Addressing the loneliness of children in materially affluent Japan

November 25, 2008

Japanese children may live in a materially rich environment by global standards, but among 24 countries in a survey last year, Japan had the highest percentage of children who felt lonely.

On Nov. 11, a Japan-Netherlands joint symposium on education reform was held at Aoyama Gakuin University in Tokyo, organized by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Tokyo. One of the guest speakers was Naoko Richters, a Japanese education researcher now living in the Netherlands.

"Why are there so many children in materially affluent Japan who feel lonely?" Richters asked the group of about 300 participants, including Japanese education officials.

Richters was referring to a figure in a children's happiness survey conducted in countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that was released in 2007 by UNICEF. In Japan, 29.8 percent of 15-year-olds agreed with the statement "I feel lonely," placing Japan at the top of the list of 24 countries. Next highest was Iceland at 10.3 percent. The Netherlands had the lowest figure, at 2.9 percent.

Furthermore, the percentage of respondents who agreed with the statement "I feel awkward," reached 18.1 percent in Japan, again placing the country at the top of the list. The corresponding figure in the Netherlands was 6.9 percent. In the 40 categories overall, the Netherlands came out in top position in terms of children's happiness.

So why is there such a difference between the Netherlands and Japan?

"I think one reason is the difference in education," ventures Richters, who has two children with her Dutch husband. She has been living in the Netherlands since 1996, and through her children she has had a taste of both Japanese and Dutch education.

The Netherlands emphasizes individual education that features both independent and joint learning. In elementary school classrooms, it is reportedly common to see students divided into groups of about five, each working through different topics. There is no single textbook for everyone; the children are given appropriate teaching materials matching their proficiency.

"You might call it education fitting each person's size," Richters said. Previously in the Netherlands the style of lessons was similar to Japan, with one person teaching the same thing to everyone. But in the 1960s and 1970s, when truancy and academic disparity became problems, the country changed its policy. Since then many schools adopting various education methods such as the Jena-Plan system.

Over the past few years in Japan, education reform based on the results of the Program for International Student Achievement has attracted lively discussion. But Richters stresses the importance of developing students as individuals.

"Instead of reform that places a disproportionate emphasis on academic ability, I want them to aim for the comprehensive development of students as humans," she said in her lecture. "I don't think that Dutch education is the best, but I think the results of the survey on children's happiness at least show the importance of lending an ear to each and every child."