Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000

The number of students attending public elementary to senior high schools who need Japanese language support hit an all-time high at around 69,000 amid a surge of foreigners residing in Japan, the education ministry said Thursday.

Of the 69,123 students who needed extra language support, the highest since comparable data became available in fiscal 1991, 57,718 were foreign nationals, while 11,405 held Japanese nationality as of May 2023. About 10 percent of them have not been able to receive necessary help, such as supplementary lessons.

Since the number of students in need of language support is expected to increase further, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology plans to enhance its efforts, including by securing a sufficient number of Japanese language teachers.

While foreign children in Japan are not obliged to enroll in schools, the ministry has urged local education boards to secure educational opportunities for them.

The latest development came amid Japan opening up to more foreign workers on the back of its rapidly graying population and declining birthrate.

Based on the tally, Chinese was the most common mother tongue among such students with 13,754 native speakers, followed by Portuguese with 12,579 speakers and Filipino with 11,121.

The dropout rate of senior high school students in need of extra language support stood at 8.5 percent in fiscal 2022, 7.7 times the rate for the overall high school student population in the country.

Language barriers seem also to have influenced the career paths of such students after graduation, with the rates of those who become nonregular employees at 38.6 percent, while those without jobs and not going into higher education standing at 11.8 percent. Both figures are higher than the overall high school student population.

"We need to prioritize support for building their careers, in addition to Japanese language support," an education ministry official said.

The number of foreign residents in Japan rose to nearly 3.42 million as of the end of 2023, the highest ever and up 10.9 percent from the previous year, according to the Immigration Services Agency.

Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000

Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000

Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000

Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000

Students in need of Japanese language support rise to record 69,000