions.

The second role is to help students learn about local nature, culture, and industry, recognize their richness and appeal, and nurture them into human resources who will contribute to the region in the future. This initiative, called "Regional Studies," involves problem-discovery and problem-solving learning based on local materials, as well as lectures featuring diverse guest speakers.

I would like to introduce two examples of the Regional Studies that this project actively promotes. The first is the "Period for Integrated Inquiry." This class is implemented in accordance with the revised Academic Advisory Board guidelines, and Noto High School uses it to foster problem-discovery/solving skills and value-creation capabilities. As a "Revitalization Coordinator," I support the creation of rubrics (evaluation criteria for learning progress) and curricula, working with Noto High School teachers to design each lesson. In these inquiry sessions, students face regional issues. In Noto Town, a "Frontier of Challenges" facing population decline, there are many unresolved problems familiar to the students. They identify social issues Noto is actually facing and seek solutions from a high schooler's perspective.

The second is the "Hosu Seminar." This is an active-learning extracurricular course conducted in collaboration with Noto High School, aimed at hometown education, career education, and fostering problem-discovery/solving skills. I serve as the course designer and facilitator. In this course, students learn about Noto's current situation, recognize its charms and challenges, and think of solutions. It covers a wide range of themes related to Noto's "Satoyama" (woodlands), "Satoumi" (coastal areas), and local industries. Participants include motivated Noto High School students who choose to attend voluntarily, as well as local adults. Nearly 20 participants gather for each session, which lasts about four hours on weekends when school and work are out.

In a Hosu Seminar held in November 2019, the theme was "Noto's Satoyama x Wildlife Damage: Why are Wild Boars Increasing in Noto?" We looked at the current situation in Noto where damage from wild boars has become prominent. Under the question, "What sustainable measures can we take to coexist with wild boars?" participants first used the jigsaw method to read five types of materials. Then, students and adults discussed the materials and the question, expressing their solutions in writing. The guest speaker was a female hunter active in Noto, who spoke about why she chose this job, her struggles, efforts to use pests as regional resources, and her passion for Noto. Stimulated by adults who are positive about the region's future, students learn how to create a "future by will" rather than a "future by default."

Through these Regional Studies initiatives, students who once felt "there is nothing in our town" come to recognize that Noto is a land full of richness and charm. At the same time, the reality that their hometown might disappear if things continue as they are hits home. By facing the region as it is, students begin to think and act independently regarding their own futures and the future of the region. I believe this is the value of Regional Studies.

Five years since the project began, we have received heartening feedback from residents about the town-run Juku, such as "they teach thoroughly" and "it's a relief to have the Juku." Regarding Noto High School, we hear comments like "they are doing interesting studies" and "students are thinking about the region more than before." These are the results of the daily efforts of Noto High School students and teachers, but I take pride in the fact that this project has played a part. The number of enrollees at Noto High School went from 52 in FY2016 to 74 in FY2019. Even in FY2020 and FY2021, when the local birthrate declined further, enrollment stayed at 67 and 59 respectively—not falling below the numbers from when the project started. Additionally, the percentage of local junior high graduates choosing Noto High School rose from under 30% in FY2016 to the 40% range in FY2020. Given that the five prefectural high schools in the Okunoto region have seen enrollees drop by 30-40% since FY2016, Noto High School's trend toward increasing enrollment is noteworthy.

Furthermore, there is an increasing trend of graduates going on to university. This is likely due to more students steadily gaining the academic skills needed for university entrance with support from the school and Juku staff, as well as the development of independence and a sense of purpose—asking "why go to university to learn?"—through Regional Studies. A student who graduated the year before last entered Jichi Medical University after a gap year, driven by a desire to "engage in regional medical sciences in Okunoto." This was the first time a student from Noto High School passed the entrance exam for a School of Medicine. Another student who graduated last year focused on the reality of regional decline and an interest in Noto's Satoumi, dreaming of "realizing sustainable fisheries in my hometown in the future," and entered the Faculty of Marine Science at a private university outside the prefecture.

There were also interesting career choices among those who found local employment. A student who attended every Hosu Seminar realized that Noto Town—which she had been told by adults and seniors had "nothing"—was actually a place full of "charm" and "possibility." Though she passed multiple civil service exams, she ultimately chose the local "Noto Town Hall." Her reason was that she wanted to revitalize the region by increasing the number of migrants, permanent residents, and tourists in this charming town. Young people with a passion for their hometown are gradually but surely growing in this town.

The Noto High School Revitalization Project has steadily evolved over the past five years through the efforts and actions of Noto High School, Noto Town Hall, local residents, and the students. The results are as shown above. However, the population decline and falling birthrate in the Okunoto region, including Noto Town, show no signs of stopping. The number of third-year junior high students living within Noto High School's commuting area in FY2021 is expected to decrease by about 30% compared to FY2016. While appealing to local students and parents was enough to nearly fill the enrollment capacity until now, that will no longer be the case. Any further reduction in capacity or classes (moving to a single-class system) would make the school a candidate for consolidation.

Therefore, looking to the future, this project has begun the "Regional Mirai Study Abroad 365 (11th Grade Study Abroad)" initiative. This is Japan's first domestic single-year study abroad system, launched by the Cabinet Office in 2020. Noto High School was selected as one of the 12 schools for the inaugural year. We are recruiting students from across the country by promoting school life in Noto, with its rich Satoyama and Satoumi. In the first year, a student from a general course high school in Kagawa Prefecture who wanted to study fisheries at university joined us to learn in Noto High School's specialized fisheries course. For current students, these newcomers provide a healthy stimulus to social relationships that can easily become homogenized in small groups.

While recruiting students from outside the prefecture is becoming common alongside the spread of High School Revitalization Projects nationwide, Ishikawa Prefecture does not yet permit it for most schools. Therefore, we want to use the "11th Grade Study Abroad" to build a track record and experience in hosting students, serving as a stepping stone for a future "3-year study abroad" program. This initiative was even discussed in the Ishikawa Prefectural Assembly, where the Prefectural Superintendent of Education made positive remarks about recruiting students from outside the prefecture. By further enhancing Noto High School's appeal, we hope to attract students from all over Japan who want to learn in Noto. The Noto High School Revitalization Project has just taken a new step toward that future.

Having completed my three-year term as a Noto Town Local Revitalization Cooperator, I am now affiliated with a local community development company and continue to serve as a "Revitalization Coordinator" for the town. In this ever-evolving project, new tasks are born one after another. While carrying them out can be difficult, it is also highly rewarding. Moving forward, I want to support high schoolers in their independent learning and help each one achieve their desired career path, while also getting the "Regional Mirai Study Abroad" program on track to contribute to the survival and development of Noto High School and the region.