On a recent evening, students were taking a math class in front of a new electronic blackboard in one classroom.

In another classroom, other students were taking a Japanese language class. Of the total of six students, five had foreign roots.

They are enrolled at the prefecture-run Fujinokuni Junior High School, which opened in April in Iwata, Shizuoka Prefecture.

Housed in a building in front of JR Iwata Station, it is the prefecture's first public night junior high school.

While night junior high schools were aimed initially at people deprived of an education in their youth for various reasons, they are also popular with those who desire recurrent education. 

But Japanese citizens are not the only ones in their classrooms.

An increasing number of night junior highs are being set up across the country to meet the needs of students with foreign roots who want to learn Japanese.

In addition to Japanese and mathematics, students also learn fine arts, health and physical education and other subjects.

Night junior high schools traditionally provided education for those who were struggling to make ends meet and couldn't attend school during the postwar turmoil.

The law on securing educational opportunities, which was enacted in 2016, obligates the central and local governments to provide recurrent education. The law requires prefectural and major city governments to set up night junior high schools.

NON-JAPANESE ACCOUNT FOR 60%

According to a survey conducted by the education ministry in 2020, foreign nationals accounted for 80 percent of all evening students. Half were attending classes to learn to speak Japanese.

In a 2022 survey, the percentage of foreign nationals was 60 percent.

"It can be said that in Japan, where there are no public educational institutions for immigrants, night junior high schools effectively play a role in providing education for immigrants, including offering Japanese language classes. The same can be said about Shizuoka (Prefecture)," said Sachi Takahata, a professor at the University of Shizuoka, who studies Filipino communities in Japan.

Takahata served as deputy chief of an expert panel set up by the Shizuoka prefectural government for the opening of a night junior high school.

According to a survey conducted by the prefectural government, Brazilians, Filipinos and other non-Japanese residents accounted for 79 of 90 night school applicants.

Of these, 14 students eventually enrolled in the school. More than 70 percent of them have foreign roots. 

There are people who cannot speak Japanese even if they were born in Japan because both their parents are non-Japanese, while others had no opportunities to learn Japanese after they came to the country with their spouses or to work.

In addition, it is hard for some people to learn academic subjects even though they can speak Japanese without any difficulty because one of their parents is Japanese.

POTENTIAL HUB FOR SUPPORT

The Fujinokuni school accepts students of any nationality, but those who have a student residence status are not eligible.

"Night junior highs are not Japanese language schools," said principal Hideo Nishida.

However, many students need to learn Japanese first.

In addition to a regular course where students only learn academic subjects, the school offers a course for students to learn enough Japanese to meet their daily needs and another to prepare them to attend classes.

The two courses are aimed at helping them improve their language skills and encourage them to study in the regular classroom courses.

Nishida was in charge of preparing the opening of the school since 2018 as a member of the prefectural education board.

"I was aware of the situation from the survey, but as I deal with students, I strongly feel that non-Japanese residents and children with foreign roots have difficulty in learning Japanese and in other aspects of education," Nishida said. "Although local governments and private groups support children with foreign roots, their assistance is fragmented. I hope public night junior highs can be a hub."

LIMITS TO WHAT CAN BE PROVIDED

Many residents with foreign roots live in Hamamatsu and other cities in Shizuoka Prefecture.

However, the survey revealed that there are some people with foreign roots living across the prefecture who want to attend night junior high schools.

"There are more potential needs for non-Japanese people who want to attend night junior highs for relearning purposes. Our challenge is how we can help them enroll," said Chieko Ishii, 64, who has been working as a volunteer since 2010 in Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture, supporting non-Japanese residents to receive education and learn Japanese.

She looks for those willing to attend night sessions, helps them complete application forms and provides other assistance.

But while doing so, Ishii has learned how difficult it is for them to find educational opportunities.

People who came to Japan to work or for other purposes cannot afford Japanese language classes that cost them several hundreds of thousands of yen per year even if they want to learn the language properly.

But it is difficult for them to attend elementary or junior high schools if they are past school age.

Even if they are fortunate enough to be allowed to enroll in schools, they will be forced to graduate, regardless of whether they have mastered their lessons or acquired enough language skills because they are not allowed to repeat grades.

For that reason, it is difficult for them to make plans after graduation.

For those people, tuition-free night junior highs serve as a long-awaited gateway, Ishii added.

If they can obtain a junior high school diploma in Japan, it will open the door for them to move on to higher education or change jobs.

But it's not easy to attend classes for three years while working.

Ishii encourages people with foreign roots who are hesitant to enroll in night junior high schools to study at those schools, while she teaches Japanese to those who can't learn the language elsewhere.

But she also harbors doubts.

"Volunteers like me can quit anytime we want," Ishii said. "I think there is a limit to having non-permanent volunteer workers or night junior high schools originally unintended for the role provide education to those with foreign roots."