TOKYO - A Japanese midwife is campaigning to reform sex education in schools, traveling across the country to teach children about their bodies, pregnancy, contraception, and sexual violence prevention, as longstanding restrictions in the national curriculum leave teachers uncertain about how much information they can provide.
At an elementary school in Kanagawa Prefecture, third-grade students enthusiastically identify the parts of their bodies that should remain private, including their chest, mouth, and genitals. The lesson goes beyond anatomy, teaching children that they have the right to decide who can touch their bodies and how to respond when someone violates their boundaries.
"Who decides whether someone can touch your body?" the instructor asks. "Me," the children respond.
The students are also taught what to do if a friend, trusted adult, or stranger asks to see or touch their private parts. They practice saying "No" loudly before running away, learning that protecting themselves begins with recognizing inappropriate behavior and asserting their right to refuse.
Leading the class is Takano, a practicing midwife who has spent the past seven years visiting schools to provide age-appropriate sex education. Her approach emphasizes practical knowledge, personal safety, and respect for the human body, addressing subjects that regular classroom lessons often leave unexplained.
Takano began teaching at the Kanagawa school four years ago. Her lessons have since become an annual program for every student from first through sixth grade, and similar initiatives are spreading to neighboring schools.
A teacher at the school says the lessons cover topics that regular classes cannot adequately explain, while responding to children's strong curiosity about their own bodies. Repeated instruction, the teacher believes, helps students develop the knowledge and confidence needed to protect themselves as they grow older.
Takano now conducts approximately 250 lessons a year, mainly in the Kanto region, with requests arriving continuously from schools and local governments. Her schedule is so demanding that she sometimes spends consecutive nights sleeping in a camper van while traveling between destinations.
Her determination to change Japan's approach to sex education grew out of painful experiences during approximately 17 years working as a midwife at a hospital in Yokohama.
During that time, she encountered numerous children who had become involved in sexual problems or suffered abuse, including a girl who became pregnant after being sexually assaulted.
Takano was on duty when the girl gave birth, an experience she says remains deeply distressing.
The delivery lasted nine hours, during which the girl repeatedly said she did not want to give birth. Recalling the incident still brings Takano close to tears.
"I want to welcome every baby born into this world by saying congratulations," she says, explaining the conviction that led her to begin teaching children about sexuality, pregnancy, and the value of life.
That commitment shapes every lesson she delivers. Regardless of the students' ages, Takano makes a point of explaining the importance of life and the biological process through which people are born.
During a class for third-year junior high school students in Chiba Prefecture, she explains how an egg is fertilized by a sperm cell, telling students that each of them began life through an extraordinary biological process.
"You were the one chosen from among 300 million," she tells the class, encouraging students to applaud themselves and appreciate their own existence.
For older students, her instruction becomes more detailed, covering the mechanisms of pregnancy and specific methods of contraception.
In one lesson, Takano demonstrates how to use a condom correctly, explaining how to pinch the reservoir tip before placing it on an erect penis to leave space for semen and help prevent incorrect use.
Such instruction, however, frequently attracts criticism.
Takano says some people are uncomfortable with sex education itself, while teachers and others question whether discussing sexual intercourse and contraception in detail exceeds the limits established by Japan's national curriculum.
At the center of the controversy are restrictions known as the "hadome kitei," or curriculum provisions intended to limit the scope of instruction, which were incorporated into the government's curriculum guidelines in 1998.
Under these provisions, fifth-grade elementary school science classes are not required to cover the process leading to human fertilization, while first-year junior high school health and physical education classes are not required to explain the progression of pregnancy.
The provisions do not explicitly prohibit teachers from discussing sexual intercourse, contraception, or related subjects. Nevertheless, some educators interpret them as instructions to avoid such topics, creating considerable differences in the quality and depth of sex education between schools.
Critics say the resulting uncertainty has discouraged teachers from providing comprehensive instruction, even as children encounter increasingly explicit information about sexuality through smartphones, social media, and other digital platforms.
The issue has become more urgent as authorities confront sexual crimes involving minors.
