Job Discussion Forums

[Rob85]

Hi. Just wondered if anyone had had any experiences of the Ube Foreign Language Center in western Japan? Thanks

[donpark]

Yeah, I saw the ad for it too. Sounds like a really good deal.

Did a Google. Couldn't even find a website for them. Scam? Bait and switch? Data pharming?

Did you try to contact them at all (without giving all your details)? Did you get a response?

[didikai]

I was the "lucky" teacher that accepted this job and as I will be leaving soon (I started 2 weeks ago), the job will be advertised again.

I recently posted about my general schedule, which isn't at all bad, and as they seem to have a shortage of students there is an hour or two a day without students.

I'm leaving because it's not for me - I actually want to teach, and it is in a situation like this that being a trained teacher is not to your advantage.

The owners of the school are good people at heart, although a little left of centre. The school has existed for 30 years and over that time they have developed their own teaching style. If you just want to hang out in a small city, cruise into work, play the role of the closely supervised native speaking muppet and then go home then it is a good job. There is minimal lesson planning and very little teaching skill required.

The other teacher has been here for 6 months and the one before me lasted a full year; which I think is something of a record. As they are very used to teachers leaving, finishing your contract early doesn't seem to be a big deal to them. We recently had this discussion and all they asked for is that I give one month's notice and that it is completed without problems.

The apartment is okay, it has a little balcony and has the potential to be nice. Next to a railway track but its not a busy line.

Ube is reasonably nice as far as bland small city Japan goes, it is very flat and bicycle friendly. There is a large and beautiful park that surrounds a lake that is within cycling distance of the apartment.

So if you are considering taking my job, I hope this gives you some insight. I think that for some it would be great, for others a nightmare.

If you have more questions post them here on this thread, I think I will receive email notification and will do my best to help you out.

Happy job hunting!

[randyteach]

didikai:

I'm curious -- would they accept teachers who created their own lesson plans and activities for the students?

Are the students there children or adults (I prefer very much teaching adults)?

Finally: how much vacation time do you have working there?

Sorry to have so many questions, but this is a school I applied to myself.

[didikai]

Hi Randy,

For the lower level classes you must follow their lesson template. You will fill in the blanks, the director will then correct it for you. This leads to the students learning some very interesting 'English' phrases.

I had two company classes and two advanced students a week, where I could do the lesson planning.

They are keen on teachers who have their own games, but these games must be to force repetition of set phrases - not games that get students to think.

There is about a 50-50 mix of adult and children's classes.

They advertise one month's vacation; it must be taken during the set Japanese holiday weeks. I know it's a week in late April/early May for Golden Week and then I think a week in August and 2 weeks around New Year - not a 100% sure though as I didn't last that long

I can answer questions in more detail after tomorrow, when I have collected my final pay etc. The job was advertised again yesterday, so I am sure there are others considering it.

As I said earlier, it is possibly a good job for some, but definitely not for others.

[CSeabrook]

Hello folks.

I submitted an application to Ube Foreign Language Center, to see what might come of it.

How long did any of you wait for a response to your letters?

Thanks for your time.

[Glenski]

You're responding to a 3-year-old post. Those people may not even still be around. Most of those people have not written on this forum since 2009. The most recent post by any of them was June 2010.

[Iceman33]