> Am going to get Botox and a face lift and reapply.

Shihoro, does this mean that you have to be under a certain age to be a JET?

They upped it to 40 I believe.

Think the website says 40 but they say they prefer younger people if at all possible (early-late twenties people fresh out of school, etc.).

I loved the "eating crayons" and "driving round the table" parts. lol

There are some pretty heartwarming stories of how certain teachers, ALTs, schools and communities have made JET a great experience for everybody. I somehow doubt the program would have lasted 20+ years if there weren't enough of those stories. More recently, however, I've heard rumblings that JET will be cut back b/c of its high cost. I'm not sure if this means privatization or elimination.

I'd be interested in hearing whether any of you think the JET program should be jettisoned (from Japan's point of view). From some of the comments, I get the impression people don't believe Japan is getting much benefit from it.
Also, can anyone tell me who decides whether to hire ALTs and who pays (schools, local education boards, local govt, national govt)?

The Japanese gov't did change the rules to allow qualified ALTs to obtain Japanese teaching licenses in order to become regular teachers. (I cannot see that happening in North America.) Does anyone know what the requirements are? (I think I read that few people have taken advantage of it.) This might be an option for those who speak Japanese and want to have more control of lesson plans and play a role in school issues.

I've read that it's not uncommon for ALTs go on to become teachers in their home countries. In particular, many of the non-Japanese JSL teachers have JET experience. A teaching license (at least in North America) usually requires an Education or graduate degree, so I doubt it's a case of not having other options. I'd like to believe that some were inspired by their experience teaching in Japan. Then again, I might be a bit idealistic about educators ... :-)

Thora Wrote:The Japanese gov't did change the rules to allow qualified ALTs to obtain Japanese teaching licenses in order to become regular teachers. (I cannot see that happening in North America.) Does anyone know what the requirements are? (I think I read that few people have taken advantage of it.) This might be an option for those who speak Japanese and want to have more control of lesson plans and play a role in school issues.

I've never heard of that and I really doubt it. In order to be a fulltime teacher at a public school you need to be a 公務員, which is a ridiculously hard to pass test even for Japanese people. It's not just a matter of a license. You can become a regular teacher at private schools with no real hassle though. I actually just got an offer to be a regular teacher at a private girls highschool through a connection but turned it down.

The difficulty of passing 公務員試験 is why there is often some animosity from the regular teachers towards ALTs. They worked their asses off to get there and a foreigner with no qualifications just comes in fresh off the boat, just sits around for about 5 hours a day (you generally teach no more than 3 classes a day), and gets similar pay (in the case of non-haken ALTs).

Perhaps what you heard of is 派遣 ALTs being allowed to be directly employed by the BOE (usually in areas where major labor law abuses by the haken company have occured or if the JET program is cancelled for that area)? In that case the teachers are still ALTs and are still functionally guests, just with better treatment and more job security.

Thora Wrote:Also, can anyone tell me who decides whether to hire ALTs and who pays (schools, local education boards, local govt, national govt)?

If schools want an ALT, they'll keep bugging their board of education office until they get one. ALT's salary comes out of the town's coffers. There's a small subsidy from the government if said ALT comes from the JET program but it's probably cheaper if they just go private.

There is no special regulation which lets JET alumni receive Japanese teaching licenses. Though I do believe they tried a program in Yokohama 10 years ago but they couldn't find anyone who could pass the testing so it was abandoned. Similar to the situation of Indonesian nurses in Japan today.

JET salaries usually come from local governments but some rural areas can receive subsidies from Tokyo to hire an ALT.

I have decided I'm not going to do JET. I would hate it and it would make me hate Japan. I want to experience the Japanese Japan, not the Gaijin Japan!

Hehe is that a joke?

mezbup Wrote:I have decided I'm not going to do JET. I would hate it and it would make me hate Japan. I want to experience the Japanese Japan, not the Gaijin Japan!

Actually a lot of the JET participants get to see more of the "real" Japan than ALTs/Eikaiwa workers because they're off in 田舎. Maybe that's why so many JETs have had quite positive experiences?

Or did you mean the real Japan as in 15 hour days working for a Japanese corporation where you never see your family? The only realistic alternatives I see are teaching English at a university level or working for a foreign company. But then you're in "Gaijin Japan" again.

Womacks23 Wrote:Hehe is that a joke?

I'm hope so.

I'll take the 15 hour days. Screw teaching English. It just ain't me.

