By RYUICHI HISANAGA/ Staff Writer
December 23, 2023 at 18:40 JST
The education ministry (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
A record 6,539 public school teachers took extended leave of absence in the last school year due to mental problems brought on by stress.
The figure, released by the education ministry on Dec. 22, marked an increase of 642 over the previous school year.
Officials cited long working hours and dealing with excessive demands of parents as likely factors behind the large number of teachers who took the leaves of absence.
The ministry also said a total of 12,192 public school teachers either took the leave of absence or took at least a month off from work due to severe stress. The figure was an increase of 11 percent over the previous school year and represented 1.42 percent of all public school teachers.
The ratio increased among younger teachers. A combined 2.02 percent of teachers in their 20s either took the leave of absence or were off from work for at least a month. That figure was also a record.
Ministry officials said the large number of veteran teachers who reached mandatory retirement in recent years meant a larger number of younger teachers were hired to take over. Ministry officials said they were considering steps to provide better support for younger teachers.
The ministry also released alarming numbers regarding sexual violence by teachers in the 2022 school year, which coincided with the first year of the enactment of a law to prevent sexual violence against children by teachers.
A total of 119 teachers were disciplined for sexual violence, with all but one fired. The other teacher was suspended from work. The number of disciplined teachers represented an increase of 25 over the previous school year.
“It seems likely that the new law spurred children who might have remained silent until now to speak up, leading to the increase in cases,” said a ministry official.
The ministry will call on boards of education at various levels to implement thorough awareness training sessions to prevent sexual violence against children.
Of the 119 teachers disciplined, 55 were in their 20s, 43 in their 30s, 12 in their 40s and nine were aged 50 or older.
Poll: Teachers in record numbers take leave for mental illnesses
December 23, 2020
Record number of teachers take time off work for mental illnesses
December 27, 2022
Record number of child abuse cases reported in 2021
February 3, 2022
Ministry cites Werther effect in record number of student suicides
October 20, 2023
A peek through the music industry’s curtain at the producers who harnessed social media to help their idols go global.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
