Fukushima Pref.’s 1st public night school opens with new study chances for young and old

FUKUSHIMA — Seventeen students including a 64-year-old man have enrolled in Fukushima Prefecture’s first public night junior high school, which opened here on April 16, to complete the compulsory education they didn’t have the chance to finish.

Fukushima Daiyon Junior High School Tenjin School, run by the city of Fukushima, has accepted students aged from their teens to 80s, including foreign nationals, from the cities of Fukushima and Koriyama. At the entrance ceremony the same day, Principal Masaharu Watanabe delivered a message of encouragement, saying, “Through classes and school events, I hope that you will feel a sense of achievement and fulfillment for completing tasks and create memories together with your friends.”

Fukushima resident Yoshitomi Takano, 64, spoke at the ceremony on behalf of his classmates, saying, “I’ll be able to make my long-held dream of studying again come true. I’ll apply myself to learning with persistence.”

The night school offers learning opportunities for those who missed out on school due to the turmoil during war, did not attend school for a period due to family circumstances or received junior high school diplomas but rarely attended classes, and for foreign nationals who could not receive an education in their home countries, among others.

Based on the law to secure educational opportunities established in 2016, the education ministry has urged each prefectural government and government-designated major city to set up at least one night junior high school. The Fukushima Municipal Government opened the Tenjin night school at the general education center in the Tenjin district.

The teachers’ room and classrooms are located on the second floor of the building, and the first floor is wheelchair-friendly. On the third floor are a library and the school nurse’s room.

Classes, covering the same subjects as regular junior high school including English, math and health and physical education, are held on weekdays from 5:30 to 8:40 p.m. Tuition and textbook fees are free of charge, and the students will receive a junior high school diploma after they complete the curriculum.

(Japanese original by Yuga Matsumoto, Fukushima Bureau)