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Why Is Interac So Keen To Hire New Teachers?
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SeasonedVet



Joined: 28 Aug 2006
Posts: 236
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 4:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

kionon wrote:
Quote:
OneJoelFifty wrote:
In short, there's nothing wrong with doing the job you've been asked to do, and doing it well. You should accept that it's not everyone's remit to affect change.

kionon wrote
Quote:
And this is where we have to agree to disagree. We have a fundamental resolution problem here. I believe you should always attend your efforts well, but to suggest that you haven't any further responsibilities in furthering the educational system as a member of the teaching profession... That is simply antithetical to everything I have been taught about teaching


There are different ways to affect change though.
Different people may have different ways of doing that.
Others just don't think about affecting change (here in a foreign country). They may want to do so in the own countries though.

Edited:name


Last edited by SeasonedVet on Fri May 18, 2012 10:08 am; edited 1 time in total
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SeasonedVet



Joined: 28 Aug 2006
Posts: 236
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 4:46 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Glenski wrote:
Quote:
SeasonedVet wrote:As far as I know (and this can be proven and backed up by statistics) Japanese don't have a big problem where grammar is concerned.


Glenski wrote:
Quote:
What exactly did you mean by that? I've taught in HS, eikaiwa,
and uni. They all have serious grammar problems, whether in spoken,
written, or reading English. Please explain.


Glenski,
I have not heard or read about the "serious grammar problems". I have heard and read that they do poorly in listening and speaking.
The TOEFL scores would point to this and also show that they are not "terrible" in the wiriting section but score almost at the bottom where listening speaking are concerned.
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OneJoelFifty



Joined: 06 Oct 2009
Posts: 463

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 5:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kionon wrote:
OneJoelFifty wrote:
For some people a job is a job is a job, a means to an end. And that end might be living in Japan. I'm teaching because I'm in Japan. I almost definitely wouldn't want to teach if I went home to London. I happen to enjoy it, and I want to do it well, but that's beside the point. I really think you are in a minority here.


I agree I am in the minority. I am a minority everywhere. Teaching is a vocation, but even in London or Dallas, there are good numbers of teachers who do it for the paycheck. I disagree that teaching is "just a job." Teaching (or, more importantly, the positive impact it has on certain students) is the end, not the means. All I ask for salary wise is a living wage with some additional cushion for my hobbies. I gave up on ever being wealthy, or even "well paid," years ago. Now if I ever get married... But I'm not there yet, and probably won't be for the foreseeable future.

Quote:
Of course I have to highlight certain grammar points. But most of the time I'm not telling the students anything they haven't already 'learned' in their other classes. I don't diagram sentences or whatever else, because it's not my job. I have two textbooks, one that's recommended by the government. They are both conversational English textbooks. Basically "Repeat A and B with your partner. Now look at this example, and have this model conversation substituting X for YYY."


You don't have to diagram sentences to teach or review grammar. That is just one of many possible resources. My point is simply that you do need to teach and/or review grammar, and you just said you do. You are not a human tape recorder, and you are not a "conversationalist" in terms of just "shooting the bull." You and I really are on the same page here.

Quote:
Yes it would be great if Japanese teachers had all studied abroad and were competent enough in their knowledge of grammar, and confident enough in their speaking ability, to apply the grammar. Perhaps I would not be needed. And then maybe foreign teachers would be required to have more qualifications themselves. But it's not like that. And it's not my job to change it. You feel it's yours, and that's good for you. I hope you can change things for the better.


Until you can imagine a time when it isn't like this, it won't ever be like that. Clearly, I balance practicality versus ideals. I said I had a fifty/fifty track record with the minority of JTEs who didn't utilise me effectively. Sometimes, I had to cut my losses. It hurt, not because I felt I personally wasn't given my due with that particular JTE, but because the students would have one less bag of tricks to pull from. And as a teacher, I think it should bother you when you know, for whatever reason, you haven't done your best. So, yeah, I think it is your job, but I understand you do not agree with me, and I respect your opinion, even if I disagree with it.

Quote:
I understand you have strong ideals, but statements like (let me paraphrase) "The JTEs should complain about how they have to teach" and "The foreign teachers should speak to the JTEs, and then the company, and then the BoE" sound as though they're coming from someone that's never been to Japan.