According to the National Police Agency, 1,566 children were victims of crimes, including sexual offenses, connected to social networking services in 2025. Of those, 167 were elementary school students, the highest number on record for that age group.
The figures have intensified concerns that children are entering online environments without sufficient knowledge to recognize exploitation, coercion, or sexual violence.
Some local governments are responding by introducing more comprehensive sex education through partnerships with outside specialists.
In Nagareyama, Chiba Prefecture, the municipal board of education has taken the initiative to introduce Takano's lessons at every public junior high school.
Education officials say specialist instruction offers an effective way to provide information that schools may find difficult to address within conventional curriculum guidelines.
Children today are naturally curious and obtain enormous amounts of information from the internet and social media, one local education official explains. Without reliable guidance, they may mistakenly accept inaccurate information online as fact.
The official says inviting qualified specialists into schools is particularly valuable because ordinary classroom instruction can face practical and institutional limitations when addressing subjects beyond the prescribed curriculum.
Students who have participated in the program say the lessons have changed their understanding of sexuality and the importance of accurate information.
One junior high school student says he previously believed certain sexual topics were inappropriate for people his age, but now recognizes that learning about them early can contribute to healthier and happier lives.
Another student says the lessons helped explain how sexual harm can occur when people lack knowledge, reinforcing the importance of understanding both personal boundaries and sexual responsibility.
Takano believes the benefits extend beyond preventing children from becoming victims. She argues that education also helps young people avoid unintentionally harming others.
"Without knowledge, you cannot protect yourself, and without knowledge, you may end up hurting someone else," she tells students. "Having correct knowledge about sexuality becomes a protective charm for yourself."
She urges children to acquire reliable information and use it to safeguard their bodies, their dignity, and their relationships with others.
Japan's approach to sex education has faced longstanding criticism for being vague and insufficiently comprehensive compared with international practices.
One reason is the continuing influence of the curriculum restrictions introduced in 1998, which reflected concerns among some educators and policymakers that teaching children explicitly about sexual intercourse or contraception might stimulate curiosity and encourage sexual activity.
This view, sometimes described as a reluctance to awaken unnecessary curiosity, became particularly influential in debates over school-based sex education.
In subsequent years, schools that introduced more detailed lessons faced criticism from politicians and other groups.
In Tokyo, for example, some metropolitan assembly members questioned instruction at junior high schools that addressed contraception and abortion, bringing the content of classroom teaching into political debate.
The controversy contributed to an environment in which teachers became cautious about discussing sexuality, even when the information could help students understand their bodies or avoid dangerous situations.
Supporters of reform argue that the conditions surrounding children have changed dramatically since the restrictions were introduced nearly three decades ago.
Smartphones and social media now make sexual content easily accessible to children at much younger ages, while misinformation can spread rapidly through online platforms.
They argue that avoiding sensitive subjects in classrooms does not prevent children from encountering them elsewhere, but may instead leave them dependent on unreliable sources.
Parents may also find reassurance in knowing that schools are providing accurate, age-appropriate instruction rather than leaving children to navigate difficult questions alone.
The debate comes as the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology reviews Japan's national curriculum guidelines, which are generally revised approximately once every 10 years.
Deliberations on the latest revision are approaching a critical stage, creating an opportunity to reconsider provisions that have shaped sex education since 1998.
However, there is currently no clear indication whether the government will retain or abolish the restrictions.
Some educators and local assembly members have called for their removal, arguing that schools need greater flexibility to respond to children's changing circumstances and the growing risks associated with online sexual exploitation.
For Takano, the central issue is not simply how much schools should teach about reproduction or contraception, but whether children are being given the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions and recognize threats to their safety.
Her work reflects a broader effort to shift sex education away from avoidance and embarrassment toward practical understanding, personal autonomy, and prevention.
As she continues traveling between schools, Takano's message remains consistent: accurate knowledge about sexuality is not something children should be denied out of fear that they may become curious. It is a means of helping them protect themselves and respect others.
Source: TBS
