More than a week has passed since a state of emergency was declared on April 7 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, not everyone seems to be staying home. Data announced by the government showed that the number of people around main stations in the seven designated hot-spot prefectures dropped 40 to 60 percent on Monday compared to average figures in the month from mid-January. This means some people are still commuting to work because of a lack of a telework environment at home or a failure on the part of their companies to change their traditional way of operating, such as a heavy reliance on paper documents and the use of traditional stamps, known as hanko , for their approval. This is creating a major divide among companies between those that can sustain their business online and those that cannot.
The nation’s schools are also increasingly being pressured to go digital as soon as possible. Since most schools in the seven designated prefectures are closed until May 6, the gap between private and public schools has become more evident. While many private schools started to offer online learning programs this month, public schools lag far behind. Moreover, if schools in other areas remain open, a divide will develop between them and those that are closed. The government should provide financial as well as technical support to schools nationwide to help them go digital.
Private schools began to prepare online education platforms at the end of February when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe abruptly requested that all elementary, junior high and high schools in Japan close from March 2. Many private schools now offer educational materials such as videos and PowerPoint presentations, upload assignments and conduct teacher-student communication online.