**Abstract**

Teachers in Japan face work-related mental health issues, such as depression and adjustment disorders. The number of elementary school teachers taking leave of absence due to mental illness has been increasing every year and is high according to international standards. One of the reasons for this was the workload on a single teacher, resulting in long working hours. The authors believe that the reason for long working hours may be the Japanese classroom management style. This chapter compares the Japanese classroom management style of elementary school teachers with the classroom management styles of other countries, such as India, and discusses the reasons for the long working hours under the Japanese classroom management style.

**Keywords:** Japanese elementary school teachers, Japanese classroom management style, mental health issues, long working hours, over-occupation

### **1. Introduction**

Japanese teachers are extremely busy, dealing with problems of truancy, bullying, and the COVID-19 pandemic. The circumstances teachers have to adapt to and situations they need to address have left them feeling alone and mentally overwhelmed.

In this chapter, we will discuss the reasons for their mental state, citing Japanesestyle classroom management as one of the risks for Japanese teachers to become mentally overwhelmed and develop mental health issues, such as depression and adjustment disorder.

Comparing classroom management in Japan with that in other countries is useful in understanding how the Japanese situation differs, and what issues it faces. This chapter will focus on India as a country for comparison, given that there are many similarities between the Japanese and Indian primary education systems, despite their cultural differences. These similarities can be attributed to the historical background of both countries, where Western education systems were introduced after the defeat in war or colonialism and applied over existing local education systems [1, 2]. Such a comparison will be beneficial for both countries. For Japan, the comparison with classroom management in a different culture can help clarify local issues. Meanwhile, India's pressing need for elementary education reform can be aided by examining Japan's elementary education classroom management.

Classroom management consists of all the actions taken by teachers to create an environment supporting and promoting both academic and social-emotional learning [3, 4]. While there are numerous definitions of classroom management, they usually include actions taken by teachers to establish order, attract students, and elicit cooperation [5]. For instance, classroom management is also often understood as classroom discipline, which emphasizes on issues like the treatment of cheating [6], and as the process by which teachers create a classroom setting and maintain appropriate student behavior [7]. Proper classroom management improves student performance and achievement [8]. Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) states that "Classroom management is generally considered to be managed and developed in accordance with the goals and policies of classroom management developed by the homeroom teacher based on the educational goals of the school and the actual situation of the classroom, and by creating the necessary conditions."

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is an international organization with 38 developed countries, mainly European countries but also including Japan and the U.S.

### **2. What is the reason Japanese teachers are over-occupied?**

According to the MEXT, 5180 public elementary and secondary school teachers took a leave of absence due to mental illness in 2020 in Japan; in 2019, the number was 5478, a record high.

Previously published data show that the number of teachers who took leave due to mental illness was about 1600–1900 every year from 1997 to 1999, and about 2300–2700 every year from 2000 to 2002.

The number increased in the 2000s and has remained at approximately 5000 per year since 2007 (**Table 1**) [9].

From 2004 to 2016, 1323 school faculty members (615 men and 708 women, mean age 47.2 years) visited the Kyushu Central Hospital Mental Health Center. Of these, 138 (59 males, 79 females, average age 46.1 years) took a leave of absence. **Table 2** shows what the attending physicians judged to be the "main causes" of faculty members' leaves of absence [10].

The results indicate that dealing with students and parents is a common cause of leave for elementary school teachers. In other words, many teachers suffer from mental health problems due to strained relationships with certain students or parents or because their classes are no longer feasible because of these problems, leading to a leave of absence.

How many teachers take sick leave up to a month, if not a leave of absence? In Japan, a leave of absence for public school teachers is an administrative action during which their salaries may be cut. Before this leave, they could take sick leave. In most cases, sick leave lasts up to 90 days.

