Increasing number of Filipino children who have Japanese nationality or legal status for longer stay in Japan is flowing in Japanese public schools, accompanied by their Filipino national mothers. This move was boosted by the 2009 revision of the Nationality Law of Japan and the domestic labor shortage in care sector, and is expected to continue. Obviously however, most of the local governments are not prepared to offer necessary educational support in terms of Japanese language skills, school course works, and intercultural adjustment. Without them, these children would be deprived of the minimum opportunity of high school level education and decent work in future.
The aim of this project is to construct, promote and advocate an educational support model for these Filipino children in three levels: 1) to develop and operate in Kyoto some educational materials based on assistive digital technology, that are low-cost, easy to spread, and multi-lingual; 2) to establish “glocal” and sustainable educational support network involving universities, Filipino community, local community in Kyoto, related NGOs, local government, and the government of the Philippines, that can enhance and maximize the limited resources and; 3) to make the educational support model adaptable to students of other language/ethnic groups and actively advocate it nationwide.