[FALSE] Are there Japanese schools in the US or Russia?

Screenshot of the Facebook post.

The Claim and Our Verdict

• The claim: A video was shared Oct. 31, 2021 on Facebook, along with a claim that there is no Japanese school in the United States and Russia.
• Fact-checking:
  • According to the official website of Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), the overseas educational institutions refer to the educational institutions outside Japan, including Japanese schools, supplementary schools and overseas branches of Japanese private schools. Japanese school is a full-time educational institution, which aims to provide elementary and secondary education equivalent to that in Japan. Japanese schools are generally established by local Japanese associations and managed by school management committees composed of representatives from Japanese associations, overseas enterprises and supervising entities.
  • According to the list of certified Japanese schools, there are four in the U.S. and one in Russia. Their official websites are also available.
  • There is a Japanese school in Honolulu, Hawaii, the U.S., named Rainbow School. Generally speaking, it is not a Japanese school as defined by MEXT, but is the only certified supplementary school in Hawaii.
• Our ruling: Therefore, we rate the claim as FALSE.

News Brief

A video was shared Oct. 31, 2021 on Facebook, along with a claim that there is no Japanese school in the U.S. and Russia. The voiceover stated, “Why there are so many Japanese schools in China, but none in the U.S. or Russia? In fact, the Japanese government proposed to establish Japanese schools in the U.S. and Russia, respectively. The U.S. government promised to establish Japanese schools in Hawaii but later scraped the plan due to strong opposition from the Hawaiian residents.”

As of the issuance of this report, the post had received 231 comments and 332 likes or reactions, and the video had been viewed over 21,000 times.

Fact-checking

A keyword search found an article titled “Overseas education institution outline” on the official website of Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). According to the article, the overseas educational institutions refer to the educational institutions outside Japan, which aim to offer the appropriate curriculum to Japanese children living abroad, as stipulated in the School Education Law (No. 26 of 1947). These overseas educational institutions include Japanese schools, supplementary schools and overseas branches of Japanese private schools.”

The abovementioned article defines “Japanese school” as a full-time educational institution, which aims to provide elementary and secondary education equivalent to that in Japan. Japanese schools are generally established by local Japanese associations and managed by school management committees composed of representatives from Japanese associations, overseas enterprises and supervising entities.

Screenshot of the article, titled “Overseas education institution outline.”

The document “List of certified overseas educational institutions” published by MEXT shows that the four Japanese schools in the U.S. are Chicago Japanese School (certified in 1992), The Japanese School of New York (certified in 1994), The New Jersey Japanese School (certified in 2005), The Japanese School of Guam (certified in 1992). There is also a Japanese school in Russia—Japanese School of Moscow (certified in 1994).

Screenshot of the “List of certified overseas educational institutions.”

The official websites of these five Japanese schools are Chicago Japanese School, The Japanese School of New York, The New Jersey Japanese School, The Japanese School of Guam, and Japanese School of Moscow.

Screenshot of the official website of the New Jersey Japanese School

In addition, there is allegedly no Japanese school in Hawaii, according to the claim. However, the official website of the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu shows there is a Japanese school in Hawaii named Rainbow School. It is the only supplementary school in Hawaii certified by the MEXT. This school located in Hawaii is not a Japanese school but it still belongs to the Japanese overseas educational institutions, as defined by MEXT.

Screenshot of the official website of the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu.