Japan plans to increase headcount of school support staff to ease burden on teachers

The education ministry plans to vastly increase the number of support personnel for teachers at public elementary and junior high schools, sources said, in a bid to ease the burden on educators.

The measure, part of efforts to reform teachers’ work styles, may double the funds in the fiscal 2023 budget request for hiring school support staff, who take on clerical work such as answering phone calls, preparing handouts for students, grading assignments and disinfecting classrooms to prevent the spread of COVID-19