Why is the number of Japanese students absent more than 30 days in a school year increasing?

This is the result of a survey on student absenteeism announced by the Japanese Ministry of Education on October 31, according to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.

Specifically, the 2023 school year recorded 346,482 students from kindergarten to high school (public and private) absent for more than 30 days. This number increased by 47,434 children, or 15.9%, compared to the 2022 school year.

In Japan, a student is considered to have “long-term absenteeism” (or long-term absenteeism) if he or she is absent for 30 days or more per school year due to factors other than illness or financial reasons.

According to the survey results, “lack of motivation” was the most common reason for absence reported by teachers when consulting with “long-term absentee” students. Another common reason was that students did not receive counseling when they were suffering from anxiety or depression.

In many cases, students do not receive support from psychologists or counselors inside or outside of school, and the Japanese Ministry of Education is pushing for measures to address this problem.

A report by the Japanese Ministry of Education also shows that the number of students with long-term absences from school has increased for 11 consecutive years.

An official from Japan's Ministry of Education said the increase was due to "a growing awareness among parents that long-term absences provide an opportunity for students to rest and reflect on themselves."

Absenteeism is common in junior high and high school. However, long-term absenteeism tends to be higher in the early grades of elementary school. The Japanese Ministry of Education believes this is because this is the period when children move from kindergarten and nursery school to elementary school.

"Lack of motivation" is a common reason why many students are absent from school.

Japan's Education Ministry stresses that "homeroom teachers must support students," but about one in three students do not receive adequate support from professionals, the Mainichi Shimbun reported on November 2.

In addition, the number of detected bullying cases also increased to 732,568 (an increase of 50,620 compared to the 2022 school year).

The number of "serious bullying incidents" in the 2023 school year increased to 1,306 (an increase of 387) compared to the 2022 school year. In "serious bullying incidents", students were forced to take long-term leave of absence for threatening the lives or causing physical or mental harm to other students.

However, the Japanese Ministry of Education believes that the number of students absent for more than 30 days stems from many reasons, not just bullying.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vi-sao-hoc-sinh-nhat-ban-vang-mat-hon-30-ngay-trong-1-nam-hoc-tang-185241104090145498.htm