After three former nursery school teachers were arrested for assaulting a child at a nursery school in Susono City, Shizuoka Prefecture, security cameras installed inside the nursery school are attracting attention as one of the countermeasures against inappropriate childcare. "is.

A company that supports the operation of nursery schools has received a series of inquiries about installing cameras this month.

Inappropriate childcare at nursery schools Confirmed 345 cases in fact-finding survey

Regarding inappropriate childcare, three former nursery school teachers at a licensed nursery school "Sakura Nursery School" in Susono City, Shizuoka Prefecture were arrested on suspicion of assaulting children, and similar cases were also revealed in Toyama Prefecture and Miyagi Prefecture. I'm here.



In 2019, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare conducted its first fact-finding survey on inappropriate childcare at nursery schools.



In the survey, inappropriate childcare was positioned as "an act that is judged to require improvement in light of human rights and personality regarding the involvement of children by nursery teachers at nursery schools." We received responses from 1063 municipalities.



According to this, it was confirmed that there were 345 cases of inappropriate childcare in 96 municipalities.

In terms of specifics, 60 local governments accounted for the highest number of "punishment/rough interactions," followed by 46 local governments for "involvement that disrespects individuality," and "involvement that forced things and threatening language." Cliff" was 45 municipalities.



On the other hand, only 4.1% of all local governments have created guidelines to prevent inappropriate childcare and to respond when it occurs.

Childcare facilities are increasing year by year Maintaining the quality of childcare is an issue

According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, placement standards for nursery teachers working at licensed nursery schools are determined by ministerial ordinance based on the Child Welfare Law for each child's age.



Specifically, the number of children that one nursery teacher takes care of is


▽ 3 children aged 0


, 6 children aged 1 to 2


, 20 children aged 3


, and 30 children aged 4 and over.



The number of childcare facilities such as nursery schools is increasing year by year, and as of April this year, there are more than 39,000 facilities nationwide.



On the other hand, the effective job opening ratio, which indicates how many jobs are available for each person seeking work, was 1.98 times for childcare workers as of April this year, exceeding the average of 1.23 times for all occupations. The issue is how to maintain the quality of childcare as the number of children increases.

Installation of security cameras Numerous inquiries from nursery schools

Under these circumstances, a company in Saitama City that supports the operation of nursery schools and sells cameras has received a series of inquiries about installing security cameras, which are not usually so common, after the incident was revealed.



Currently, four nursery schools in Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture are considering purchasing the device. And so on.



The camera manufactured by this company can be viewed on a computer or smartphone when installed in the park, and it also has a function to record the situation.

Tatsuro Shirakawa, president of "Base Japan," said, "In the future, I think there will be parents who are worried about leaving their child at a nursery school. I want to spread more security cameras," he said.

Nursery School with Security Cameras "Visualization of Childcare Issues"

Some certified children's centers have already installed security cameras in all nursery rooms.



"Okubo Wakakusa Children's Garden" in Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo has installed security cameras in 22 locations, including all nursery rooms and gardens, since it opened seven years ago.

In addition to being able to see the video in real time on the monitors in the park, it is always being recorded.



The recorded video is used to explain the cause of the injury at the request of the parents, such as when the child is injured in the nursery.



At this kindergarten, for example, five nursery teachers are in charge of 61 children in a class for children aged 3 to 5.



Although there is more leeway than the placement standards for nursery teachers, there are still times when they are busy with work, so the images taken by the camera are useful for supporting nursery teachers.



It is said that there have been no concerns about children's privacy due to the installation of the camera so far, but the video is automatically deleted after two weeks, so we are using it carefully.



A male nursery teacher in his 20s said, "When explaining things to parents when a child is injured, having a camera makes it possible to check the images and give detailed explanations to the parents, which is useful." rice field.



A mother in her 30s who has children aged 0 and 5 said, "When my child was injured and came back, the nursery teacher checked the video and carefully explained the situation. I can deposit it," he said.



Another father in his 40s, who left children aged 0 and 5, said, "I've had my children's clothes lost before, and I've found them by checking the video. I'm relieved when the camera is installed." was talking

Principal Masaaki Fukushima said, "By taking pictures with a camera, I would like to visualize childcare issues and share them with everyone while providing childcare."

Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare Creates guidelines for preventing and responding to inappropriate childcare

Last year, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare created a guideline summarizing how to prevent inappropriate childcare and what to do when it occurs.



Among them, it is thought that there are problems in the "perception of nursery teachers", such as not understanding the appropriate way to interact with children, and the "work environment", such as an insufficient staff system, as the background to the occurrence of inappropriate childcare. I'm doing it.



In addition, he points out that in order to prevent inappropriate childcare, it is necessary for childcare workers to be aware of whether the interests of children are respected and to have regular opportunities to reflect on daily childcare.



In addition, when a case of inappropriate childcare is suspected, the nursery school promptly provides information to the local government and consults on the response, and municipalities and prefectures need to promptly provide guidance and audits. is.

Expert ``Need to improve the environment, such as reviewing the placement standards for nursery teachers''

Yuichi Murayama, Director of the Childcare Research Institute, who is familiar with problems in childcare settings, said that the background of inappropriate childcare should be investigated in detail in the future. point out that there is



Director Murayama said, "Although incidents are unforgivable, as the need for childcare is increasing, there is no guarantee of a relaxed system at a childcare site with a limited number of staff, and childcare workers share information and help each other. There is no room for childcare sites, and there is a danger that abuse could occur at any kindergarten."



As the demand for childcare workers increases, the government's placement standards for childcare workers have hardly changed for many years. I need to fix it," he said.



On the other hand, regarding the installation of security cameras at childcare sites, he said, ``In order to prevent inappropriate childcare, the relationship between people is important, and it is not a fundamental solution, but it is useful to look back on the unconscious behavior of childcare workers. I think it makes some sense," he said.