Job Discussion Forums

[Alik]

Hello,

I have an upcoming interview with AEON I didnt say any specific AEON stuff in the stickies so i figured i'd post.

for my practice lesson I'm covering colors and animals (animals wont really be covered in the 5 minute time limit but I figured it'd be good to have a second subject to fill out the 30 minute lesson)

it will start with me introducing 7 new colors (Red blue green etc) and i would basicly say
"Repeat after me." "Red" (repeat) "red" (repeat)
and repeat that general pattern throughout the colors, as I say the colors I will write the word on the board.

second step will be having the class identify the color from memory. I will call on random students to answer.

"Suzy, what color is this?" "Red" "Correct the color is Red, please repeat, the color is red" (repeat)
(thats how i was thinking of saying this at the interview, im afraid maybe its too complex, im not sure if you have advice i'd appreciate it)

next I was going to have the students pick a favorite color to personalize the lesson to each student.

"I Like red (as u mightve guessed by me always using red:3)"
"Suzy what color do you like?"
(much like before Im afraid maybe this is too complicated? maybe theres a simpler way to ask idk)

after that I was going to give them a game of memory where they flip a color card over and have to match it to a card that has the name of the color written on it. This would help them associate the word with the color.


That should all take well over 5 minutes to do so if you guys think I should maybe restructure the steps to squeeze a certain lesson in or whatnot please let me know.

the second thing ii've heard and been unable to get additional info on is that there is a test I will have to take.

so far I've heard 1) its very basic 2) very easy 3) 5 questions long

I had a very hard grammar test at ECC (i think i passed but i still didnt get the job) so if anyone could please fill me in on this test so I could rpepare for it I'd really appreciate it.


Thats what i have for the interview thus far if anyone has any specific tips like how i should present myself, voice projection etc I'd really appreciate it. Anything maybe I should know that I missed or whatever I'd be very greatful, my interview is on Sunday ^^/

Thank you again^^/

[Ia2day]

Hey Alik

Congrats on the interview! I'm leaving next week to teach for Aeon in Kyoto. I can tell you a couple of things that I learned from my Interview.

First let me say that I like the structure of your lesson plan, and I don't think that its too complicated.

The plan I used seemed a little too complicated when I delivered it, so its great that your keeping it simple. I would recommend bringing some kind of visual aid. This will not only make your lesson better, but show that you gave your lesson some thought. Remember to dish out the praise for correct answers like nothing else!!! This may seem weird because the "students" will be your fellow applicants. The lesson sample you give will feel like a breeze, so don't sweat the time!

All that said, by far the most important factor is how you present yourself. Make sure that you are professionally dressed. (I wore a suit and tie when I did mine, though others where way more casual{I don't think they got the job;) })
Definitely be sure to have a positive, friendly demeanor. Make lots of eye contact, and be on time!!

In terms of the grammar test, I wouldn't sweat it too much...The one I took involved some easy spelling questions (e.g. umbrella) and some verb tense stuff. Yours may very well be different though, so just try to review the basics. Honestly, I don't think that the grammar test carries as much weight as your presentation.

In my opinion, the best thing you can do is be open, thoughtful and most importantly energetic. These seem to be the characteristics that the recruiters are looking for.

Hope that helped!
Cheers

BTW, where are you interviewing?

[Alik]

Im interviewing in Chicago^^ but if it doesnt go well there I have an interview in New York coming up for AEON as well.

As for visual aids. I used construction paper and put each color on red paper to hold up for the class I laminated them too.

next for the identify the color in the pic. My sis-in-law suggested I use something "Japanese" in other words something they could relate too. So I got various pokemon and laminated their pics. so I will be using those as well. I may learn the japanese names for them for the interview but i dont know if that neccesary.

I'll be sure to follow your advice. I did an interview in toronto for ECC and didnt get the job x.x I was 30 min early and yes you better believe i went in a suit and tie lol.

