Classroom Chaos: When Students Lie Down, Walk Out, and Push the Limits of Education

After the COVID-19 pandemic, classroom breakdowns have been on the rise.

In the past, classroom breakdown referred to actions where children resisted teachers or resorted to violence, disrupting the management of the class. However, the situation has changed somewhat. While such violent behavior has decreased, there has been an increase in classroom breakdowns characterized by children walking around during lessons, shouting unusual noises, and leaving the classroom.

In fact, during a recent parent-teacher meeting at an elementary school, many parents expressed their surprise at seeing children leaving the classroom at will or talking to themselves while watching YouTube on their tablets.

Today’s classroom breakdowns are sometimes referred to as quiet classroom breakdowns. What is causing this phenomenon?

In my recent book, Report: How Smartphone Parenting Destroys Children (Shinchosha), I interviewed around 200 teachers in school settings to uncover the unique changes and difficulties children face today. From this, I would like to explore the current state of classroom breakdowns.

“Because the pressure in the classroom is overwhelming.”

In a certain public elementary school, out of 35 children, 6 to 7 were routinely standing up and walking around during class. They would leave the classroom without saying anything, sit on the floor to watch YouTube, or lie down in the hallway. With 5 students absent due to truancy, this meant that effectively 1 in 4 or 5 students was engaging in such behavior.

These children were not acting out of defiance against the teacher; rather, they left the classroom or suddenly sat on the floor as if it were completely normal, like they were in their own rooms at home.

One teacher described the situation as follows:

“This is what the school environment looks like these days. They’re not trying to disrupt the lesson on purpose. It seems they have something on their minds, but they can’t express it well, so they resort to strange behaviors like suddenly collapsing onto the floor.

The kids who leave the classroom are the same. When I ask them why, they respond with things like, ‘The pressure in the classroom is overwhelming,’ or ‘I’m tired of all the people.’ Most of them wander around the school and then return, but some go home, which raises concerns about safety.”

What’s different from the past is that even when children exhibit such behaviors, teachers often act as if those children do not exist. Even if a student is lying on the floor or coming and going from the classroom, the teacher seems to ignore them entirely, as if they aren’t even there.

The same goes for the other classmates. Even if a child next to them is sitting on the floor, they don’t look over, and if someone leaves the classroom, no one says anything. There seems to be a clear boundary where they don’t engage with each other.

Why is that? One contributing factor to this silence may be related to developmental disabilities, as the teacher explained:

 

 

“There are children with developmental disabilities in the class. When they can’t tolerate being in the classroom, they sometimes exhibit unusual behaviors.”

According to a 2022 survey by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, approximately 8.8% of children attending regular classes in elementary and middle schools may have developmental disabilities. In a class of 35 students, that means about three children could be affected.

While the characteristics and severity of these disabilities vary, there are not infrequent cases where children struggle with collective behavior due to issues such as lack of focus, sensitivity to sounds and smells, and difficulty with self-expression.

Currently, there is a growing movement in schools to acknowledge the characteristics of children with developmental disabilities. Since these disabilities cannot be improved through teaching, this approach is likely not misguided. However, it seems to be contributing to the current breakdown of classrooms.

The aforementioned teacher explained:

“When a child with developmental disabilities leaves the classroom, we think, ‘We can only accept that child’s behavior,’ and let it go. However, this has a ripple effect on children without developmental disabilities as well. A large number of children end up leaving the classroom. When I try to address this, I hear responses like, ‘Why is it okay for him but not for me? Isn’t that discrimination?’ So I can’t say anything.

If there were a clear distinction between this child being diagnosed with a developmental disability and that child not being diagnosed, we could respond accordingly. However, unlike intellectual or physical disabilities, some children with developmental disabilities have not been diagnosed, and there is a wide range of variation, making it quite complex.”

Ignore and continue with the lesson

Developmental disabilities do not have clearly defined levels like nursing care certifications or cancer stages. They represent variations in traits that everyone possesses.

It is nearly impossible for teachers, who are not specialists, to analyze the individual characteristics of 35 to 40 children and determine appropriate responses for each while also keeping the other children on board with the lesson.

As a result, teachers find themselves unable to address the behaviors of the children, leading them to ignore them. Consequently, they end up teaching only to those children who remain seated while allowing others to leave the classroom or sit on the floor.

How do teachers perceive this situation? A vice principal from an elementary school interviewed for this book expressed:

“Prominent researchers and celebrities say through the media, ‘We should recognize children’s traits,’ ‘It’s natural for them to want to walk around during class,’ and ‘Teachers who try to control children are wrong.’ This is certainly true for children with developmental disabilities.

However, it feels like these voices have grown too loud. If we apply this to all children, then lessons simply won’t be able to proceed. Yet, if the pace of the lessons is slow, teachers are criticized as incompetent. So what are we supposed to do?

Just because some exceptional teachers have successfully implemented special strategies doesn’t mean everyone can do the same. The children they work with change every year. Ultimately, we are being told to recognize traits without any clear methodology on how to handle specific situations, leaving teachers feeling helpless. If we are to acknowledge these traits, we need clear guidance on what to do in these situations; many teachers are unable to do anything without that. I want this reality to be understood.”

It is unclear how much the vice principal’s words reflect the feelings of other teachers. However, what became painfully clear during the interviews for this book is that despite new forms of classroom breakdown emerging, many teachers lack solutions, exacerbating the situation.

Additionally, it seems that alongside these children, there is a growing number of children with what is being referred to as “Praise Addiction Syndrome.” These children also appear to be causing problems at school. We will explore this further in the next part: Report on Classroom Breakdown: “Children are Becoming Secret Police” – The Reality of Praise Addiction.*

Part 2: Report: Classroom Collapse, “Children Becoming Secret Police,” The Reality of the Addiction to Being Whored Out