Originally posted by Swifty
Hey Den
why have you had enough of teaching in japan?
I am thinking of doing that myself
how was your experiance with it?
Most companies (I taught at companies and not at schools, NOVA, or any of them funky language wannabe fly-by-night companies) that I taught at held their classes either in the morning, or the evening (before the economy fell out and the great Bubble burst). There were occasional "intensive week long classes" depending upon the need and the company, or private lessons, for those companies that could afford such luxuries. I've taught virtually all types of seminars for all ranges of students, including once for children.
Your own mileage in the teaching/instructing/coaching of Japanese students will vary.
For My own opinion of what happened to me, I'd say, companies that dealt with heavy industries tended to have students that were the least capable, since most of their workers were focused upon their jobs in Japan, and were taking these courses based upon the company forcing them to learn, rather than the students wanting to learn. Certain companies that held certain attitudes of Olde School mentality tended to have students that were also less than interested in learning, but again, that really depended upon their personal backgrounds, too.
Students that were from companies that had a vested interest in keeping in touch with their foreign counterparts were usually better than the average Japanese students, meaning that they had a fairly good grasp of the language and vocabulary, as well as experience in foreign countries, so they could at least hold a conversation on their own without looking constantly at the dictionary.
Then there were those that were in the class of Engrish is Fashionable, that were taken by people that probably looked forwards to become Jpop singers, Engrish T-shirt designers or something in between, because trying to teach them anything was like pulling wisdom teeth out with Japanese quacked out dentists...
Many of the latter also had this strange mentality (mental block) that only gaijin with blue eyes, white skin (or black with an afro) and blond hair were "good enough" to really teach Amerikan Engrish to them...my sympathies with the instructors that suffered thus....and I've known a few....

I've just grown tired of having to deal with morning rush hour trains around Tokyo...
