Turning the Voices of Teachers with Disabilities into the Power of Educational Policy.

The Kyodo News article, "A Dream Homeroom Teacher: A Teacher with Cerebral Palsy Welcomes a New Spring," was published in newspapers and on web media across the country. It was also featured on the Kyodo News English-language website, reaching an international audience. Honestly, I never imagined it would spread this far.
As a teacher with cerebral palsy, I have stood in school classrooms for 25 years. Many people have embraced the fact that I was finally able to serve as a homeroom teacher as the "realization of a dream." Of course, I am happy to have become a homeroom teacher. However, I also feel that this event should not end as just an "inspirational personal story." This is because the background of this story contains many issues regarding how teachers with disabilities can continue to work in schools, as well as themes related to future educational policy.
In fact, in June 2025, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) issued a notification to boards of education nationwide titled "Towards Promoting the Active Participation of Educational Personnel with Disabilities." It outlines the educational significance of having teachers with disabilities in schools, stating that it "deepens understanding of people with disabilities," "serves as a role model for children with disabilities," and "provides an opportunity to think about an inclusive society."
MEXT's "Plan for Promoting the Active Participation of Persons with Disabilities" also points out that the presence of teachers with disabilities can become a "hidden curriculum" for children. I strongly resonate with this idea. Children do not learn only from a teacher's words. They learn a great deal from a teacher's presence, way of life, and how they interact with others. Interacting naturally with people who are different. Helping each other when in trouble. Demonstrating strength in different ways even when there are things one cannot do.
Children perceive these things in their daily lives. I have had various experiences in school settings. Teaching, classroom management, school events, dealing with parents, student guidance, career counseling, grade-level management... the work required of a teacher is diverse.
On the other hand, I have often felt an atmosphere suggesting that "it might be difficult for a teacher with a disability to be a homeroom teacher" or "it might be difficult to lead a school trip." Of course, consideration for safety is necessary in schools. However, I feel that in Japan's educational settings, there still exists a tendency for possibilities to be narrowed down simply because "there is no precedent."
In fact, MEXT's promotion plan shows the reality that teacher recruitment exams once included conditions such as "must be able to commute independently" and "no assistance required." I do not possess any special abilities. There are many things I cannot do. In reality, there are many situations where I am helped by my colleagues.

However, that should not be limited to the presence or absence of a disability. A school is inherently an organization built on diverse people supporting one another.
I have had students draw circles on the blackboard for me. I have had them carry my bags. Conversely, there have been countless times when I have listened to students' worries, thought through them together, and continued to encourage them.

The roles of "the one who supports" and "the one who is supported" are not fixed. We interact with each other and support one another. I have learned this many times in the classroom. That is precisely why I believe that the very presence of a teacher with a disability in a school has significant educational meaning.

In recent years, the term "inclusive education" has become widespread. However, I do not think inclusive education means only that children with disabilities learn in the same classroom. Teachers themselves should also be allowed to be diverse. Teachers with disabilities, older teachers, teachers with roots in foreign countries, teachers with various experiences... I believe that a school with diverse teachers is what makes it a place for children to learn about a diverse society.

In that sense, I feel that the working styles of teachers with disabilities need to be discussed more within educational policy in the future.
According to a MEXT survey, as of fiscal year 2024, the actual employment rate of people with disabilities across all boards of education was 2.41%, which is below the statutory employment rate of 2.7%. Even more noteworthy is that the actual employment rate for educational personnel is 1.28%. In other words, teachers with disabilities are still a minority in schools. Furthermore, in public school teacher recruitment exams, only 75 teachers with disabilities were hired nationwide in fiscal year 2024. In junior high schools, there were only 9.

Looking at these figures, it is difficult to say that career development for teachers with disabilities has progressed sufficiently. For example, if lines are drawn unconsciously, such as "homeroom teaching is difficult" or "leading field trips or school trips is difficult," teachers with disabilities lose the very opportunity to gain experience. I believe this is a major loss not only for the individuals themselves but also for the school environment.

I was unable to experience being a homeroom teacher for 24 years. However, once I actually experienced it, I learned a great deal about building relationships with students and parents, grade-level management, and the perspective of looking at the school as a whole. There are indeed "strengths that can only be cultivated through experience." That is why, for teachers with disabilities, we need a perspective that asks not only "what cannot be done," but "how can it be achieved?" This is also a matter of reasonable accommodation.

Reasonable accommodation is not "special treatment." I believe it is about creating an environment where a person can demonstrate their strengths. MEXT's notification also indicates the necessity of building a sustainable system where people can continue to work, such as "consideration for guidance systems and job duties," "establishment of consultation and support systems," "staffing for work support," and "consideration for commuting in personnel transfers."

For example, by devising ways to share roles. By utilizing ICT. By creating an environment where those around can support more easily. Through such ingenuity, the opportunities to demonstrate one's expertise as a teacher should expand further.

In 2008, I served as a member of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "Expert Committee for Creating Guidelines for Barrier-Free Learning for Children." Even then, I strongly felt that the "perspective of the parties involved" is necessary for policy-making. The people who think about the systems and the people who live in the field. As the distance between them closes, society changes little by little. I believe the same can be said for educational policy. There is a reality in schools that cannot be seen through systems alone. And there are views that can only be seen because one is a teacher with a disability.
Rather, I want to aim for a society where teachers with disabilities are naturally present in classrooms. I want to aim for a society where schools where diverse teachers work naturally become the norm. To achieve this, systems, awareness, and on-site mechanisms all need to change.
Hiring teachers with disabilities. Creating an environment where they can continue to work. Guaranteeing opportunities for career development. Having administrators and boards of education correctly understand reasonable accommodation. Creating a culture of mutual support throughout the school. And reflecting the voices of the parties involved in policy.
These things will certainly not be achieved overnight. However, if there is no precedent, we can create one. I have walked my path thinking this way all along. To things I was told I "could not do," I have thought about "how I could do them." While being helped by those around me, I have opened paths one by one. The experience of being a homeroom teacher this time was at the end of that accumulation. That is why I want to pass this experience on to the next generation.
When young people with disabilities aim to become teachers, I want society to be one where they can think, "Maybe I can do it too." After being hired, I want schools to be places where they can feel, "There is a place where I can demonstrate my strengths." And I want education to be such that children, while meeting diverse teachers, can truly feel that "it is okay for people to be different" and "we live by supporting each other."

Taking this opportunity, if there is an occasion to convey my on-site experience as a teacher with a disability at expert meetings, study groups, or hearings at MEXT, I would like to contribute, however modestly.
I do not want to be spoken of as a "special teacher." Rather, I want to aim for a society where teachers with disabilities are naturally present in classrooms, and where schools where diverse teachers work naturally become the norm.

"People change through interactions and environment."

I want to continue to convey that in the classroom. And I would like to deliver it to the field of educational policy as a voice from the front lines.