Detect bullying early

GAUGING the actual situation at an early stage is essential for preventing harm caused by bullying. We hope the level of awareness on this issue at schools in Japan will be raised further.

According to a Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry survey on problematic behaviour, the number of reported cases of bullying at elementary, junior high, high and other schools rose to 224,540, or 20 percent, in the 2015 school year. This is the highest figure since the ministry began conducting such surveys.

The number of schoolchildren who committed suicide due to bullying problems also reached a record high of nine.

Three years have passed since a bullying prevention law was enacted after the suicide of a student at a junior high school in Otsu. The law views bullying as anything that makes the victim feel physical or mental distress, and obligates schools to take countermeasures. The eradication of bullying has a long way to go.

The surge in recognised cases is a result of education boards in each area undertaking extensive surveys at the guidance of the Education Ministry, and of greater efforts by schools to uncover bullying.

This was triggered by the suicide of a male student at a junior high school in the town of Yahaba, Iwate prefecture, in July 2015.

In a journal he shared with a teacher, the student repeatedly claimed he was being bullied and hinted at taking his own life. The teacher kept this problem to himself. The school has admitted teachers “failed to share the student’s appeals in regard to his life”. This is an important lesson.

To detect bullying at an early stage, it is important the whole school has a sense of urgency and accepts bullying “could happen anywhere”. There was a tendency for more cases of bullying to be reported where boards of education conducted anonymous surveys to make it easier for students to answer.

Almost 40 percent of schools said they had “no cases” of bullying. We wonder if some teachers are avoiding letting any cases come into the open due to fear they might be seen as lacking leadership.

The latest ministry survey highlighted the current situation in which a growing number of bullying cases at elementary schools involve physical violence. At high schools, online ridiculing and slandering were prominent.

It is vital to make children understand that bullying is never acceptable.

The bullying prevention law classifies bullying that could lead to suicide and other harm as “serious cases”, and obliges schools and education boards to investigate the facts of such incidents. During the 2015 school year, 313 such cases were reported nationwide.

However, it has been pointed out that due to the vague definition, schools have been split in their decisions on such incidents and responses have been delayed. An expert panel of the ministry is calling for clarification of the conditions that would be recognised as “serious”, and for the drawing up of guidelines for investigations of such cases.

Severe bullying must not be overlooked. The most important thing is to ensure the spirit of the law is drummed into the nation’s teachers.