Job Discussion Forums

Solar Strength · Joined: 12 Jul 2005 Posts: 557 Location: Bangkok, Thailand

I know of a school in Japan that allows students to re-take the final exams they fail in certain courses if they pay $60 - $70 to re-write them. They have a different exam, but it seems unethical.

coledavis · Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838

We now start to get a fuller picture, but only start to do so. You see, I saw it as -well they've been away on holidays (whatever) and I'll help them to pull themselves up - but this was without knowing much about the circumstances. Not sure even now. Is this a manipulative person? Or is it somebody over-burdened with work who is defending herself and trying to get paid better in a difficult situation?

geaaronson · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 948 Location: Mexico City

I don`t know what the circumstances were that prompted her to charge her students for private instruction. I do know she was gloating over the extra income.

Prior to that she had started a private business and after offering private instruction has been doing quite well by it, so well that it came above the radar at immigration and she had to change her visa status to FM2.

The upshot also is that she has gobs of money and has cut her hours back from about 38 to 23.

teacheratlarge · Joined: 17 Nov 2011 Posts: 192 Location: Japan

I'm not sure if this is unethical or not. Certainly time-wise it may be difficult for many teachers to give free tuition to their students. Some schools do prohibit it (charging students for help), though I suppose it could be a 'donation', rather than a case of paid for tuition.

As to her paying tax on any money she makes, that is another matter and a legal issue rather than just a potential ethical one.

geaaronson · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 948 Location: Mexico City

There was no pretence of a "donation". She was upfront with both me and her students on that score. As for the so called claim under an euphemism, I would have never given any credit to that had she. A rose is a rose is a rose, to twist the meaning of that aphorism to its unintended sense.

teacheratlarge · Joined: 17 Nov 2011 Posts: 192 Location: Japan

There was no pretence of a "donation".
Whether you think of it as a pretense or not is besides the point IMO. I'm just talking about a way people can justify what they do with students to the school board.

Personally, I'm not sure I would be comfortable doing it either, but also in the current society I'm living, teachers have to be careful about any interaction with students on a small group basis as "not being fair to the class". Though surprisingly, people in Japan do a lot of things that skirt Western ethical edges.