What kind of personal interview questions did they ask? looking back at my ecc interview i felt my answers could have been misconstrued negatively so Ive come up with better (and imo more accurate answers) but I dont know what else they may ask.

how was the test set up? because the ecc test threw me for a loop (and i studied for about 48 hours nonstop) the problem i had was that some of the grammatical terms are very similar like gerunds and infinitives etc etc, also how it was presented could be tricky at the ecc one they had a paragraph with underlined portions that were very very similar and confusing.

for spelling was it like where they had 2 words one spelled right and one wrong (but like the really tricky words). Bas Spelling.com really helped me on that and definitions were a complete joke to me (score one for having a good vocabulary at a young age :3)

do you have any good suggestions/links for grammar practice, I got an old grammar textbook i was given from school like 10+ years ago (never knew i'd be using it for an interview lol)

[Ia2day]

Sounds good with the visual aid. One thing to keep in mind though, AEON uses a an English immersion teaching system, so its not necessary to have Japanese in your lesson. (I thought I was cool when I did mine because I had Kanji on my worksheet, turns out it didn't matter!) Also keep in mind that unless the recruiters are Japanese (mine weren't), there probably won't be any Japanese people there, so don't worry about relating to them!

As far as the personal interview, they ask you about your reasons for wanting to teach in Japan, and if you think you could handle the stress involved in living/working in a foreign country, etc. The questions are fairly straight forward, just be sure to present yourself as an eager, motivated individual. There weren't any questions that caught me off guard, but you might feel a bit like your repeating yourself after a while...

Again, try not to worry too much about the grammar test. The spelling portion of my test had me identify misspelled words from a list. The next section involved short answer questions about the specifics of various verb tenses. They don't get overly detailed, but be sure to review basics like sentence structure, and all that fun stuff.

I don't have any specific suggestions, but I recommend getting a new grammar book, just to be on the safe side...

Another thing I forgot to mention earlier, after the initial group interview, they will ask the applicants they like to attend an individual interview in which you will do a personal lesson plan with the recruiter. Be sure to stay calm and focused, and remember to keep your vocabulary simple as they will be pretending to be a Japanese student!

I guess that about covers it. Just remember, positive, motivated, professional. Be these things and you've got it in the bag!

Best of Luck!

[Alik]

i heard the lesson is 10 minutes at the personal lesson. well thank you for the info ^^ ii might change the objects in the pics idk yet. Thanx for the info ill give you a heads up on final lesson before i head out

[Inflames]

I'd try and cut down on your talk time in the lesson and have the students talk more. They're going to want like 75% student talk time. There's no need to separate the animals and colors (have stuff like "yellow fish," "red dog," "green cat," &c). I'd start by asking one of the students "what is it?" then having that student ask the next and continuing. Will they have a board for you to write with?

[Alik]

the place will quite likely have a board but i dont know what would you suggest for more speaking involvement? i try to make sure they repeat after me and the memory game will require speaking as well. theres plenty of speaking in it i think I dont know what should i have in it?

[womblingfree]

Interviews have been covered extensively in the past.

For my 2 cents on the Aeon interview look here:

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=36033&highlight=aeon

[Alik]

well just got out of the chicago group session and they didnt take me. to be honest i am at a complete loss. I thought my presentation was the 2nd best of the group 2 people i know got called back for the 2nd part had the WORST lessons i ever saw. one of the girls lesson was 5 minutes of various objects. Thats it. Nothing more, it was supposed to get into "I like_____ " and "I dont like_____"

The only thing I can figure is that they didnt like the lesson plan itself? the test was indeed easy i cant help but wonder if the test got me tho the question of : How would you be there for an AEON student? or something like that I said: I would observe them ask questions and offer my assistance for them whenever they needed it. the girl that got the 2nd interview offer? she said: I'd ask the school manager what to do.


WHAT!?

anywho, I dont have access to my lesson plan here in chicago but if you guys wouldnt mind i'd like to post my lessonplan on this thread when i get home so you guys can pick it apart i really need the advice for the NY interview on the 16th. Only thing I can figure was presentation was good they just disliked the actual lesson? idk ill have to show you guys. I have ideas for new lessons if need be and would love your help in formulating it.