I think that is because the 仕様がない attitude is so pervasive in Japan that it begins to affect long term expatriates. It hasn't (yet?) affected me. I've never understood this penchant of veterans to try to stamp out idealism, but if I'm a nail to be hammered down, at least I'm a nail that has a surprising ability to constantly stick back up again. Japan is full of hammers. I don't let them faze me, and I've seen nothing but glowing evaluations for the effort.

Quote:
In short, there's nothing wrong with doing the job you've been asked to do, and doing it well. You should accept that it's not everyone's remit to affect change.


And this is where we have to agree to disagree. We have a fundamental resolution problem here. I believe you should always attend your efforts well, but to suggest that you haven't any further responsibilities in furthering the educational system as a member of the teaching profession... That is simply antithetical to everything I have been taught about teaching and is opposed to the views of the teachers I had who made me think, "Hey, that's meaningful. That's important. I should do that." This is of particular relevance because I just visited my high school yesterday and spent time talking about teaching methodologies with the people who inspired me to become a teacher. If I didn't look at each student the way my teachers looked at me, I'd be failing them on a level I can't even articulate. I'm not prepared to do that.


I've only been in Japan for just over two years, but I've never been in a position to be the nail that needs hammering down back home either. It's easy for you to say that everyone should strive for changes in the system. But the majority of people in that system aren't equipped to facilitate the changes that need to be made. For the average ALT, complaining probably means not getting a new contract come April, at best. For the average JTE I can only speculate, but I'd imagine causing a fuss would result in losing their position and being shunted out to a less desirable school, or an office.

I take my responsibilities very seriously and I want to be a good teacher. I genuinely enjoy interacting with my students and get a lot of satisfaction from a well thought-out class going to plan. But am I going to make noises outside my classroom that could jeopardise my position, especially without the educational background to implement alternatives? Of course I'm not. I think I'm more use doing the best I can within the current system, than advocating a revolution from outside it.

Of course, talk to me a couple of years down the line if I've got a steady job and have built up some trust, and it might be a different case. But we're not all in the position of having several job offers on the table and negotiating salaries.

Thank you and thanks Glenski for the recommendations.
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nightsintodreams



Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 6:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I completely agree with the above post by onejoelfifty. I enjoy my job, it's not my dream job (that would be a pro sportsman or rock star😉) but it gives me a lot of satisfaction and I try to do the best job I can.

I think you were just a little quick to judge me as someone who doesn't take my Job seriously and tell me to go home if I don't enjoy teaching and am only doing it for the money. I do not know your situation or future plans but I come from a working class family so I've always had to work for everything. I want to get married and have a family some day so money is of considerable importance to me. However, that doesn't mean I don't want to do my job well or don't enjoy teaching.

Anyway interesting discussion, I dont a disagree with all of it but I certainly don't think it's my place to try and change the system of another country. Sorry if this message is written badly, i had to use my iPhone.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 8:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

SeasonedVet wrote:
Glenski,
I have not heard or read about the "serious grammar problems". I have heard and read that they do poorly in listening and speaking.
The TOEFL scores would point to this and also show that they are not "terrible" in the wiriting section but score almost at the bottom where listening speaking are concerned.
The Japanese take more TOEIC tests than any other country, and multiple times more often than anyone else. However, their scores are consistently on the bottom rungs. That's for listening and reading. I call that serious.

Come to most universities, or at least greet a fresh HS grad. Odds are, they will not be able to have a simple conversation with you. I mean very simple! Pretty serious after 6 years of language study.

Look at their writing skills, whether in HS (where writing in either language is essentially not taught) or in a college student. Horrendous. I call that serious grammar problems. My JTE colleagues agree with this in terms of writing in L1 or L2, and my university colleagues have the same opinion. I've seen it myself. Their writing sucks big time. They are terrible.