**Table 3** shows that the number of teachers who obtained long-term treatment of 1 month or more due to mental illness was 8071 in 2016, 8470 in 2017, 9062 in 2018, 9642 in 2019, and 9452 in 2020. The rate of increase from 2016 to 2020 shows that the number of teachers on long-term treatment due to mental illness is 1.28 times higher,

*Perspective Chapter: Mental Health Issues of Japanese Elementary School Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104530*

#### **Table 1.**

*Personnel administration status survey of Japanese public school teachers in 2020.*


#### **Table 2.**

*The main reason for the faculty member's leave of absence.*

especially in elementary schools. The rate of increase from 2016 to 2020 shows that the number of those in long-term treatment for mental illness is 1.28 times higher in elementary schools and 1.66 times higher among teachers in their 20s. This is followed by teachers in their 30s, who are 1.43 times more likely to be under long-term


#### **Table 3.**

*Number of public school teachers receiving medical treatment for more than 1 month (including those on leave).*

treatment for mental illness. These results indicate that mental health problems are more serious among young teachers in their 20s and 30s in elementary schools [11].

One of the reasons for the increase in the number of elementary school teachers with mental health problems is that although there tends to be a large number of young teachers in their twenties and thirties in elementary schools, the number of teachers in their mid-forties to fifties who can guide these teachers is small, and they are not able to practically guide the teachers [12]. In this case, teachers have no one to consult when they have to deal with complaints from parents or when they are unable to cope with classroom management, which leads them to face problems alone.

There is a serious shortage of teachers and instructors in Japan. The number of teachers who are on long-term medical treatment or leave of absence is increasing, but the number of teachers who cannot replace them is increasing all over Japan, especially in urban areas. To compensate for the shortage of manpower in the field of education, mid-career and veteran teachers have been assigned to cover the remaining teachers, and they have become so busy that it has become difficult for them to provide guidance to the remaining young teachers, listen to their concerns and support them, and take organizational action before the problem becomes too big.

Furthermore, the fact that COVID-19 measures require manpower and additional attention increases the burden on the educational field.

International comparisons confirm that Japanese teachers' busyness is among the worst in the world.

#### *Perspective Chapter: Mental Health Issues of Japanese Elementary School Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104530*

According to TALIS2018, in which 48 regions and countries, including OECD countries, participated, teachers' work hours per week were 54.4 hours for elementary school teachers and 56.0 hours for secondary school teachers, the longest among the participating regions and countries. The average working hours for the participating regions and countries (secondary school teachers) was 38.3 hours. This is not because of the long hours of teaching, but because of the long hours of extracurricular activities, especially for junior high school teachers (7.5 hours, the longest among the participating regions and countries, with an average of 1.9 hours).

The time spent on administrative activities was also long for both elementary and junior high school teachers (5.2 hours for elementary school teachers and 5.6 hours for junior high school teachers, both the longest in the participating regions and countries). The average time was 2.7 hours. On the other hand, Japanese elementary and junior high school teachers spent the least amount of time on professional development among the participating regions and countries (0.7 hours for elementary teachers and 0.6 hours for junior high school teachers, an average of 2.0 hours). Based on the results of this survey, many Japanese elementary and junior high school principals pointed out a lack of support staff and teachers capable of teaching students with special needs and provide quality instructions. However, few cited the lack of teaching materials and textbooks [13].

### **3. Classroom management of Japanese elementary school teachers**

The Japanese style of classroom management can be seen as "teaching according to students' difficulties and creating a group based on an understanding of each student's situation" [14].

In a study in which 17 Japanese elementary school teachers were interviewed about how they think about classroom management, the interviews were analyzed using a modified version of grounded theory, and six categories were identified. These six categories are listed in **Table 4** [15].

#### **3.1 Data collection and study participants**

Teachers were selected based on the criteria that they (1) had at least 2 years of experience as school teachers and (2) worked in schools in the three prefectures to which the authors had access. All 17 teachers had experience in public elementary schools, had come to teach at the graduate school of teaching, and were recommended by administrators or school boards, such as supervisors at practicum schools or inservice teacher students. Private elementary school teachers were excluded since private schools have their own methods and goals, and it is not possible to generalize about them. Each teacher was informed in advance, in writing, of the purpose of the study, that they were free to discontinue the study, that the data would only be used for research purposes, and that they would not be personally identified, and their consent was obtained.

