Japan’s education ministry is encouraging local governments to establish teams of trained teachers and school staff to enhance support for students in disaster-affected areas.
Based on lessons learned from the Noto Peninsula earthquake, the ministry established a framework called “D-EST” in 2024 and has been promoting preparedness.
The aim of the framework is to help continue learning, reopen schools, and provide mental health care and other support when large-scale disasters occur.
As part of this initiative, the ministry is working to strengthen coordination with school support teams set up by prefectures and major cities across the country.
These teams, composed of teachers and school staff who have received training, would enter areas hit by disasters.
Currently, only 13 prefectures have established such teams, including Hyogo, Kumamoto and Miyagi.
The ministry is encouraging more local governments to create teams, through measures such as producing training videos.
Kobayashi Masahiro, a ministry official, says schools in disaster-affected areas require support from teachers and school staff who properly understand their situations.
He says deploying teams made up of teachers and staff with experience and expertise in disaster response would make ongoing, hands-on support possible.
AloJapan.com