Ill post it tomorow when i get home guys thanx so much

[Ia2day]

Sorry to hear about the interview...Its odd that you didn't get called back. Did you have any major flaws in your appearance or anything like that? There was one guy I applied with who had like 3 days of growth on his face, and he didn't get the call back...

Well, if your really determined to get to Japan I'm sure that find a way soon enough.

One suggestion I might throw out there is that it may be worth while to contact the AEON Chicago office to ask if the recruiters could give you any feedback on why they didn't select you. This could help tremendously on your next interview.

Best of luck! Keep everyone posted on your job hunt!

[Alik]

letter specificly stated they cant "divulge" their hiring practices. I was clean shaven, and to answer your question , no, I dont think I had any glaring flaws at all, I think I did great. in my group id say my presentation was the 2nd best. but everyone else's were complete garbage I swear they were overly convoluted, or they just didnt go anywhere. Or they didnt give us proper guidance to go on etc.

the two girls in particular had horrid presentations, they were terrible. One girl didnt get passed the 30-40 word vocabulary cards she was rattling off before her timer was up (seriously her lesson was writing on the paper 2 sentences and then the cards absolutely nothing else)

when they said they got called back for the 2nd interview i was like "Omg they got the 2nd interview, then im sure i got it, and then i read it and i was just dumbfounded." good news is I did still learn from this interview and i plan to take that to the next interview, and perhaps tailor a new lessonplan to it.

I'll be posting my lesson plan from the failed interview up here in a little while please let me know what you think.

[Alik]

kk this is cut and paste from the Lesson Plan i submitted Its the only thing I can figure that hurt me. I had asked those around me if it could use some sprucing up but everyone said was fine, and it occured to me that while i decribed the lesson I didnt actually post it. So here it is. Please tell me if theres any problems that need to be addressed so I can work on it for the New York interview.

Thank you^^
______________________________________________________________

Joseph Major



Objective: To familiarize the students with various colors and introduce them to animals.

Level: Proficiency- Basic

Time: Thirty Minutes

Materials: Laminated construction paper cards. Picture cards of various colored objects will help to make the words more familiar to them.

Set-Up: 1) Introduction to the Vocabulary will be done by the Teacher to the class who will repeat each new vocabulary word after the teacher. 2) When reciting the colors from memory teacher will pull out a random card and pick a random student to state the color. 3) The teacher will go down the line of students and ask each of the students what their favorite color is. 4) The Memory game will be a group activity. 5) With the picture cards I will pick random students and ask them to identify the color of the object I specify in the picture. 6) Introduction of various animals. 7) Identification of the animals from memory, I will pick one student at a time randomly to identify the animal. Students will pick their favorite animal. 9) Charades will be based on the animals studied and will be a class wide activity.

Warm-Up: Welcome the students to class and inform them of the day�s lessons which are colors and animals.

Process: 1) Open with explanation of the colors by holding up the individual color cards and calling the color out to the class followed by the class� repetition of the color. I will Write the colors on the board as I say them to the class. 2) I will hold up random color cards and ask the class to state the correct color of the card from memory. 3) Ask each student what their favorite color is. 4) Memory. 5) Hold up pictures of random objects with specific colored objects on them. 6) Introduction of various animals. 7) identification of the animals from memory. students will pick their favorite animal from the list provided. 9) Charades.

Follow-Up: Colors will be reinforced over the course of the semester through direct usage while learning new vocabulary; this will force them to make use of the colors. Animals will be covered throughout the semester in much the same fashion.

Evaluation: The class participation will give a gauge of their ability to put the material to practical use. Games will also require the comprehension of the colors and animals to be played correctly.

[ripslyme]

It could be that your lesson was too good. They want applicants that they can mold into their system. You could have been rejected if they somehow got a sense that you might try to improve or change their system. They really don't want folks that think outside the box.

[wayne432]

[GIR]