engrish teachers needed in Japan!

[den4]

Japan to hire foreign students on vacation as teachers
(Kyodo) _ Japan plans to promote international grass-roots exchanges by allowing foreign university students on vacation to serve as language teachers for courses sponsored by local governments, Justice Ministry officials said Monday.

New immigration rules that will allow such foreign students to receive payments will be implemented as early as February, paving the way for them to teach classes for elementary, junior high and high school students as paid instructors, they said.

Foreign students visiting Japan have so far been classified as short-term visitors who cannot receive compensation for labor.

The new system will create new qualifications for foreign university students to stay in Japan for up to three months to take part in local communities' international exchange programs including foreign language courses, the officials said.

Among municipalities, Tsushima in Nagasaki Prefecture is planning to invite South Korean university students who are on summer vacation to teach Korean language courses for elementary and middle school students.

The town of Ono in Fukushima Prefecture intends to have American university students teach English courses for elementary school pupils.

 

[mr.sumo.snr]

So we now go from unqualified-to-teach yet at least graduate-level JET instructors to unqualified-to-teach, undergraduate-level, temporary instructors. Yes, I know they won't be replacing JETs - well not YET anyway...

I'm not complaining. I have a vested interest in promoting a widespread yet inadequately trained English teacher presence in as many academic institutions as possible.

 

[Censport]

Since these companies and schools insist on hiring college kids they can get cheap instead of adults.... you get what you pay for.

No offense.

 

[PopCulturePooka]

This is a terrible terrible idea.

 

[den4]

Since these companies and schools insist on hiring college kids they can get cheap instead of adults.... you get what you pay for.

and sometimes not even that...

 

[Nuala]

It's not a bad thing for the students wanting easy money and a trip to Japan!!

 

[PopCulturePooka]

It's not a bad thing for the students wanting easy money and a trip to Japan!!

Its a bad thing for people who actually really do want a job in teaching who will now be passed over for cheap transient labour.

 

[Nuala]

Why are the people who actually want to teach english having trouble then? Sorry if university students a job before you, there is something wrong with you. Not the bloody students.

 

[PopCulturePooka]

Why are people having trouble?
Yeah lets see, in a cost driven economy?

Cheap new labourers who dont need to be given holiday pay and other benefits as opposed to a long term, contracted employee who will cost more and needs to be given health insurance, holidays and all of those other nifty perks.

Its about whose cheaper. The transient unqualfieds are cheaper and easier to screw around with. So they will get the jobs. If I was more against this I'd dare say it was akin to scab labouring.

Plus the extra benefit of having a newer fresher faced gaijin every few months instead of having the students get bored with the same teacher for a year or two.



Whose likely to get hired?

 

[DoctorP]

Plus the extra benefit of having a newer fresher faced gaijin every few months instead of having the students get bored with the same teacher for a year or two.

Exactly! If you were in the schools shoes, this is what you would want right? Not to mention that many of the contracted teachers get bored as well and their performance slips! Teaching English over and over again is not exactly the most fun job in the world is it?

 

[Ewok85]

New immigration rules that will allow such foreign students to receive payments will be implemented as early as February, paving the way for them to teach classes for elementary, junior high and high school students as paid instructors, they said.

Take note, its a education department related thing, not a private sector project.

You'd need a year of uni at least, to be enrolled at a japanese college or university and it would be a 3month max. Sounds alright if you are really in Japan studying, otherwise the atrocious pay wont be worth it.

 

[Mike Cash]

The "pretending to teach" and "pretending to learn" quotients will both shoot up astronomically, but they'll balance and there'll be no net change in the overall (lack of) quality of English education in Japan.

 

[PopCulturePooka]

Exactly! If you were in the schools shoes, this is what you would want right? Not to mention that many of the contracted teachers get bored as well and their performance slips! Teaching English over and over again is not exactly the most fun job in the world is it?

I have friends that work full time in the school systems teaching at various levels. Its their livliehoods. I dont appreciate the danger of them loosing jobs to some college kid who will stay for three months and who doesn't have a clue how too teach.

Kids everywhere have to put up with 'getting bored with teacher'. Part of being a schoolkid.

 

[DoctorP]

I have friends that work full time in the school systems teaching at various levels.

As do I, and I also have kids going to the same schools. I have seen some great teachers and some pretty pathetic ones too! Your friends are under contract, this shouldn't affect them at all...from the way I read this, it is for the precincts that do not use programs such as JET. Here in Okinawa we have the JET program, and also volunteer teachers from various different walks. The volunteers haven't cut into the JET's work at all!

Its their livliehoods. I dont appreciate the danger of them loosing jobs to some college kid who will stay for three months and who doesn't have a clue how too teach.

If I have learned anything in life, it is that competition makes you work harder and makes you better!

Kids everywhere have to put up with 'getting bored with teacher'. Part of being a schoolkid.

Uh?? That is just an unacceptable point of view...I'm not sure what to say to that...we can't challenge teachers to be better?

 

[PopCulturePooka]

As do I, and I also have kids going to the same schools. I have seen some great teachers and some pretty pathetic ones too! Your friends are under contract, this shouldn't affect them at all...from the way I read this, it is for the precincts that do not use programs such as JET. Here in Okinawa we have the JET program, and also volunteer teachers from various different walks. The volunteers haven't cut into the JET's work at all!

Hmm that may be good then.

If I have learned anything in life, it is that competition makes you work harder and makes you better!

Depends. If the 'competition' is so dirt cheap you get muscled out regardless of ability.

Uh?? That is just an unacceptable point of view...I'm not sure what to say to that...we can't challenge teachers to be better?

Of course we can. But for every Mr Howard and Ms Do Rossi I had at my school (mmmmmmm Ms De Rossi) there was a Mrs Wilkie or Mr Morgan. Like I said, its just something that happens to all.

 

[mad pierrot]

I'm not complaining. I have a vested interest in promoting a widespread yet inadequately trained English teacher presence in as many academic institutions as possible.

The "pretending to teach" and "pretending to learn" quotients will both shoot up astronomically, but they'll balance and there'll be no net change in the overall (lack of) quality of English education in Japan.

Hey, if you like taking advantage of things...

 

[REX]

I have been reading a lot about the lower end teaching that's going on over there.
The McEnglish class and bringing in students to teach.
I guess my question is are there still high-end schools teaching English.
Universities with English departments that have experienced teachers?