Job Discussion Forums

[Latvietis]

Cheers,

I'm thinking about taking an ESL job in Japan (potentially a University position through Westgate) and am just curious about the workload I might encounter. I have a Masters, TEFL certified and have been teaching in Saudi Arabia for 1.5 years (the curriculum and standards are veeerrry lax in Saudi).

I'm eager to teach in Japan however I'm a little worried about being blown out of the water by the intensive workload I've heard about? Recording lesson plans? Individual reports on students? Office hours? I am doing a part-time degree as well which shouldn't be too much of a hassle, but am definitely concerned that I might head over and just find the pace and responsibilities to be too much. I'm hoping to balance teaching and my personal studies...should I expect to be quite stressed?

Thanks in advance I appreciate it...

[Glenski]

One person I knew who worked for Westgate put it this way:

1. Start the day with a commute of 30-90 minutes.
2. Teach on campus about 7 classes in a row, most if not all of them the same exact lesson plan.
3. Lunch break for him was not permitted off campus.
4. Leave for that same 30-90 minute commute.

To quote from an email he once sent me.
"I taught 7 40-min. classes per day. Actually, 2 or 3 days a week it was 6 classes but then you would have "English Challenge" for the additional period to make 7. Quite frankly, while the days were much longer -- with the commute and breaks you had during the day -- it now seems much less fatiguing than my present junior high deal. However, I would trade what I have now for it because of the salary, the hours, the vacation time, the security, and the ability to earn much more on the side."

I don't know the particulars about paperwork Westgate has its teachers do. I suggest asking if it's not on their website.

Doesn't matter what FT job you have, IMO. You will have only as much free time as the work allows. Whether that's very late at night, or beginning in the afternoon will depend on the employer's schedule.

[eihpos]

Glenski pretty much covers it. I worked for Westgate 3 times. First time, my commute wasn't too bad - 30 mins each way. The other 2 times, it was almost an hour each way. It's very much the luck of the draw and you don't know where you are being placed until a few days before you leave. You have to be on campus from about 8 .45 - 6pm, but some teachers are lucky and finish at 5. It depends on when the university admin offices close. If they close at 6, you finish at 6, even if you are finished teaching at 5.

You teach a minimum of 5 classes but again that depends on the school. I had 9 classes a day in one school. If you only have 5, it can be pretty boring, because you have to stay on campus anyway.
Very little prep. In fact, you could get away with doing almost none (one of my co - workers used to just wing it and got on fine), Westgate have pre - made lesson plans.

At the end of the session you have to do student evaluations. It is a bit time consuming but not awful. I did the whole lot in one weekend once, or if you don't want to waste a weekend you could probably do them in the evenings and on breaks over the space of a week.

It's really not stressful at all, in fact it's the least stressful job I've ever had! Only drawback is it's monotonous (you do teach the same lesson all day!) and a long day. You won't feel like doing much when you get home, but you have the weekends.

[Glenski]

How many students per class, eihpos?
Were the classes accredited？

[eihpos]

Some teachers do accredited classes (I didn't) I think there's 30 - 40 students. Non accredited classes are way smaller, about 6 - 12.

[Latvietis]

Really appreciate the insight eihpos and Glenski, definitely cleared a few things up for me. So essentially it�s a fairly stress free job, as long as I�m fully prepared for the lengthy commute and the long days�

Would you say it�d be possible for me to get some of my own readings/studies done during breaks while at work? I don�t mind being there the whole day if I have the time here and there to get some of my own work done�sounds like I should expect to be wiped by the end of every day though?

Thanks again�

[eihpos]

If you end up with the kind of schedule I had (and anyone else I knew teaching there) you will definitely have time to read on breaks.

I forgot to say I knew a guy who was working on his MA thesis while he was there, so it is possible to get time study. We hardly ever saw him though because he was so busy on weekends. Good luck!

[Glenski]

If memory serves, the general union stated that by law Westgate cannot teach accredited classes. I am not certain of this, so people need to confirm.

[refikagurz]

Hi.. I've done 3 Westgate contracts. The first one was strictly accredited classes (very light load at small private univ).. The 2nd one was 1 accredited class (1 90 min class 1 day per week)and the rest "extra-curricular" classes (4-6 per day). The last stint was strictly accredited classes with a VERY light load.. Never more than 4 classes a day (some days only 2!) and LOTS of downtime.. Some of the teachers studied Japanese, played guitar, or drew manga during their free time.. However, these were not your usual Westgate situations as I have heard about possible heavy schedules.. Yes, you just never know what you'll get, but I think you can request "accredited or extra-curricular" when you sign on (at least you used to be able to). It's really not so bad and in most cases the students were pleasant to teach, but I said in MOST cases... The administrative work you must do is just part of the deal that any professional teacher should take in stride...Good luck! PM if you have more questions.. Ciao

[Latvietis]

Thanks a lot refikagurz...I think I'm just about set to go ahead and try it out, my only real concern is now the length of the contracts...If I was to land a job from September-December/January, what do most people do when there's no school again until April? It seems like a lengthy period of time to just, look for private work in the area? I've also read that I may have to move out of my apartment the day my contract finishes...does anybody have any insight on this? Or should I just be prepared to go home and hopefully renew in April?

[Glenski]

If you're renting through Westgate, then it follows that you would have to move out when your contract is up.

What people do when they finish will vary with the individual's circumstances. You will still have a valid visa, but darned few other employers will hire for the remainder of that visa, so you'd probably have to get something with an employer that is willing to renew when the time comes. Dec - Feb is horrible for job hunting, by the way.

[refikagurz]

That depends on what you want to do? If you want to stay in Japan, start looking for options in advance. During my last Westgate contract (Sept-Jan) I was able to secure a nice (different) position beginning the following April. I went home for those 2 months, but other teachers travelled during that time to return to for their new contracts in April.. if they stayed with Westgate or otherwise. Yes, you must be out of your apartment on the last day of your contract, so you'll have to have that all sorted beforehand.

[GreatApe]

It's interesting to see all of the different work loads for teaching in Japan. Thanks for the information, everyone.