Answerman

How Bad is School Truancy in Japan?

Julie W. asks:

I've noticed in some recent anime that it's apparently possible for Japanese kids not to go to school for long periods of time. Does this happen in real life as well? Do Japanese parents allow their kids the option of just not going to school altogether? I know this would NEVER happen in countries like America or Canada, where some school districts will crack down on absences that are longer than a day or two, so I'm wondering if this phenomenon has any real basis to it that I'm missing.

Trigger warning: This column will delve into topics concerning mental health and suicide.

I am not an expert on the Japanese education system, but I have approached several friends with school-age children who live in Japan to see what I can find out on this topic. What I've learned is surprising and very concerning. Before we move on, please take note of the trigger warning above, as we will be discussing topics that are very sensitive regarding mental health and suicide.

First things first. Did you know that high school (for students between 15 and 18 years of age) is not mandatory in Japan? Compulsory schooling lasts for nine years, from ages 6 to about 15. We need to bear this in mind because it does help explain the government policies towards absenteeism in Japan in general.

不登校 (“Futokō”), which translates as “school refusal” is defined by MEXT (the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) as being absent from school for 30 days or more per year due to psychological, emotional, or physical issues. Futoko has become a bit of a catch-all term to describe absenteeism, truancy, school phobia, or school refusal, and it is becoming a major problem.

The number of recorded futoko is increasing every year. In 2022, the number of students classed as futoko was 299,048 across elementary and junior high. According to my friend with high school-aged kids, “It's not like the parents give kids the option. Futoko is the last resort when everything else has failed. There have been suicides in the past, and schools are very focused on avoiding that.” Statista reports that during the 2022 academic year, the number of suicides among student-age people was 411, a continuation of an alarming upward trend for more than a decade. It is a serious problem for education providers, parents, and students.

This article says COVID-19 worsened the already bad absenteeism problem, but it has been steadily building for decades. The MEXT survey on problematic behavior and non-attendance of school children showed that in 2022, the number of students who refused to attend school for 30 days or more increased by 22.1% (54,108) alone, marking the tenth consecutive annual rise. Compared to the prior decade, non-attendance has risen threefold for elementary school students and twofold for junior high school students.

According to my friend who has two children in junior high, “A lot of it [absenteeism] is due to bullying, sometimes anxiety, high expectations, or family problems. Japan is not that great at dealing with kids who are not 'normal' (this is from personal experience). The schools try and avoid it if they can, but letting the child be homeschooled or letting them attend a free school is seen as a better alternative to suicide.”

On the one hand, I am impressed to read about the proactive Japanese approach to education and self-care, but by all accounts, there is still a long way to go in terms of providing mental health care services, therapy, and home education for students. Anecdotally, it seems that bullying is also a persistent problem for those students who we might consider “different.”

“Japan loves to present itself as organized and controlled, but there are a whole bunch of oddball kids who just don't fit in. I think that the appearance of school refusal in anime and manga is one way that society deals with it. Obviously! The characters might be taken to alternate dimensions or kidnapped by demons, but it's a way for kids who feel like outsiders to relate.”

I've watched a lot of anime and read a lot of manga. I don't believe I am alone in presuming that some of my favorite creators may privately describe themselves as having felt they were a little “different” or even “an oddball” when they were teenagers. This may also help to explain the preponderance of futoko situations in various manga and anime works.

Every child is different. Every family has their own experiences putting their child through the Japanese education system. Another close friend of mine had this to say on the topic.

“According to news reports, it seems truancy rates are at a record high and are maybe relatively high compared with other countries. I know some parents who have kept their kids out of school for prolonged periods if they are unwell or have stress issues, especially for young girls (whose education is sometimes considered less important than boys'). But beyond a few anecdotal instances, I wouldn't say it feels widespread in my circle.”

There is very little comparative data available that shows like-for-like comparisons between other developed economies and their rate of absenteeism. I was able to find some UK government data for 2023 that claims truancy in English schools affected 19.2% of students. So! Perhaps Japan is not necessarily an outlier in global league tables. As you point out in your question, education systems in countries like the USA, Canada, and the UK do not have anything remotely similar in terms of the futoko system of permissible absence from school for up to 90 days in a year. That much we do know.

Futoko is a reality for many Japanese families. No doubt, it is a relatable experience for nearly every Japanese person, particularly young adults, who are some of the largest consumers of manga and anime. One problem often reported as a cause of futoko for some Japanese high school students is selective mutism, which may be considered a type of “autistic trait.” In the 2021 anime Komi Can't Communicate, we are introduced to Shōko Komi, the most popular girl at Itan Private High School. She is beautiful and stoic, and she possesses extreme social anxiety and has trouble communicating with others.

Many Japanese parents complain that the formal education system is one of the main causes of the absenteeism crisis because of its rigid structure and lack of an individualized approach to education, which some students require. It led to the creation of free schools in Japan in the early '90s, which were set up especially to help those students who didn't fit into the rigid school system. Often, the students entering these institutions have emotional problems, but more and more students are entering the free system with hearing and speech problems, as well as the aforementioned neurodivergent challenges.

Naoko Yamada's exceptionally beautiful 2016 movie, A Silent Voice, is another anime that details the cruelty of Japanese school life for those kids who are different. The story centers around Sho, who is bullied mercilessly by Shoya and his classmates because she is deaf. The story beautifully illustrates the causes and the effects of bullying in a very authentic and honest way, which felt unique and fresh at the time of its release.

I suspect you may be referring to more recent anime series rather than the two I have cited in this piece. Nearly every anime is set in high school and features teenage protagonists. I think this is because, for many Japanese adults, high school is the most interesting time in their lives.

In this regard, I believe that futoko is a convenient contrivance that allows the writer to explain away why his teenage protagonists aren't in school and are not missed. Be it a supernatural shonen action series like Jujutsu Kaisen or a superhero melodrama like My Hero Academia, futoko provides a convenient and believable explanation for why our heroes can excuse their absence. Being a futoko student also highlights the individual's “difference,” which is so important when narrating a “chosen hero's journey,” which many stories are about.

It is quite sad that the real explanation for why hundreds of thousands of Japanese teenagers don't attend school every year is not as fantastic as the reasons contained in a Shonen Jump manga. Modern society at large is slowly becoming more accepting of people who are different, and things are slowly changing. If my child was a futoko, I would want the best for them, and I would likely feel frustrated at the glacial pace of change within our educational systems. In this respect, futoko is a universal problem that children and adults can relate to.

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