Emiko Kaneko: Interactions with Others That Support Growth

Over the past two years, various activities have been restricted to prevent the spread of COVID-19, leading to changes in educational activities at schools. Online classes were also held at universities, providing an opportunity to consider the respective merits of both online and face-to-face instruction. However, in both types of classes, I have reaffirmed the importance of creating "interactions with others."

Among the challenges in schools, I am particularly interested in school non-attendance (futoko). The number of children in a state of non-attendance has continued to increase in recent years, and according to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), there were approximately 196,000 such students in elementary and junior high schools in fiscal year 2020. In 2016, the "Act on Securing Educational Opportunities Equivalent to Ordinary Education at the Stage of Obligatory Education" was enacted, further promoting support based on the actual circumstances of each individual. Efforts are being made to enhance learning environments for children who do not attend school, such as education support centers, free schools, and special schools for non-attendance. Regarding high schools, students are choosing their next steps not only from full-time programs but also from various types of part-time and correspondence high schools.

In a survey conducted at a correspondence high school, while some students viewed their experience of non-attendance negatively when looking back, many others found meaning in the experience and felt they had changed, saying things like, "I was able to re-examine myself," "I am who I am today because of that experience," and "There are many things I wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't stopped attending school." Students cited the involvement of family, school teachers, and staff from outside agencies as things that supported them during the painful period of non-attendance—noting that these people "watched over me," "tried to understand me," "shared fun things with me," and "sometimes said tough things to me." I feel that the involvement of surrounding people who listened carefully, stayed by their side, and thought together with them about what to do served as support and led to subsequent growth and change.

According to MEXT, approximately 30% of children who do not attend school are not receiving professional guidance or counseling, suggesting that many children are not receiving sufficient support. I intend to continue thinking about support to ensure that schools and outside agencies become places where children can feel safe to experience various things.