Selective mutism and school refusal (Japan)

Some Japanese researchers have studied the relationship between selective mutism and school refusal.

Most of them have argued that selectively mute children don't generally refuse to attend school(for example, Sogame, 1973; Araki, 1979; Kawai, 1994).

But recent studies are lacking. School refusal today is different than the 70's and 80's (Kawai's study is based on studies in the 60's-80's).

Browsing the web, I found many stories of Japanese children with selective mutism who refuse to attend school.

I expect control studies. To carry out a control study, researchers need to gather children into two groups. One is composed of children with selective mutism. The other is control group that doesn't include selectively mute children. Then examine how many children refuse to attend school in both groups. Then compare both of them to examine whether significant difference exists or not.

In Europe and the U.S., control studies on selective mutism have been carried out. But in Japan, that have not.

[Related link]

Selective mutism and school refusal (The selective mutism journal/Japanese)
http://smjournal.com/ar071201.html

Index of SM in Japan

Ninth grade (2)

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Chapter 4 Selective mutism and my junior high school years

Ninth grade (2)

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About half of the new classmates were my former classmates. But I had no friends in the class.

Y was in the same class. She was my eighth classmate. When Y and I were the eighth grade, she showed me many kindnesses. Soon after we moved up to the ninth grade, Y introduced me to some classmates as "a cute boy." So, I was accepted into them.

Another kind classmate was K. She was my fifth, sixth and eighth classmate. She had a close friend, S, and sometimes showed me many kindnesses with her.

But not all classmates were kind to me. Some classmates, especially male classmates, began to bully me.

I had no friends to help me. Instead of friends, female classmates, such as Y, K and S, helped me. But that aroused jealousy of male bullies, and their bullying got severe.

(To be continued)

Index of SM story

Selective mutism in Japanese college education and certification exam

Some Japanese SM sufferer, ex sufferer and their parents say that Japanese professionals don't necessarily know about selective mutism.

Didn't Japanese professionals study selective mutism in college? Didn't they study selective mutism for certification exams before they got their jobs? Didn't they study selective mutism in OJT after they got their jobs?

[selective mutism in college education]

Browsing Japanese websites, I sometimes find people who have the experience of studying selective mutism in college. So, there seem to be colleges in Japan that teach selective mutism to students.

But I don't know which departments teach selective mutism. Similarly, I don't know whether selective mutism is taught in undergraduate courses or graduate courses.

Even if they studied selective mutism in college, they may forget the knowledge if they don't utilize it after they graduated from colleges.

[selective mutism in certification exam]

From what I gathered on the Internet, questions on selective mutism were asked on the national exam for medical practitioners, teacher employment exam, and child career employment exam.

I also gathered information about civil-service exam (psychology occupation) and certification exam for clinical psychology. But I couldn't confirm whether questions on selective mutism were asked on those exams.

Even if they studied selective mutism for exam, they may forget the knowledge if they don't utilize it after they passed the exam.

[selective mutism in OJT]

I don't know. :(

Index of SM in Japan

Ninth grade (1)

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Chapter 4 Selective mutism and my junior high school years

Ninth grade

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By the time I was the ninth grade, my selective mutism seemed to get better. Soon after I moved up to the ninth grade, photographers came to our classroom and took pictures of us. One of those pictures is in our yearbook. The picture shows me laughing with my classmates. When I went to elementary school, I couldn't laugh in school. But when I was the ninth grade, I could laugh.

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New classroom teacher was a female art teacher. She had been just transferred from a board of education, so I didn't know her.

Since I was the fifth grade, my successive homeroom teachers had paid special attention to me. But the new teacher didn't. So, I was dissatisfied with her.

In retrospect, I think that I might have had a sense of entitlement. "I was a student with special needs. All teachers, especially my homeroom teacher, have to pay special attention to me." It's true that I was a student with special needs. Many teachers and classmates had done me many kindnesses. But that might cause me to have a sense of entitlement.

(To be continued)

Index of SM story