Bullying suicide of a 6th grader’s tablet: Ex-principal quietly “moved up” in the world
A former principal who promoted the GIGA school concept in Machida City, Tokyo, has been promoted to the Shibuya Ward superintendent of education.
“It is known that a classmate used the chat function of a tablet to write such words as ‘disgusting’ and ‘die’ about the deceased girl. The tablet provided to the school had a password that could be easily identified, and the management system was so sloppy.
On September 13, it was learned that a sixth-grade girl, then 12, who attended a municipal elementary school in Machida, Tokyo, committed suicide at the end of November last year. The school was an advanced school in the “GIGA School Initiative” launched by the government. As a result, tablet devices were distributed to the students less than a year earlier than normal schools. This became a hotbed of bullying.
“The school’s principal, Toshiko Igarashi (60), was known as a proponent of the GIGA School Initiative, having participated in the roundtable discussion that led to the current GIGA School Initiative from its inception. Nevertheless, the sloppy management of the terminals encouraged bullying. At the request of the bereaved family, the principal did not disclose the bullying to the children until mid-January this year, and did not report it to the Board of Education until mid-February.
In fact, Mr. Igarashi retired at the end of March this year and was quietly transferred to the Shibuya Ward Board of Education in April. Mr. Toshihito Horikiri, a member of the Shibuya Ward Assembly, said.
“The education chief is a key position at the level of deputy mayor, and is responsible for the safety and security of about 8,800 students in 26 ward elementary and junior high schools. His annual income is about 15 million yen. Mr. Igarashi first visited the bereaved family’s home to offer his condolences on February 24 of this year, the same day a proposal was submitted to the ward assembly to seek consent for her appointment as education chief. It is said that she may have visited him out of relief that her promotion had been decided.
I interviewed Mr. Igarashi directly near his home in Tokyo, but he said, “It’s a nuisance” and “It’s not fair the way he does things,” and ran off.
I think he has a responsibility to fulfill before he can be “promoted”.
