Some Japanese School System Rules

Some facts I learned today:

If students get into physical fights, the violent student can be kicked out of school. Depending on the level of violence, the police will come to the school, and sometimes the student will be arrested or even imprisoned.

Elementary school and Junior High School are compulsory, but High School is not. So it is easy (relatively) for High Schoolers to change schools. However, since Junior High School is mandatory, if a Junior High School student is kicked out of a school, they will go to another school.

There is also the problem of 不登校 [futoukou], or students who don’t come to school for mental or emotional reasons. Sometimes students can come to school but can’t handle being in a classroom with other students, so they go to a special room and teachers teach them one to one. Sometimes students can’t come to school period, so they stay home; sometimes they student, sometimes they don’t, but in Junior High School the government will not let the Junior High School kick them out. I find the permissibility of indefinite absence interesting. Also, since more and more technology is being integrated into the classroom, it is becoming easier for teachers to be able to send a student home with a tablet and the students can study from home. There is worry that this will keep students from learning how to socialize, though. Hikikomori (I suppose this translates to roughly people with a severe social phobia that don't leave their houses) are a growing problem in Japanese society.