We are selected by the embassy, employed and payed by a board of education, and work at schools. The embassy may have chosen you to be a cultural ambassador, but your actual co-workers expect you to be a teacher (the board of education's expectations are probably somewhere in the middle but swaying towards the teacher end of the spectrum). The problem with JET, and probably ESL in general is that it's dominated by monolinguals who are largely clueless as to how to teach or learn a foreign language even if they hold an esl certifaction or studied teaching. Much of the commentary on JET comes from opinionated fresh out of college kids with little more than surface knowledge of wtf is actually going on in the schools they work at. So despite all the whinging and complaining about the system and co-workers they actually don't know any better themselves. I've sat in on enough JET conferences where people give seminars about this and that and it's very clear that the majority of JETs have no clue wtf they are talking about despite all the whinging.

The real Japan is the 都会 not the 田舎.

On the Bigdaikon forums and elsewhere, a common phrase is ESID = Every Situation is Different. Some JETs work a lot. For me, I taught both in middle school and elementary school. Neither job could really be described as teaching English, but in middle school I had almost no responsibilities and spent a lot of time sitting around in the teacher's room reading or studying, whereas in elementary school I worked my ass off -- I was completely responsible for coming up with the content of lessons, making all the plans and materials, and teaching often 4-5 classes in a day, 5 days a week.

Although in the middle schools, I knew people in other cities who were very involved and were given a large amount of responsibility by their schools.

Ultimately the program is not about teaching English, and one of the frustrating things many people find out about the program is trying to find out what their purpose there is supposed to be. Personally, I was more than ready to leave after 2 years.

Quote:The real Japan is the 都会 not the 田舎.

Man, I hate it when people claim that 田舎 is the "real Japan"; nobody in Japan thinks that. I was in the inaka (although not super-deep inaka). It's not all it's cracked up to be.

Don't blame ALTs for the failure of English education in Japan. That responsibility falls directly on Monbusho. They have no idea how to create a quality English curriculum.

If you come on JET make sure you have a goal. Mine was to learn Japanese and pass 1級 and take some online classes in finance then move on to a business career. JET has given me a chance to do this and get paid very well for it.

Hey guys! Thanks for all of the help. I think all of what you said helped me out so much. I'm not very good at the actual teaching style, however I taught english two years ago in the summer at a church. It was really awesome. It was a one on one style and it worked out pretty great.



I feel like I have a really good chance once I get to the interview process. I think JET is just what I need. I didn't realize though that I only teach about 3 classes a day! :O
That's a lot less than I thought haha.


With all that free time what should I do?... haha

If I were you I wouldn't mention being affiliated with a church...

Also that 3 classes statement is a gross generalization. If you're any good at what you do, you'll be asked to teach more, and there's frequently marking etc to do. Though some days you will have zero classes and that's just the way it is.

I prefer cities to the country. Though, I live in NZ so I understand the whole "country is the real deal" sorta thing but there's no way i'd want to live in teh country in NZ but I love travelling through it. So I think i'll do the same for Japan

I really want to study in Japan and If I were to work there would like to work in the field of robotics. Seemingly impossible dream but it's really motivating me and challenging me to chase my dreams which overall is making me into a better person with a brighter future. JET is aiming too low for me personally.

I've heard a lot of people who wouldn't have swapped JET for the world though! So it's a great opportunity for those who are into it.

nadiatims Wrote:If I were you I wouldn't mention being affiliated with a church...

That seems like an overreaction; I don't see why saying you taught English at a church would hurt you.

One thing that is important to emphasize is if you have any previous experience living abroad. JET wants someone who they know won't run away a week into the program from culture shock and depression.

I actually mentioned my church volunteer activities in my interview. I did choose to hide my military experience though...

Some foreigners have been very successful at Japanese companies, but you definitely have to work for it. One of my friends started as a legal translator for a Japanese company and now has his own company doing the same. When I stayed with him he was gone early and didn't come home till quite late, but he seemed happy to work hard and do what he enjoyed.

yudantaiteki Wrote:Man, I hate it when people claim that 田舎 is the "real Japan"; nobody in Japan thinks that. I was in the inaka (although not super-deep inaka). It's not all it's cracked up to be.

I second this, I mean, some people like countryside, others don't. Depends on the persons interests/motivation for coming to Japan. That said, you can do a bunch of countryside stuff even if you life in the city, too bad it doesn't work both ways.
I am a second year ALT in the middle of nowhere, kinda sucks; but its not all bad.

Also, there is nothing wrong with there being other foreigners in the area. Not that big of a deal.