Teaching English in Japan

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Rayne1989

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Greetings, I would like to ask about the experiences of members who have had experience teaching the language in Japan.

Anything from lifestyle, challenges, difficulties, getting a working visa or even the typical problems of Ideal vs Reality being there.
 

Tdol

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Things have been unsettled with the big chains, a couple of which went under because they had massively over-expanded, but things seem calmer now, though a couple are said to be in trouble. The glory days are over and these are deflationary times, but the salaries offered would still provide for a reasonable lifestyle here. The cushiest jobs are in the universities.
 

konungursvia

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I heard that you teach English in Japan if you love Japan, not to make money. It's expensive and you won't save anything if you have a life at all. Personally, I love Japan. But others may find it not as lucrative or fascinating as they had imagined. Much of old Japan is gone, in favour of parking lots, 7-11 stores, and big square buildings that look just like North America.
 

Kengo

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Hi Rayne1989,

As a local who's done both learning English and working in the industry, I agree with Tdol.

In terms of business, the dominant school chain (where I first took up the language 5 years ago..) went buncrupt and casual learners gave up continuing and prospective students are often skeptical when choosing a school.
The government has decided to introduce English education to 5th and 6th graders at Elementary schools so it's most likely the kids schools if anything's viable.
The overall inductory is past its bubbly heyday but there's still a fair number of job opportunities and native English speakers earn enough to make a living. Never luxurious but I've never seen an English teacher in poverty.

To get a visa, as you should know, you need to get a company to go through the application procedures, which might not be very easy from outside Japan. I've met quite a few foreigners on their working holiday in Japan. They come over with a working holiday visa and find a way to stay longer while their visa's valid as there's so much more information once you're in the country.

Everyday life in Japan seems to be quite comfortable for foreigners. Not a lot of us speak good English but even less people will make trouble. I guarantee nothing but peacefulness of Japanese people.
 

Tdol

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It's not cheap, but I have not found it as expensive as many say- accommodation and transport are cheaper than in the UK. I have no idea about how things compare with North America. Some things are expensive, but it gets rated as so expensive because it's assessed for the lifestyles of expat bankers and so on. I don't come out of the supermarket thinking that food is very expensive. Alcohol's overpriced, but my apartment in a comparable area of London would cost a lot more, though would probably be more spacious.
 

I'm With Stupid

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I was interested in Japan for a while, mainly because I was interested in the country. But the schools that hired outside of the country seemed to be a bit of a joke from a professional POV. If I was going to look at Japan again, I would definitely insist on going there and applying from within the country (for schools that actually value professional qualifications and have bosses that actually know about the job they're in charge of).
 

Tdol

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Jet do pay better (3.6 million yen a year) than the commonly quoted figures for eikaiwa.
 

I'm With Stupid

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The money is definitely appealing, but from a professional POV, it seems like a massive step backward. From what I've read, they expect you to have teaching experience. But I don't see why anyone with teaching experience would want to take a job where they're an assistant to someone else, when they've previously been running their own classrooms. And while the pay is impressive, it's not a massive amount more than some schools. I saw Aeon advertising entry-level jobs at 270,000 yen per month, which works out at 3.24m per year (plus bonuses). I'm sure someone with the background of a JET applicant could match the salary elsewhere. And like most of these hire-from-abroad schemes, they give you little choice in where in the country you end up.

But I'd be interested in advice about finding high quality schools in Japan. Do they tend to favour people with in-country experience? Where do people with DELTAs work in Japan? Or perhaps more accurately, do people with DELTAs work in Japan?
 

Tdol

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The British Council is one possibility. I am not sure about the universities and the DELTA- I will ask someone I am having dinner with later this week about that.
 

I'm With Stupid

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I'd love to work for them, but I suspect jobs in the British Council in Tokyo are about the most competitive in English teaching.
 

ita13

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Is it true that they only hire native English speaking teachers?? can people from other Asian countries apply? I mean non-native can also speak English fluently and maybe even teach better.
 

I'm With Stupid

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The reason for only hiring natives has nothing to do with quality teaching though, it's a marketing thing. From the adverts online, yes they only hire natives. However, I haven't worked in Japan, and it's entirely possible that there are plenty of smaller schools hiring from within the country that would consider non-native speakers too. But that would mean moving to Japan first, which is expensive when you don't have a job yet.
 

Tdol

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Some places do employ non-native speakers, but also pay them less. I've seen teachers from the Philippines complaining that they are classified as non-native speakers and paid less.
 

Kengo

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The reason for only hiring natives has nothing to do with quality teaching though, it's a marketing thing. From the adverts online, yes they only hire natives. However, I haven't worked in Japan, and it's entirely possible that there are plenty of smaller schools hiring from within the country that would consider non-native speakers too. But that would mean moving to Japan first, which is expensive when you don't have a job yet.
Some places do employ non-native speakers, but also pay them less. I've seen teachers from the Philippines complaining that they are classified as non-native speakers and paid less.

I agree with both these posts. It is mainly for marketing reasons that native English speakers are preferred, because the customers (Japanese students) cannot always judge the teacher's ability themselves and the word "native" gives a hallmark.
I have some European and Asian friends teaching English in Japan so there are jobs available, definitely less openings and quite often less pay though. Also true that there are more opportunities within the country. Kids schools tend to set lower requirements.
 

kimfuji

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I taught English in Japan for 6 years. I really enjoyed it. It wasn't difficult but I did notice that many people who teach there have no background in teaching before they go, so the companies expect you to know nothing. They make you teach their own way even if it isn't useful. Fortunately I taught at university most of the time, so I could teach my own way as opposed to using a method. I taught at Hitachi Corporation which I really enjoyed. They are really nice, serious abut learning and pay well.
Good Luck to you.
Do you have experience teaching?
If you do, that would help you get a job but it's not necessary. They really want teachers who have good pronunciation so Japanese learn how to speak correctly. (Of course, I understand that.) You could get a job as a JET. It's easy and after you work there you can search for something better.
Kimberly Fujioka (I married a Japanese man, a former student.)
By the way, I recently wrote a book on teaching ESL. It's called Get Them Talking! a Complete Guide to ESL. I taught for 25 years. I have a MA in Applied Linguistics from the University of Surrey.
 
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