Nova Vs JET Programme

Chef,
You must've had some outstanding JTEs there. I think we both know how few they are in this country.
 
Heh, yeah I hear that too. I interacted with forty-four different foreign teachers and about three times that number of Japanese (not including management) during my one year. After all was said and done, I could probably count the total number of standouts on both hands imho. Sadly, those standouts were the greatest resource the company had to keep their respective branch schools afloat each quarter but they were also the most dissatisfied and underappreciated. Sooner or later they would eventually move on to greener pastures (if honbu didn't succeed in sweet-talking them into staying on as head teacher, etc.).
 
bakaKanadajin said:
Well the bullying and selling is done by the staff, thats all cash money business..you just present the trial lesson. In reality you don't have to pull a fast one on anyone really. To clarify, I think the most tangible form you'll encounter of what you're wanting to avoid would be being told to blindly support, encourage and gloss-over the students mistakes when what some of them really need is a good shake by the shoulders and a gentle nudge (shove) in the right direction.
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Keeping the students and especially the children happy whether they're learning or not is the key for the J-staff as we call them. Happy students buy more points.
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Yeah, I can imagine the ratio of learning to play that goes on is relatively low. Do you get special child care training for the kiddy classes in changing diapers and making baby formula ? 😌 Although it might not be such a horror in a good branch if the infants aren't naturally bratty and the moms can actually stay for the lesson too (depending on the ages I'm sure, if that is one possible arrangement ?).

Personally, since I knew they wouldn't fire me and I worked at a relatively small branch and saw the students often, I told the students precisely when they were wrong and how. Tactfully of course, but I didn't engage in any 'Well that was just GREAT, but shall we try another way to say it??' because it wasn't great, it was wrong, unnatural sounding and it needed changing, period. Its just not realistic to expect them to improve without a little conditioning, a little carefully applied reward/punishment if you will. You need to explain why something sounds unnatural because the direct translation in their minds might sound perfectly reasonable. You're teaching them to think in English. And I think the students, whether they're kind of uppity and take themselves too seriously or not (which is the fear of the staff, that they'll somehow become insulted or turned off), will ultimately appreciate your teaching if they perceive it to actually be teaching and not patting on the head.
Classroom dynamics are going to be under your control so your skill as a teacher will be the final word as far as what they learn is concerned. Getting them to learn however does NOT require you to coddle them though, no matter what the staff say. If you're a good teacher they'll improve and trust your methodology.
I think the biggest sell-out is for teachers to view the students as sheep and assume that the NOVA method is all they need to worry about teaching. Listen repeat, listen repeat, now lets try a roleplay, etc etc. The LMP (I forget what that stands for but its the teacher guide basically) is just that, a guideline, its up to you as teacher to flesh it out, personalize it, change it, make it applicable and relevant, etc. From there you have a lot of latitude as to what you can present to your students so in that way I personally didn't feel so frustrated by the NOVA effect. But the possibility is definitely there.
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I'm working on a few preparatory stints locally as an ESL tutor to get some very foundational experience which should give me a better idea of some of the dynamics involved. Although I realize these situations may not be terribly analogous, I've gotten the same appreciation on this site for taking time to break apart beginner's grammar or usage mistakes and demonstrate a better phrase or explanation when others will simply let it ride.

Although I also wonder sometimes if I'm correcting in my mind but presenting it so gently and in such a fun way that the pressure is off and they end up taking my 'lessons' less seriously than I intended. A lot to think about for sure. Thanks again for the in depth presentation :)
 
Here is my advise:

If you cant get into JET or you dont want to wait another year go with NOVA or one of the other Eikaiwa's. If you can get into JET, do JET!! If you do decide on NOVA, get out of their apartments ASAP, dont take the advance, and change jobs as quickly as possible. I worked with NOVA for 5 years so it's not that bad but I am an easy going kind of guy.
 
Here is another thing to consider;

Do you want to work for an business that has just been convicted of ripping off it's customers and has just as many detractors as supporter's?

Or do you want to work for a government exchange programme?

The choice on which to apply to is your's good luck.
 
2 completely different sorts of situations. Look more carefully at your goals and how you think you can survive short-term.

JET: public school ALT, usually in the countryside
eikaiwa: solo teacher for conversation English

Different visas needed, too.
 
JET is a good place to network too. You can make lot of connections. i didn't do JET but it IS much better than NOVA!!
 
This is an interesting thread, I want to go to Japan after I finish my 3rd year. My girl friend lives in Tokyo, so its quite important that I be based there or near by. I have looked into the JET program but it seems quite strict and complicated to apply, pluse they say that you most likely wont be working in Tokyo :(
NOVA sounds a little daughting from what u've all said, but alot easyer to get into. How easy would it be with NOVA to work in Tokyo?
I've found something similar called real gap year, was wondering if anyone had used it?

http://www.realgap.co.uk/Teaching-in-Japan

Thanks for any advice or info, I really want to sort out what Im gonna do before I start my last year. Also would it still be worth applying to JET if I want to work in Tokyo?
 
