"Please Turn Off Your Smartphone and Get Some Sleep" Japan Expands 'Sleep Education' in Schools

Teaching the Principle of Sleeping More Than 7 Hours
Increase in Students Refusing to Attend School Since COVID-19

Recently, 'sleep education' has been gaining popularity among elementary, middle, and high school students in Japan. Since the prolonged period of remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted daily rhythms and caused a surge in students refusing to attend school, this education has been recognized as essential to prevent such issues. In particular, the education focuses on cultivating proper sleep habits, such as turning off smartphones at night and ensuring at least seven hours of sleep.

On the 16th, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) reported on Professor Ryo Onishi of Chikushi Women's University, who conducts sleep education by visiting elementary, middle, and high schools in Kasuga City, Fukuoka Prefecture. Professor Onishi lectures students that middle and high school students need at least seven hours of sleep, and that staying up late before holidays or using smartphones before bedtime interferes with sleep.

Children receiving sleep education. (Photo by Japan Noodle Promotion Council)

Kasuga City in Fukuoka Prefecture has been conducting such sleep classes since 2019. Students attend one face-to-face class annually and then keep a sleep diary, which is checked by their homeroom teacher. The diary records not only bedtime and wake-up times but also whether the student was able to wake up on their own and how they might increase their sleep time by 30 minutes. This is to help students manage their sleep habits independently.

Sleep education is already showing results. A survey of four elementary schools in Kasuga City found that in 2021, 75% of children went to bed before 10 p.m. on weekdays, a 15 percentage point increase compared to 2019. There have also been cases where students who previously refused to attend elementary school corrected their daily rhythms and successfully advanced to middle school.

Originally, sleep education in Japan began in the late 2000s in Gifu Prefecture, Fukui Prefecture, and other areas, spreading as other local governments such as Niigata Prefecture and Nagano Prefecture benchmarked the program. Although its popularity seemed to wane briefly, it has regained attention since the COVID-19 pandemic. Restrictions on going out and the shift from face-to-face to remote classes caused changes in children's sleep and daily rhythms.

Children receiving counseling based on recorded sleep diaries. (Photo by Japan Cotton Promotion Council)

In fact, the National Center for Child Health and Development, a pediatric medical institution, announced in a 2020 survey that over 30% of upper elementary and middle school students reported that their bedtime had become 'later' or 'irregular' compared to before COVID-19.

In Sakai City, Osaka, which also conducts sleep education like Kasuga City, a 'sleep education' application (app) was introduced on learning devices distributed to elementary and middle school students after the COVID-19 pandemic. When students input their bedtime and wake-up times, artificial intelligence (AI) provides advice on how to improve. Parents can also check their child's sleep patterns via smartphone. A Sakai City official said, "It provides an opportunity for the entire family to maintain proper lifestyle habits."

Experts advise that although sleep deprivation greatly affects children's physical and mental development, it is often underestimated in daily life. Professor Teruhisa Miike of Kumamoto University School of Medicine positively evaluated sleep education, saying, "Although getting good sleep is important, children have few opportunities to learn about the importance of sleep."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.