Japan’s first e-sports high school attracted an unexpected demographic of chronic absentee students. Read more at straitstimes.com.
He disliked his teachers, chafed against the rules and was bored by his classes. So in the middle of 2020, as Japan’s schools reopened after pandemic closings, Wataru decided to stay home and play video games all day.Now, after more than a year out of the classroom, Wataru, 16, has returned to school, though not a normal one. He and around two dozen teenagers like him are part of the inaugural class of Japan’s first e-sports high school, a private institution in Tokyo that opened last year.
Japanese schools can feel like hostile environments for children who don’t fit in. Pressure to conform – from teachers and peers alike – is high. In extreme cases, schools have demanded that children dye their naturally brown hair black to match other pupils’, or dictated the color of their underwear.
For them, it seemed like a potential haven. But for their parents, it was a last resort. Once the school realized it was tapping into an unexpected demographic of absentee students, it invested considerable effort in soothing parental concerns. The ceremony offered reassurance to both students and parents. A former minister of education sent a congratulatory telegram on the school’s opening. The principal – in the form of a glitchy virtual avatar – delivered a speech from a giant screen, then led students in a programming exercise.
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