What to Expect
CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
Challenges:
One of the biggest challenges international families may face in Japan is the monolingualism within society.
Solutions:
– Don’t be discouraged by this and instead reach out for the support for such challenges that is available.
– Use the resources that are available. This includes any friends or contacts you may have that can help with translating when visiting the local city or district hall, when communicating with schools, and when communicating with a person in charge of assessments.
– If you don’t have any friends or contacts, please try to consult any interpretation services available in your area or online. Some may be offered for free.
– Alternatively, please try to contact people in the available support groups for international families with children with special needs that are shared in that section of this website.
For any key vocabulary that may be helpful when navigating different areas please consult the key vocabulary part of the website.
Challenges:
Another challenge that may be faced in Japan is the general inconsistencies that exist. In other words one school may be very supportive to a student with special needs, while another school in the area may not be.
One school in the local area may have a lot of support for international families, while another nearby may not have as much support. The same inconsistency tends to apply with medical care providers as well.
This is generally a result of the lack of standards and the inconsistency between the central government and the prefectural and local governments.
Solutions:
– If you feel that one school, or a medical care provider, does not seem to be very supportive, do not give up and please try to find a good fit, as it may be available to you even though you may not find it immediately.
– Use the resources available, such as this website and the recommended schools section, for additional help in finding a good fit
– Also use the parental support groups to hear from other parents who have been through the same experience before.