OneJoelFifty wrote:
I've only been in Japan for just over two years, but I've never been in a position to be the nail that needs hammering down back home either. It's easy for you to say that everyone should strive for changes in the system. But the majority of people in that system aren't equipped to facilitate the changes that need to be made.
IMO, it's not a matter of being equipped to facilitate changes. Most foreign teachers simply are not teachers by vocation or calling or training, and they leave in 1-3 years so they don't care about changing things for the better. That's how I see it.
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Kionon



Joined: 12 Apr 2008
Posts: 226
Location: Kyoto, Japan and Dallas, Texas

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 9:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Instead of going through and giving another big line by line response, I think I'll just hit the highlights...

SeasonedVet, OneJoelFifty said that, not Glenski. Your quotation stye is odd. Also, I stopped thinking of the US as home years ago. I don't even really like the word foreign anymore. So, I'm not sure I'm in a position to adequately address your point about "foreign country vs. own country." When does Japan stop being foreign? When did the United States start being foreign? There's a lot more to it than just whose passport I carry...

OneJoelFifty, I pretty much agree with Glenski on this. I don't honestly, rationally, reasonably expect that everyone should strive for changes in the system. We're talking about the ideal, and my ideal presumes quite a lot. For one thing it presumes that ALTs have the training and background I do, and therefore are "equipped to facilitate the changes that need to be made," and more importantly know enough to care enough. I don't think either of those presumptions are true. You may be right about the consequences, I guess I just don't care, because I have to continue to look myself in the mirror each day and go to sleep each night. If I were to stop "making noise" I wouldn't be able to do either of those things. It also just wouldn't be me. You're probably right to keep your head down, but it sounds like you also haven't committed yourself to being a teacher in the vocational sense. Once you do, then perhaps reconsider my viewpoint.

nightsintodreams, I didn't tell you, specifically, anything. Proverbial you. It is my general view that "you" being any one who looks at teaching as a vocation (and ideally, everyone would), should not teach if, in the words of my old chemistry teacher, "it is not your" again, where "your" is proverbial, "passion." No, you're not going to wake up every day and be like, "HELL YEAH, CONJUGATE ALL THE VERBS!" but I think most of the time, you should be. In my years of teaching in Japan, I actually counted five days total where I just flat out hated my "job." And even on those days it was never the students, never the content. It was usually stupid bureaucratic procedures, or maybe JTE lameness. On the whole, I didn't complain when I was unhappy, or because my situation was bad, if I complained at all, it was to make the situation better.

I don't think our socioeconomic background is relevant here, but I'll broadly say I'm typical suburban American middle class. Dozens of houses that look the same, postage stamp size lawns, as Kevin Arnold once said in The Wonder Years, "All of the disadvantages of the city and the country, but none of the advantages of either."

Also, look at my very first response. I'm not even sure I can call Japan "another country" anymore. I'm not even sure I am capable of imagining making a career or home in the United States. My future plans include either a 教員免許, a PhD, or possibly both. My future plans include remaining in Japan for the rest of my life. I am sure, in addition to my philosophical view on the teaching profession, this is one of the reasons I'm so interested in affecting change.

Bah, image embedding isn't working; conjugate all the verbs meme:

http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/20587194.jpg
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SeasonedVet



Joined: 28 Aug 2006
Posts: 236
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 10:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kionon,
My quotation style is "odd" because I was shifting between a mobile device and an old slow pc and can't seem to get the quotes to work effectively (either that or it's just that I haven't posted in years until recently and probably forgot how to use quotes properly).

If you prefer a term other than foreign, go right ahead and use it. I don't see how that takes anything away from the point...but...anyway...
So then as long as nobody makes a substitute for the word foreign, you can't address the point?
Instructors who are here on a visa/contractual basis, who were born in a country other than this one we are in, may be less likely to want to bring about any kind of change to the education system in this country. There may be a number of reasons for this including the fact that tney are here short term. Having said that there are others who stay here lomg term who have no interest in affecting change.
They may talk a lot about what may seem wrong or broken but have no desire tto contribute to the solutions.

But this is causing me to digress.
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Kionon



Joined: 12 Apr 2008
Posts: 226
Location: Kyoto, Japan and Dallas, Texas

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 2:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

SeasonedVet wrote:
If you prefer a term other than foreign, go right ahead and use it. I don't see how that takes anything away from the point...but...anyway...
So then as long as nobody makes a substitute for the word foreign, you can't address the point?


