A/HRC/17/33/Add.3 IV. Good practices A. Support measures for education of migrant children 21. Because of the Japanese language barrier, many migrant children have entered private foreign or “ethnic” schools, while others, who can neither access Japanese schools nor foreign private schools because of the costs, are out of school. 22. Recognizing that migrant children’s education was in a worrying state, the Government recently started to provide some assistance to migrant children with difficulties in adapting to the Japanese language and culture. The Government adopted the immediate short-term support measures for foreign residents in Japan in January 2009.9 It launched a set of educational measures, such as: provision of bilingual support staff for teaching Japanese to children and liaising with parents; preparatory classes for children before they enrol in schools; designation of schools for the enrolment of foreign students; appointment of staff from NGOs as “school promoters” who approach migrant families with children not attending school; increased number of Japanese language teachers for migrant children. School enrolment guidebooks have also been prepared by the Ministry of Education in seven languages containing information on the Japanese education system and procedures for enrolling. They are distributed at schools, boards of education, consulates and embassies. 23. The Government also launched an emergency short-term programme to teach Japanese, and basic subjects required in the Japanese educational system, to those migrant children who have had to leave foreign private schools as a result of the economic crisis. This project costing 4 billion yen and lasting 3 years managed by the International Organization for Migration has financed the “Rainbow Bridge Classrooms” for migrant children to study Japanese and other subjects so that they can then transfer more smoothly to Japanese free public schools. This programme also promotes integration by organizing cultural activities with local communities.10 24. Since policies at the national level are mainly ad hoc and short-term, some municipalities have taken the initiative to offer support to migrant children’s education. The city of Hamamatsu, with more than 32,000 migrants, has a population of nearly 20,000 Brazilians, which is the largest among the Japanese municipalities. The municipality offers what it calls a “Diversified Educational Environment for Foreign Children”. It offers Japanese language support as well as support and tutoring in various languages to allow children enrolled in Japanese schools to become accustomed and integrated into Japanese school life. It also gives support to foreign schools, which are seen as playing an important role in the education of migrant children. Finally, it promotes education that fosters an intercultural understanding in primary and junior high school. 25. Concerning adult education, several municipalities have taken initiatives to provide Japanese-language learning opportunities. In Toyota, the municipality established a fund to which companies hiring many migrant workers contribute as part of their corporate responsibility. This fund, in which the Toyota Group participates, finances Japanese classes for adults. However, following the financial crisis, contributions have decreased considerably. At the prefectural level, a similar fund has also been created, where 9 10 Cabinet Office, “Immediate short-term support measures for foreign residents in Japan”, 30 January 2009. Available from http://www8.cao.go.jp/teiju-portal/eng/taisaku/#1. See Cabinet Office, “Promotion of Support Measures for Foreign Residents in Japan”, 16 April 2009. Available from http://www8.cao.go.jp/teiju-portal/eng/taisaku/index.html. 7