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Angels
Joined: 23 May 2009
Posts: 6
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 Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 8:55 pm Post subject: Hello, Newbie here, only slightly confused with questions... |
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Hello everyone, my name is 'Angie' and I have several questions about teaching abroad. I am sure that most of them have probably been addressed numerous times so I apologize if things seem a bit annoying or redundant. I have looked into several different websites, trying to amass as much information as possible, but, on top of having, what seems to be, an overload of infomation, a lot of these sites seem to contradict each other. I feel almost swamped with so much different kinds of info that I may not even necessarily use because I havent gotten my answers to other questions. So I was hoping I can get some kind of clarification on several 'newbie' type questions. I'll try to be as specific as possible incase there is some kind of confusion.
First and foremost, I've noticed that when I look at several of the listings, most job postings say "4 year college degree", which I believe is understandable. After reading the descriptions, Inotice something along the lines of no 'teaching experience needed' written, and no japanese comprehension needed. Reading other postings, some of them list "any 4 year college degree" as a requirement.
Huh?
So, does this mean that they are hiring teachers who have no formal education in teaching? I mean, is it safe for me to assume they aren't looking for an "English teacher" in the same way they teach language arts in public schools, but rather someone who speaks English to teach them conversational English, so long as they have a 4 year college degree? Even if they have no training as a teacher? Some of them don't even have the college requirement listed, so do they just hire any average Engish speaking Joe willing to jump on a plain to Japan?
I do have several other questions if that is ok (I did read the 4 FAQS too  ), but I just like to clarify this main point and get all my ducks in a row before firing off more of them. Thanks for your time and replies. |
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Cool Teacher
Joined: 18 May 2009
Posts: 930
Location: Here, There and Everywhere! :D
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 9:22 pm Post subject: |
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Hello and welocme to the board young lady (or gentleman!) 
Yes, dion't worry, you are correct about the degree. But it isn't a JOB requirement it is a VISA requirement! If you have a degree in English or Home Economics or PE you have an important qualifiication to come to Japan and get recidency. Actually if you come form theUK you can get this with a three year degree and not four because in the UK us smartypantses get them quicker ...JK!!!!  Not kidding about three years just smartypants.
But remember theere is no such things as Averge Joes (or Joesephines ) We are all special inour own ways. Good luck!!!! |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009
Posts: 1546
Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 9:23 pm Post subject: |
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For most entry-level positions in Eikawas or as ALTs there it isn't required that you have any teaching relevant experience or qualifications. The only thing they really want is that you be a native speaker of English.
But having a full Bachelors is a work visa requirement (and again it needn't be relevant to the teaching), so yes a degree in any subject will do. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 9:40 pm Post subject: |
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Huh?
So, does this mean that they are hiring teachers who have no formal education in teaching? |
I don't know where you have found contradictory information on this one. The answer you seek is yes. Entry level jobs in eikaiwa and ALT require only that the candidate meet the minimum requirements for a work visa. Those are either a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) or 3 years of related work experience. If you look at the MOFA home page, you'll see those, and schools are not necessarily looking for people who have a degree in anything teaching-related. Sad, but true. Where have you seen something contradictory to this?
BTW, the degree doesn't have to be 4-year. Some countries' offer BA/BS degrees from 3-year institutions, and those are perfectly acceptable.
Entry level work in international schools, however, is a different matter. The employers there usually require a teaching license from one's home country plus 1-2 years of experience there. Universities usually want people with a minimum of a master's degree, and it must be in a certain teaching/EFL-related field, plus publications plus experience in Japan.
| Quote: |
| But it isn't a JOB requirement it is a VISA requirement! |
To be eligible to work, yes, it's a visa requirement, but the schools mentioned above don't go one step further, so it's both a visa and employer requirement. Nowadays, with the market here so flooded, I would expect that more employers are looking to weed out candidates by requiring more education-related degrees, but I have not seen many reports of that actually happening.
Also, if one has a student visa, spouse visa, dependent visa, cultural activities visa, or working holiday visa, there is no need to have a degree, and all of those situations permit work (some with special permission from immigration, but that's easily enough gotten). |
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bearcat
Joined: 08 May 2004
Posts: 367
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 10:49 pm Post subject: |
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Most of the companies/institutions here in Japan that hire for positions are on the "For Profit" model of education. Due to this, they tend to look for people that are in their eyes marketable.
They want people whom they can train in their "method/approach" to teaching, which mainly is that they are given a standardized and scripted curriculum that the employee can adhere to and use at any branch of their company or for any student from any branch.
A 4 year degree is a requirement for -some- visa types but not all to just simply enter the country to work. Also some companies/institutions market their product(English from a Native speaker) stating that their instructors have a degree. If you qualified for a working holiday visa and the company you were thinking to work for doesnt market for degree holders, then you'd have a chance to be considered for a position.
