EDUCATION

Students at a junior high school in Tochigi Prefecture’s Takenazawa town have felt ill after eating cheese at the school cafeteria, local board of education representatives said. (Japan Today)

Hiroshima District Court rejected Wednesday a petition calling for the reversal of a Japanese government decision to exclude a Korean school from its tuition-free high school education program. (Jiji)

Japan will set aside roughly 4 trillion yen (.6 billion) in the next fiscal year’s state budget for measures that focus on education as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s strategy to spur growth, government sources told Reuters on Tuesday. (Reuters)

The number of female researchers at private companies and other institutions in Japan reached the highest level ever last year, government data showed, although it remained low by international standards. (Japan Times)

A public elementary school teacher in eastern Japan told a fourth grader to jump out of a third-floor classroom window last week, prompting the boy to stay away from school, a local education committee said Tuesday. (Kyodo)

YouTube star Piko Taro performed a version of his quirky hit song “Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen” at the United Nations on Monday to promote the organization’s Sustainable Development Goals toward eradicating poverty and inequality. (Kyodo)

The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry on Thursday announced guidelines for the country’s new unified examination system for university entrance that will begin in fiscal 2020. (the-japan-news.com)

“Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen” and the U.N. are rhyming. Japanese comedian Pikotaro has adapted his catchy song to promote the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. (Japan Today)

Japan has 227 public kindergartens, elementary, junior high and high schools with old chimneys that may scatter asbestos, an education ministry survey showed Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Education ministry panel approves private-sector English testing for university entrance (Japan Times)