By AYAKO TSUKIDATE/ Staff Writer
February 4, 2020 at 17:30 JST
A nationwide group working to raise cancer awareness is now offering online courses and guidelines about the illness for teachers of cancer education ahead of new curriculum guidelines that will make teaching of the subject a requirement at junior and senior high schools.
The Japan Federation of Cancer Patient Groups said its aim is to ensure that teachers are accurately informed about the illness and to bolster the quality of cancer education.
Cancer education centers on providing information on such aspects as cancer screening tests, treatment methods and what cancer patients endure in their daily lives to help students realize the importance of staying healthy.
On Feb. 3, one day before World Cancer Day, the federation released the guidelines and said it will accept applications for the free online courses from Feb. 14.
Cancer education will start at junior high schools around the country in April next year. Cancer patients and survivors, health workers, teachers and others will impart their knowledge about cancer during health and physical education classes and those dealing with special activities, moral education and integrated studies.
Cancer education will start from fiscal 2021 at junior high schools and from fiscal 2022 at high schools. Around half of all elementary schools already provide cancer education.
The federation said it decided to offer online courses due to problems that had arisen after teachers showed children images of organs undergoing surgery or passed on folk remedies with no scientific basis.
For the online courses, doctors at the National Cancer Center, along with cancer patients, survivors and others, will appear on a prerecorded video. The video lessons provide basic knowledge about cancer, including treatment, and what to bear in mind when informing children that they or those they love have cancer, among other things.
The federation will keep track of those who pass a special test after taking 10 online lessons and share the information with education boards of prefectures and municipalities. The data will likely be used when education boards hire teachers from outside a school.
“I want those who will become teachers (of cancer education) to give children accurate knowledge and thereby contribute to making a society where everyone can live safely,” said Shinsuke Amano, chairman of the federation's board of directors.
Health workers as well as cancer patients and survivors can apply for the free online courses at the federation's website (http://zenganren.jp).
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Guidelines and information about online cancer courses provided by the Japan Federation of Cancer Patient Groups (Ayako Tsukidate)
