At least 700 elementary and junior high school students who are voluntarily resting due to anxiety about infection October 9, 22:59

When NHK asked government-designated cities and the 23 wards of Tokyo about children who were voluntarily resting after reopening school because of anxiety about being infected with the new coronavirus, it was found that there were at least 700 children. ..

Experts point out that "it is necessary to grasp the actual situation, hurry to guarantee learning, and take care to eliminate anxiety."

NHK has 43 local governments in total, including 20 government-designated cities nationwide and 23 wards of Tokyo, in an attempt to understand elementary and junior high school students who are voluntarily absent from school due to concerns about infection of themselves and their parents even after the school is reopened. I interviewed the Board of Education in Tokyo.



As a result, it was found that from the end of summer vacation to the beginning of this month, 16 local governments knew the actual number of elementary and junior high school students who were absent due to anxiety about infection, and the total number was about 730.



In fact, more children are likely to be resting due to anxiety about the infection, as the other 27 municipalities could not figure out because they did not disclose or investigate.



Specifically, some children, such as children who have underlying illnesses such as asthma and have strong anxiety about infection, sometimes go to school, but have not attended school for about four months since resuming school. It means that there are also children.



When asked in multiple answers how they guarantee learning for children, 30 of the 43 local governments answered that "schools set their own homework and assignments for learning," and the "Board of Education" Eight places answered "self-study with videos created by the public and the private sector", and four places answered "I am taking classes online with other children".



In addition, some local governments have teachers visit their homes and other children give individual lessons after school.



From each board of education, it is difficult to deal with such things as "I am worried about learning and living", "It is difficult to learn cooperatively and acquire sociality", and "I am taking measures against infection but I can not remove my anxiety". There was a voice to appeal.



Regarding this situation, Professor Hiroyuki Tanaka of Waseda University's Graduate School for Teacher Education said, "The problem is serious because there are children whose learning is not sufficiently guaranteed because neither online learning nor learning at home is established. Actually, it seems that there are more people. It is necessary for the government to support the school site so that we can hurry up learning security and take care to eliminate anxiety after understanding the actual situation such as the reason and the reason. "

According to the NHK questionnaire, "the most common reason for" disease "of the person or family"

Due to concerns about infection with the new coronavirus, there are urgent voices from families with children who are voluntarily absent from school.



When NHK conducted a questionnaire through its website and other means to solicit opinions on children and students who were voluntarily absent from school due to anxiety about infection, 163 responses were received by the 8th.



Of these, 142 families still have children who are voluntarily resting, and the most common reason is "because the children themselves and their families have chronic illnesses or underlying illnesses," which accounts for nearly 40% of the total. I did.



Of these, a woman in her 40s in Chiba Prefecture said, "My mother suffered from a major illness last year and had two surgeries to weaken her immunity. The older child had been hospitalized five times due to an immune system illness. In addition, my younger child has a disease in his internal organs and goes to the hospital. He is not in a state where he can go to school. "



A woman in her 40s in Osaka said, "My daughter in junior high school has suffered from Kawasaki disease in the past and has inflamed other organs, so there is no guarantee that her body can tolerate the infection." Is spelled out.



In addition, nearly 20% of all households said that their children decided to take a rest because of their anxiety.



On the other hand, there were several voices saying, "I can't take a rest even if I want to take a rest."



Some of these include "If you are absent, you will be left with learning. Given the busy situation of the teacher, you cannot ask for support for home study" or "Because learning is not guaranteed, you are scared of the risk of infection." There was a voice that raised anxiety about learning.



Regarding learning, even from families who are taking a break voluntarily, "I am confused because there is no follow-up to home study and it is inevitable that my academic ability will decline" or "I can not evaluate the report card, so I do not need a test." It became clear that the current situation is that how to guarantee children's learning is an issue.

Posts with "#voluntary closure" on Twitter

Posts on Twitter that say "#voluntary school closure" are spreading about children's voluntary school holidays due to anxiety about being infected with the new coronavirus.



Many are seen as parents, and information is exchanged, such as guaranteeing children's learning while they are absent from school due to anxiety about infection, and reporting on each other's situation such as home and school correspondence.



Some of the parents I interviewed said, "I started Twitter because I was lonely because I was told that only one person was resting because of anxiety about infection. I was able to connect with parents who have the same problems and feel better. I was talking.

In some cases, they may not go to school due to infection or long-term hospitalization.

Some children who are absent from school due to anxiety about infection may not go to school for fear of infection or long-term hospitalization.



In the lower grades of elementary school living in Tochigi prefecture, after a school friend was infected with influenza and norovirus, both of them were infected and hospitalized for about a week, and after suffering from high fever and vomiting, they changed to the new corona virus. I have been very afraid of infection and hospitalization, and have hardly attended school since the reopening of school in June.



According to the mother, the response differs greatly depending on the teacher in charge. ▽ One of the teachers of the siblings said, "I understand that I am scared of an unknown virus," and when I submit a print every week, I give a score and a comment. On the other hand, the other homeroom teacher said, "If you go to school, be prepared for infection," and was given a test sheet and the parents were told to score it by themselves.



The mother said, "I'm worried that parents have a limit to what they can teach, and I'm worried that it will become more difficult and delayed. Children are scared, but there is a conflict that it is better to force them to go. There is. "