Fukushima: JEDRO-Projekt X - Ishinomaki Classroom Service

NCC Japan Ecumenical Disaster Response Office  (NCC-JEDRO)

Ishinomaki AIM Delivery Classroom Service for Temporary Housing Residents

Proposing Body: AIM Study Seminar
Budget: JPY 2,858,000  (ca. 28.000 EURO)
Project Period: June 17, 2012 – March 31, 2014
Project Liaison: NCC-JEDRO staff

Summary of the Project Plan

Ishinomaki AIM Delivery Classroom Service for Temporary Housing Residents
Project site: Friendship Center, Kaisei Temporary Housing Project, 1 Kaisei, Ishinomaki-shi, Miyagi
Project period: From June 17, 2012  to March 31, 2014
Number of days:  653 days

Organization:  AIM Study Seminar
1. Purpose of Project
This project aims to improve the learning abilities of children and students, who are at risk of falling behind in school due to deteriorated learning environment after the disaster. The project is implemented for Ishinomaki citizens now living in a temporary housing/leased city residence, because their own homes were destroyed or washed away by the earthquake disaster.

2. Project site/overview of the project
This project will be implemented at the community center within the Kaisei Temporary Housing Project in Ishinomaki City which is equipped with desks and chairs for 40 persons).

Summary of the project

The focus of this project is on Ishinomaki City, which suffered a large number of deaths and missing totaling 3,955 persons (official report by the Ishinomaki City Hall dated September 1, 2011), due to the Great East Japan Earthquake. We designate as our project site the community center (mainly the Friendship Center) inside the Kaisei Housing project, which is run by the city.

Most of those who have participated in the "Kanken" preparation course offered by the Delivery Classroom Service from August 2011 through June 2012 (the Eiken course started in February 2012) are elementary and junior high school students who are residents of the Kaisei Temporary Housing Project and other temporary housing projects in Ishinomaki City. Of the eleven schools that these students used to attend before the earthquake and tsunami, only three junior high schools and two elementary schools are still in use. The other six schools are now out of use because the tsunami inundated their 1st and 2nd floors ,or, in one case, the school building was destroyed by a fire caused by the earthquake. All of this has forced a very large number of Ishinomaki children to shift to surviving schools, which are now overcrowded. Ishinomaki city is still only halfway along the path toward restoration of the educational environment for its children.

In the meantime, as far as a situation of adults is concerned, even as of May 2012, most of the processing plants for seafood, seaweed, etc., which are major industries in Ishinomaki City, have not been restored yet. Moreover, unemployment benefits are no longer being paid to those who lost their job. Some adults who are taking the "Kanken" course on weekends are looking for a job on weekdays. For these adult students, passing a Kanken test not only helps to recover confidence, but can indirectly improve employment opportunities.

Die detaillierte Projekbeschreibung ISHINOMAKI CLASSROOM SERVICE hier.