#### **3.2 Data collection period**

Data collection was conducted from September to December 2017. Thus, the collected data were unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic.


#### **Table 4.**

*Categories of classroom management for Japanese elementary school teachers.*

In addition, a survey of 261 Japanese elementary school teachers was conducted to create the "Japanese Classroom Management for Elementary School Teachers'scale, and its reliability and validity were confirmed [14]. The results of an exploratory factor analysis showed that there were a total of 17 items: 9 items on how to create a group (creating a classroom that gives direction to the individual and the group), 3 items on understanding children (understanding individual children), and 5 items on teacher attitude (attitude as a teacher).

In Japanese classroom management, the focus is on integrating individuals into a group. Elementary school teachers must focus on dealing with each child and organizing them into groups.

In this context, teachers are required to work with students to grasp their situations accurately. In Japan, elementary school teachers are expected to spend time with students not only during class time but also during recess, lunch time, cleaning time, special activity time, club activities, and all other times in their school life.

As mentioned earlier, most elementary school teachers in Japan today are in their 20s and 30s, with little experience, while there are few experienced teachers in their late 40s and 50s.

Therefore, it is difficult for inexperienced teachers to implement ideal classroom management, and various difficulties are expected to arise.

When Japanese elementary school teachers face difficulties, they cannot simply ignore them. This is because the people around them, and most importantly the teachers themselves, cannot forgive them. Elementary school teachers who face difficulties in classroom management try to tackle them on their own because they have little experience and no other teachers to consult. This leads to longer working hours.

In addition, trying to tackle the work on their own can lead to a decline in self-esteem if they feel they cannot do it.

### **4. Classroom management of Indian elementary school teachers**

Ishikawa, who investigated the classroom management of Indian elementary school teachers, said, "India is a secular country with diverse ethnicities and cultures, premised on the segregation of people, so Indian teachers are unlikely to have the concept of rising groups" [16].

India comprises 28 states and 8 union territories. Education in India is under the joint direct control of federal and state governments. However, substantive authority to control education in each state rests in the hands of state governments. The union territories are directly governed by the Union Government of India, but it should be noted that they do not necessarily have a unified educational system [17].

In India, the primary and secondary levels of education are 12 years long, that is, the 10 + 2 system of education has been standardized, with 10 years for early primary education and 2 years for early secondary education. However, the structure of the first 10 years of education differs from state to state and from Federal District to Federal District (2009–2010, 5–2-3 system: 18 states and 4 federal jurisdictions; 4–3-3 system: 8 states and 3 federal jurisdictions; 5–2-3 system: 1 state; 4–4-2 system: 1 state).

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) formulates the framework of the national curriculum, and each state's councils of educational research and training organize its state curriculum based on this framework.

While elementary schools in Japan are mostly public schools, those in India are classified according to the entities that establish and operate them. The two main types of schools are government and private. Government schools include Central schools established and operated by the federal government, state schools established and operated by the state education departments, and schools established and operated by local governments. Private schools are classified according to whether they are accredited, subsidized by the government, and legal.

Starting with the Compulsory Education Act of the British colonial era, India, has pursued a policy of universalization of education up to the present day. The government's policy of universalizing primary education has contributed to increasing school enrollment by building more schools and classrooms and increasing the number of teachers. However, the policy's emphasis on quantitative expansion has caused various qualitative problems. Many of the children of the first generation of learners, who grew up in illiterate families and had never been educated before, were concentrated in public schools. However, public schools could not keep up with the growing number of students, and, as a temporary measure, unqualified contract teachers were sometimes hired at low wages. In the less developed states, where there was still a shortage of teachers, double-enrollment classes were implemented, where one teachertaught several grades simultaneously, and one-teacher schools were established, where one teacher ran the entire school operation.

