Job Discussion Forums

sunshine82 · Joined: 14 Dec 2007 Posts: 1 Location: Anglesey, UK

Hi, I'm new to these forums and thinking of looking for work in Japan. I'm 25 years old, British, with a BA and a CELTA, and a very little (3 months') experience of English teaching in Ukraine.

I've just read the FAQs at the top of this forum, particularly the bit about the types of jobs available in Japan. According to this, the main work teaching English to adults seems to be conversation classes, with the other work being with schools and universities. Have I got this right, or do the eikaiwas cover writing and/or grammar?

Wherever I end up teaching, whether in Japan or elsewhere, I do want to be teaching some grammar at least, especially since I am qualified - I don't want to not develop in this, if that makes sense. I do realise that the ESL/EFL job market in Japan doesn't allow me to be fussy though!

Are there schools in Japan where I would be able to do this? Do they only recruit within Japan? If I really want to teach there, should I look at a short-term contract with one of the international recruiters and try to find something better once I'm in the country? If I did this, would I have to leave the country at the end of the short contract, or would I be likely to have arrived on a longer visa?

I appreciate that this is a long post with a lot of questions in it that people might think I should have looked for elsewhere, but I really am just starting out here and really need some help!

Thank you Smile

markle · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Posts: 1316 Location: Out of Japan

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

Eikaiwas are more like refresher course schools that focus primarily on spoken English. The word "eikaiwa" itself means English conversation. People in Japan get 6 years of grammar thrown at them in junior high and senior high, plus anything else they may choose to take in junior college or university. The focus in JHS/SHS is to teach them grammar so they can pass the college entrance exams. Native teachers are hired to enhance the learning process with some oral practice, but by and large, the education is for grammar and a little writing. More often than not, Japanese teachers teach the grammar because they can explain it in L1.

Universities are a lax time for students. They study hard to get in, but then they mostly coast through courses because for the most part they get hired not by grades but by the name of their university. So, there is little incentive to study hard. English courses will vary considerably, from more oral communication to literature to writing, reading, listening skills, to TOEIC or TOEFL preparation. Kind of hard to teach them OC when the classes have 50-70 students, and I've had over 100 in my other courses.

So, don't expect more than a review of grammar in eikaiwa; it's up to you and the school's format as to how much is dealt with, but the main purpose is to give students a chance to practice speaking. Writing? Forget it, if you are thinking of essays and such.