I can't address it for myself. It seemed to me you were trying to play on some sort of loyalty or patriotism. When Japan gets into a war with the United States again, then we'll talk.

Quote:
Instructors who are here on a visa/contractual basis, who were born in a country other than this one we are in, may be less likely to want to bring about any kind of change to the education system in this country. There may be a number of reasons for this including the fact that tney are here short term. Having said that there are others who stay here lomg term who have no interest in affecting change.


There are a number of reasons, sure. Being here short term is probably the number one reason. ALT or eikaiwa work is not a career, it is an ATM machine to finance their one or two year "vacation" to Japan. This doesn't mean that such individuals are incapable of working hard on a day to day basis, but it does mean they have a punch card in, punch card out mentality. I don't think I worked very hard, but I do think I made the decision to go above and beyond in the way I planned lessons, supervised clubs, went to school events, spent hours each day making materials, would sometimes pull 10 or 12 hour days during speech contests each year, or when prepping students for the eiken, and even sometimes taking my grading home with me. I am under the impression this is unusual for most ALTs. I think if each ALT asked for just one more responsibility, the cumulative effect would be a greater appreciation for the ability of ALTs. However...

Quote:
They may talk a lot about what may seem wrong or broken but have no desire tto contribute to the solutions.


This. So much this. We absolutely agree here. I've had such conversations with my own coworkers. "Wait, so you think X shouldn't happen, and yet you have no interest in fixing it?" "Naw, man. I'm only here for four more months." "..."
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SeasonedVet



Joined: 28 Aug 2006
Posts: 236
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2012 11:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kionon,
I agree with some of the things you have said in this thread,
Some things I didn't totally agree with,
And still on other matters I think we might differ on style.
(You may come to change the way you do a few things as time passes though as you haven't been here very long)
By the way, had you done a lot of teaching before coming to Japan?

However I will say that you seem to be a dedicated teacher (in any country).
Keep up the good work.

I hope I can contribute to other threads dealing with teaching style, methods, ALTs, eikaiwa, Education system etc.
Haven't seem one in a long time.
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Kionon



Joined: 12 Apr 2008
Posts: 226
Location: Kyoto, Japan and Dallas, Texas

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 12:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

SeasonedVet wrote:
You may come to change the way you do a few things as time passes though as you haven't been here very long.


As I admitted, yes. However, I have been here long enough to know that there are very few things I'd rather do, and nothing that is in any way feasible (my dream job was naval officer, even had a second chance to try for it again, but between defense cuts and my age... Nothing doing). I'm extremely happy working even as an ALT.

Quote:
By the way, had you done a lot of teaching before coming to Japan?


"A lot" is another one of the relative sorts of concepts. I had my student teaching, I mentored children of various ages in improving literacy, and tutored fellow undergraduates (and have now had the opportunity to student teach at the university level as a graduate assistant for my MA). I also taught elsewhere in Asia for a short period of time as the equivalent of an eikaiwa or juku teacher. It wasn't my thing. I never became an employed teacher in Texas because there were few jobs which paid a living wage. Less than an ALT or Eikaiwa salary! I think I mentioned I was offered $18K to start, at the time I moved to Japan the $ to 円 exchange rate was still 1/100, so basically 150,000円/month.

Quote:
However I will say that you seem to be a dedicated teacher (in any country).
Keep up the good work.


I try. I had some very involved teachers, and so my idealism and がんばって attitude is really a combination of honoring them and trying to have a positive impact on my students. A very Japanese notion, despite how very NON-Japanese I am in being the "nail" (or as I explain it with our English idiom, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease").

Quote:
I hope I can contribute to other threads dealing with teaching style, methods, ALTs, eikaiwa, Education system etc.
Haven't seem one in a long time.


I think this goes back to what Glenski has said earlier about the general time range of most people in Japan. Those of us who hang on for several years, and those of us who even pursue permanent residency--we're simply not the norm. We want to discuss our careers and the methodologies employed. Most of our native speaker colleagues have no interest because this is a very temporary gig for them, and they have no interest in establishing long term roots in Japan.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 12:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kionon wrote:
There are a number of reasons, sure. Being here short term is probably the number one reason. ALT or eikaiwa work is not a career, it is an ATM machine to finance their one or two year "vacation" to Japan.
JET ALTs by their very nature are here on a limited term, whether 1 or 5 years max.