In response to this situation in public schools, wealthy and middle-class people, mainly in urban India, enroll their children in unsubsidized private schools that provide paid education, rather than in public schools that provide free education. In this way, the number of unaided private schools that provide paid education is expanding in India against the backdrop of rising national income.

However, despite this situation, public schools are more popular among prospective teachers than private schools. One of the reasons for this is that salaries in private


#### **Table 5.**

*Percentage distribution of teachers by school category: 2016–2017.*

schools are not always paid, as stipulated by the government, and are not treated as well as teachers in public schools.

The survey data for the number of teachers in 2016–2017, as presented in the U-DISE, are shown in **Tables 5** and **6** [18].

An interview study with 29 Indian elementary school teachers revealed their views of classroom management (**Table 6**) [16]. The interview data were analyzed using a modified version of grounded theory, and 5 categories and 15 concepts were generated. The five categories identified are listed in **Table 7**.

#### **4.1 Data collection and study participants**

Teachers were selected based on the criterion of schools in four Indian states to which the authors had access. Twenty-nine teachers had elementary school experience. The quality level of teachers in Indian public schools was excluded because it was considered to vary widely, and most of the teachers were private school teachers. Three teachers from private Montessori schools were also included. Montessori schools are very popular in India. Only two of the public school teachers were trained by the American nonprofit foundation, Teachers for India: A Better Education Movement.


#### **Table 6.**

*Average number of teachers per school by school category: 2016–2017.*

*Perspective Chapter: Mental Health Issues of Japanese Elementary School Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104530*


#### **Table 7.**

*Categories of classroom management for Indian elementary school teachers.*

#### **4.2 Data collection period**

The data collection period was from June to October 2018. Thus, the data collected were unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In Indian classroom management, the focus is team education. Elementary school teachers do not work alone but collaborate with many other professionals, such as assistant teachers, counselors, and school doctors.

There is a division of labor, with nonteaching staff providing instruction during nonclass hours such as recess, lunch, and special activities.

As mentioned earlier, many Indian elementary school teachers are in their 20s and 30s and have little experience; however, team education through multidisciplinary cooperation compensates for this lack of experience.

Elementary school teachers in India focus on the individuality of children to increase their motivation to learn and provide academic education. However, they did not have the perspective of a classroom group. The interviewee said, "There is a 45-minute lunch break, when the teacher returns to the staff room. Teachers are responsible for teaching the subjects and leave the school daily at 4 pm."

### **5. A comparison of Japanese and Indian classroom management**

According to a 2018 UNICEF study, 59 million children of primary school did not go to school (**Table 8**). This represents 8 percent of children of that age. By region, 32 million children are in Africa, South of the Sahara, followed by 13 million in South Asia. Classroom management is one of the most important issues in the field of educational development and is a research field that aims to expand and improve educational opportunities.

However, it should be noted that classroom management as used in this educational development is the management of the "learning environment" to expand and improve educational opportunities, which is different in meaning from the "classroom management" used in Japan [19].

In Japan, classroom management is expected to play a broad role, not only in nurturing academic skills but also in developing children's personalities and socializing. However, in many Asian countries, the role of classroom management is to


#### **Table 8.**

*Comparison of Japanese classroom management and Indian classroom management.*

provide the highest quality of education to as many children as possible. The Indian elementary schools that we compared in this study were in urban areas and attended by children from relatively affluent families. Therefore, while Indian elementary school teachers pay a lot of attention to teaching the subjects ("Teacher instruction and inclusive education"), they also value communication with children ("Teachers' attitude toward children") and do not miss cooperation with parents ("Cooperation with families"), similar to Japanese elementary school teachers.

On the other hand, the inclination toward "group activities" was not found among Indian elementary school teachers. According to Ishikawa, in Japanese school education, both academic and extracurricular activities are often conducted in the classroom. In addition, instruction in daily life, such as school lunches and cleaning, is conducted mainly in the classroom. Classroom management in Japan is not limited to classroom management for learning but extends to most school activities. Indian schools excel in terms of education toward multicultural understanding, and globalization. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the actual classroom management situation of teachers in both the countries [20].