Also would it still be worth applying to JET if I want to work in Tokyo?
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According to the latest JET pamphlet, 9 ALTs out of all 6000 got placed in Tokyo. Do the math. You aren't going to be placed there.

On a more positive note, Tokyo is huge, and you might get placed in one of its surroundings. Chiba has 80 ALTs, Kanagawa has 24.
 
Yeah sounds pretty slim, my girlfriend lives just outside of Tokyo in Edogawaku. Are there any placements there? That would be my numberone location, or anything near there. Can u specify where u want to go? Also if u couldnt get a location u want, but have been accepted, can you pull out without being black listed?
 
You get to specify where you want to work, and in most cases they'll accomodate you fairly closely provided its a high-traffic area. By contrast, the waiting list for Okinawa is pretty long. So for example I wanted Tokyo, and I got Tokyo as far as a branch goes, but ended up living just outside on the other side of the Tamagawa in Kanagawa-Ken. Close enough. Remember you have the option to move out of the Nova apartment so there's some flexibility there if you want to move in with your girlfriend or move closer to her.

The best thing to do is let them know why you want to move there, Nova is pretty good about trying to accomodate their prospective teachers (pleasing their contract teachers is another story) so if you articulate it right they may help you out.

I don't know what happens if you back-out after they've made an offer of employment. Again, being clear about your expectations initially will be better for everyone involved I'd imagine.
 
You have the option to move out of the JET apartment, but not away from the location you are posted in. With NOVA, you can move out of the apartment, too, but at least you only have to wait 6 months before you can request a transfer to a different branch.

lv426,
JET says they will listen to people's requests for location, too, but you go where they say. If you have a darned good reason for a location, they will consider you more highly. Realize, too, that the schools or BOEs may have requested people from certain countries, and JET needs to fill those demands more than the requests of the teachers. There is no guarantee you will get what you want.
 
Being near my girlfriend is quite important to me, as it one of the main reasons I want to go. If they cant post me there, would they mind if I pulled out? Eg. to find another program.
 
If I'm clear on your meaning, you're asking:

If I go with Nova to get close to my gf and a working visa, then pull out of Nova to work for another program, will they get angry?

I'd say yes, but there's nothing they can do about it. You're free to quit whenever you want and to my knowledge there aren't any penalties. All the griping and complaining aside, if your main reason for going over is just to be with your girlfriend and have a stable job Nova is pretty easy, I don't see why you'd want to quit.

It's not possible to switch seamlessly from Nova to JET, though, if thats what you're thinking. I know a girl who wanted to go with JET, and despite the fact that she was already in Japan she had to go back to England for the JET orientation and then fly back over again. Then she was placed quite far away from where she'd been before, as per JET's requirements.

If for some reason you decided you didn't like working for Nova after you got to Japan, there are many other schools you could speak to about employment. Aeon, Geos, Shane or Shayne or something, ALT positions, Berlitz, etc.
 
Ah ok, no I mean if I applyed to JET first, then didnt get the place I wanted and wanted to then go with NOVA.
 
But I mean if I apply to both of them, then JET cant give me a location I specify but offer me a place. If I turn it down, are they going to balk list me if I ever want to apply again in the future?
 
These are questions I can't honestly answer, maybe someone who's been with the program can. When I'm in a situation like yourself though, one where I have questions, the best thing to do is simply to write them down, call the company directly, and ask them very matter of factly. You don't necessarily need to give your name or whatever, just articulate to that person that you're shopping around for a teaching program and these are your questions. Better yet, e-mail them if you're concerned about anonymity or any kind of 'come in and we'll talk' responses on the phone.
 
Apply to both. Interviewing schedules are totally different. If you manage to get acceptance letters from both places around the same time, and one puts you in an undesired location, just turn them down. Be professional about it, but turn them down. There are thousands behind you in line waiting to take your place. With JET, that's what they call the "alternates".
 
Ah ok, yeah sounds like the best way of doing things. However I'm still not clear with the JET program, they say if u pull out at the last mintue then u will be black listed and cant joing the program again. But does this mean, if u change ur mind just before u fly out there or would it also include if they gave u a place and then u turned them down?
 
lv426 said:
Ah ok, yeah sounds like the best way of doing things. However I'm still not clear with the JET program, they say if u pull out at the last mintue then u will be black listed and cant joing the program again. But does this mean, if u change ur mind just before u fly out there or would it also include if they gave u a place and then u turned them down?
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If you really are concerned about it I would suggest to you that instead of getting pretty much second hand information from here, contacting your JET representative and getting the answer you are looking for.

I dont think that any business or agency is going to accept an excuse that "oh I read it on a message board that I wasn't going to be blacklisted because I turned you down before flying out".
 
You'd only really get one chance at JET - but it won't be in Tokyo. I bet whatever you want on it.
 

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