Dispatch ALTs, well, I don't know how long people stay with them.

But there are others sometimes called AETs who have been in the business, hired directly by the BOE, for decades. I know several in my area. It's definitely a career for them.

Quote:
This doesn't mean that such individuals are incapable of working hard on a day to day basis, but it does mean they have a punch card in, punch card out mentality.
Dangerous and impolite to lump all ALTs like that.

Quote:
They may talk a lot about what may seem wrong or broken but have no desire tto contribute to the solutions.
This applies to most teachers in Japan, I think, whether they are eikaiwa instructors or university profs. Ask someone in the JALT PALE group or in the union.

And, it's not just a short-term mentality that causes it. Yes, it's a biggie, but how many people are willing to storm the gates to make changes in policy even in their own country, let alone in one that controls their very status of residence to stay there, or in a country whose political and social workings are so different from their own, or in a country whose language is something they don't learn enough to use in such high-level dealings? Darned few.

Dispatch agency shenanigans don't help. You may want to stay at a school they farmed you out to, but if you stay longer, you might be obligated to be hired directly. Result? The dispatch agency shuffles you along or produces a poor grade on a performance review or does something else to discourage you. Poor teacher support sometimes, reduced wages during certain periods (yet the dispatch continues to rake in its cut without change at that same time), broken promises about various things, lack of support in matters related to pension and health insurance, etc. are all things that give teachers a reason to leave Japan or try something else here. It's not always just a "short-timer attitude" in general.

With eikaiwa, where is the upward job mobility? One might rarely get the chance to advance to a manager's position, but there is nothing beyond that. I've not heard much good from reports in the last 15 years about a heckuva lot of foreign managers, too. Many complain of bootlickers rising in the ranks, or of people who are poorly equipped to manage. At least with ALT positions, there is a possibility of a direct hire by school or BOE to look forward to, but not really much in eikaiwa. So, again, it's not just the teachers who have a short-timer attitude of "Japan for a few bucks and fun for 1-3 years and then back to the real world of my homeland". Not always. But perhaps it's a chicken and egg thing. I'm just providing some fine details here.
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Kionon



Joined: 12 Apr 2008
Posts: 226
Location: Kyoto, Japan and Dallas, Texas

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 2:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Glenski wrote:
But there are others sometimes called AETs who have been in the business, hired directly by the BOE, for decades. I know several in my area. It's definitely a career for them.


I was an AET, technically. Usually, however, if I used that term outside of my schools/BoE, no one knew what I was talking about. And recall, my BoE offered me sponsorship for a 臨時免許, which I gather is unusual. Yes, direct hire is the eventual goal. I'd like to see the death of the dispatch system.

Quote:
Dangerous and impolite to lump all ALTs like that.


I wasn't. I was specifically referring to those who do have that mentality. By definition those who have that mentality have that mentality. It's like saying X = X.

Quote:
This applies to most teachers in Japan, I think, whether they are eikaiwa instructors or university profs. Ask someone in the JALT PALE group or in the union.


True.

Quote:
But perhaps it's a chicken and egg thing.


Without addressing every single thing you included in the preceding paragraphs (and there was a lot in there), this is I think the crux of the issue. It is a vicious and self-reenforcing cycle. A causes B causes A causes B causes...
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aynnej



Joined: 03 May 2008
Posts: 53
Location: Pittsburgh, PA, U.S.A.

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 2:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is just my perspective, but I hope it adds to the discussion. It is possible to come to Japan on a short-term basis and still give 150% to your teaching profession. A lot depends on your personal work ethic. IMHO, that's more of an important factor than your ultimate career goal or how long you'll be in Japan.