The reasons that you see many jobs not requiring an "education" background in relation to what I've said above is partly that there more jobs than "education background" applicants, and two that standardization and their "approach/method" and more education oriented people tend to be at odds. In the mind of those institutions its easier to train someone in their ways that to attempt to unlearn the rest.
Also, some could say that another reason is that is again the profit factor. More qualified in education training folks would perhaps demand a higher income and thus lower the company profits. My personal take on that is that this point is less of a factor than the above but probably still a consideration.
Now, is this true for all companies and institutions? No. And hence why you see different conditions for different ones. In general, the larger the outfit, the more standardized. |
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Cool Teacher
Joined: 18 May 2009
Posts: 930
Location: Here, There and Everywhere! :D
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 11:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
| Also, if one has a student visa, spouse visa, dependent visa, cultural activities visa, or working holiday visa, there is no need to have a degree, and all of those situations permit work (some with special permission from immigration, but that's easily enough gotten). |
C'est vrai Monseiur, C'est Vrai. But many of the companies in Japan don't emply people on student visas, culture visas, working holiday visas etc..... because they have restrictions or they are time-consuming to get and also maybe have short terms or aren't renewable etc etc... 
I think spouse visa and dependent visa also is left off the whole Job AD thing. Imagine seeing an advert saying:
Requirements:
Either a four year degree or marriage to a Japanese natinonl! 
Hay! Maybe there are really some jobs out there that really do want there teachers to have a degree, because it shows a level of education. Just thinking. |
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Angels
Joined: 23 May 2009
Posts: 6
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| Posted: Tue May 26, 2009 1:19 am Post subject: |
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Thank you for all the replies! It really gives me better insight than all of the generalized pages out there on this matter.
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| I don't know where you have found contradictory information on this one. |
Well that wasn't so much in reference to that specific question so much as other things that I've read. Perhaps it was a little ambigious in my post. What I meant was, I would read something from one place such as "Tokyo is a great place to work!" and then read someplace else "Tokyo is a terrible place to work!". Another example would be "Company 'X' is great to work for!" then I would find somewhere else "Company 'X' is lousy to work for!" Examples such as these. I'll expand on this a bit later, but this is actually what I meant, not in referrence to my original question(s). Sorry about that.
It was just a little confusing for me at first, because I live in the United States, and under normal circustances, someone with say, a Business Communications degree, or Media Arts degree wouldn't apply to a teaching job since, by our standards, they don't have the qualifications. It's a little bizzare to me at the moment to find the only 'real' qualification is to have been raised in a English speaking country and just 'know' the language.
I'm not really looking for a big University to work for so much as a middle school or high school, but I would be open to other oppertunities. I've read they also hire native speakers for company tutoring in English, but to me, the idea of teaching kids conversational English just seems more rewarding. Not pay-wise, but just as an individual. I've seen the word "eikaiwai" used a lot but not exactly explained. Is this something like a private tutor?
| Quote: |
They want people whom they can train in their "method/approach" to teaching, which mainly is that they are given a standardized and scripted curriculum that the employee can adhere to and use at any branch of their company or for any student from any branch.
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Ah, well they had something similar in my neck of the woods growing up. They had a system called "IIS", and it was a standardized teaching system in our county/state that all teachers needed to use. They had a list of 'objectives' teachers needed to teach students, and then once taught, we had these weird bubble sheets we had to fill in that would later get scanned by a computer. The teachers would get all the tools, books, etc. necessary to teach the objectives but when it came to specifically how lessons were taught, or the format of teaching, it was up to them. Is this a little similar to what you mean or am I way off?
As far as visas go, I'm eligible for just the normal one, since from what I read, Americans cannot get a holiday visa? I do have a four year college degree but it is completely unrelated to teaching, and my japanese is very, very minimal. In America though, this would not be enough to warrant someone as qualified for teaching.
Ah, sorry, I know the market is flooded, as someone put it, but it does kind of seem like a too good to be true situation, which I kind of why I am going in circles. At the moment, it's hard for me to wrap my brain around the fact that Japan would hire people for positions that, in most cases, Americans are techinically qualified for. I guess what I am getting as is, even though I do have interest in teaching abroad in Japan, currently because I do not have teaching experience or training, I think I am unqualified for the job, but after reading a lot of webpages and postings, I've found that this isn't necessary or they don't care. This is kind of a little weird for me, because like I said, in America, this is not normal, and I just don't want to get scammed into going into a foreign country and stranded.
Well moving on, I'd like to ask about the different certificates availeble, what they mean, and which is the most appropiate for someone who is just looking to teach English to middle schoolers or high schoolers. Acronyms such as ESL,TESOL,TEFL, etc. really confuse me, and even after looking them up and reading about them, (forgive my ignorance in saying this | | |
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