I lived and taught in Japan for three and a half years, and I'd like to think I did my best for my students throughout that time. I knew I'd only be in Japan for three to four years from the beginning, but my job was to help my students improve their English, and I wanted to do it well. I don't think I'm in the minority here. I met plenty of other teachers along the way who had a similar mindset. And many of us did try to improve the English programs we were involved in as best we could. No, we didn't try to schedule meetings with higher-ups in an effort to revamp curricula. But there are small things one can do on a daily basis. For example, working with your JTE instead of against him/her, developing ways to help your students overcome the common problems Japanese speakers have in learning English (plurals, r/l f/h pronunciation, etc.), discussing issues with your JTE/trainer/school director professionally as they arise instead of letting them fester, etc. As teachers, especially (generally) entry-level teachers, our sphere of influence is small. It seemed much more effective to concentrate on improving areas I actually had some control over.

On a side note, regarding the English abilities of Japanese speakers compared to other Asians, I've been traveling through Asia since leaving Japan in the beginning of April. I started in Shanghai and have been working my way south. Anecdotally, I have to say, the English I've encountered has been much better than in Japan. I used to think katakana pronunciation was Japan's downfall when it came to fluency, but now I think it goes deeper than that. Of course, my travels as a tourist hardly constitute a scientific study. But if I were to return to Japan as an English teacher, having seen the level of English in other parts of Asia, I think I'd have higher standards/expectations of my students.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 6:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

aynnej wrote:
This is just my perspective, but I hope it adds to the discussion. It is possible to come to Japan on a short-term basis and still give 150% to your teaching profession. A lot depends on your personal work ethic. IMHO, that's more of an important factor than your ultimate career goal or how long you'll be in Japan.
I agree. There are, however, quite a few people who do not have that ethic. They are the ones who give the others a bad image and reputation.

Quote:
Of course, my travels as a tourist hardly constitute a scientific study. But if I were to return to Japan as an English teacher, having seen the level of English in other parts of Asia, I think I'd have higher standards/expectations of my students.
My experience with Asians who have come to Japan to study is that the Koreans spoke better. The Chinese were pretty bad. Taiwanese, Thai, and Vietnamese were all very good, better than Japanese. These were not tourists, and all except Koreans were grad students. The Koreans were HS or undergrads.

In my opinion, after seeing this and after having taught in HS here, I'd say aynnej's statement about requiring more of the Japanese, especially HS and older, is dead on. There will be some in HS who realize that they can get by with just an eikaiwa course there, and that they will not have to be serious about it because they need to focus more on their JTE courses. But they will not LEARN TO COMMUNICATE that way, only to pass the entrance tests. We have to be careful, though, to show them clear reasons for improving, and not every school will be able to fall in line with this. Undoubtedly, some will want to coddle the students instead. Moreover, there are types of schools that cannot or do not provide much English education anyway, but you can't please everyone. Bottom line is that Japan really needs to wake up to what it should be producing in the way of communicative speakers after 6 years of studying!

As a side note, Mike Guest teaches medical English at Myazaki U. It's oral communication class, and he is very up front with his students from day one. He tells them there will be no review of grammar, that they have already been exposed to enough in HS and that it is their job now to learn to apply it be learning in his class how to practice reading charts, taking patient interviews, dispensing mess, etc. No coddling. I agree with this philosophy, and I think If students see more of this attitude, to force them to progress, they will, instead of coasting through HS and college classes assuming they will be easy mindless eikaiwa courses which only make them repeat stuff they were taught in JHS ("What did you do on the weekend?").
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spidr245



Joined: 26 Nov 2008
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2012 6:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Glenski wrote:
spidr245 wrote:
I've had friends rejected from JET before because they were Asian. It's racial discrimination, I know. But without any evidence, you can't do anything about it.
Hold it. If you have no evidence, then how can you state conclusively that that was the reason they were not accepted?

Quote:
Japanese people don't think Asian-Americans can speak English because according to them Asians don't come from America. I was told this by many students when I worked in Japan and teachers/government employees as well.
Would someone please correct me if I'm wrong here, but I don't think Japanese people have all the say in who is chosen for JET. When I interviewed, the panel had 3 people on it, and only 1 was Japanese.

Yes, that attitude described above is here. Is it the reason your friends were rejected from JET? Prove it.


As Kionon said, what could my friend have done? He had no evidence. I only knew of this discrimination through word of mouth. It basically boiled down to JET not wanting Asian people because their Japanese clients didn't think Asians could teach English.

That's their loss though. He's a well-qualified teacher who now has a much better position.
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Teaching Jobs in China
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