Teaching in coffeeshops - level of Japanese needed?

Hi

So, I've been teaching English in Japan for 4 months now. Although I'm happy with my job, the town I'm teaching in is very small, and I want to move to a city.

Here, I would like to teach privately, in coffee shops (maybe working for a company for a couple of days a week). But my Japanese isn't great... not really good enough for arranging to meet people for lessons, and other practicalities.

Is there any way of getting round this, that anyone knows about? Apart from studying more, of course...

Best ESL Websites for Teaching English Abroad

there are online craigslist-style message boards to hook up freelance teachers with students, there might be some in that list, or others like it. Try a search.

Aha... yes i think i have seen this, or something like it, before. But I totally forgot it existed. Thanks!!

How can you work for a company for just a few days a week? Money issues aside (and you will NOT make enough from privates early in your career), you have to have an employer sponsor a work visa.

Or is there something you aren't telling us?

As for any language problems, you have just learned something about being here only 4 months. However, if you can't get past using mostly English to teach, even to students who don't know much (or claim so), then you need to reexamine how you teach. This is not meant to be harsh, just realistic.

All the online sign-up sites in the world won't do more than attract students to you initially. They won't help you KEEP students if you can't teach them in a way that they like.

urm... by working for a company for a few days a week?!

I have a few friends that teach privately at private english schools, one or two days a week. One friend even does this on a more casual basis (obviously, not as his main source of income). This might provide me with the visa sponsorship, too.

The lack of Japanese was just for the practicalities, as i said, as in scheduling lessons, sorting out money, that sort of thing. I don't see it as being a problem at all during the actual lessons. The only problems I've had so far in any of my lessons with the language barrier is when the students are translating from Kanji on worksheets... and I don't plan to use these sorts of resources when teaching privately.

quinn,
Don't be a smart-aleck. Legally, you need a proper visa to work here, even a few days a week. What is your visa status (and since you brought it up, how about your friends')?

A work visa needs an employer to sponsor you, and you can't get sponsorship just for part-time work. The exception is called self-sponsorship of that work visa, and that takes place only after you have worked for a year here, then prove that you have enough PT work strung together to satisfy immigration's nebulous and ill-defined minimum salary requirements (anything from 170,000 to 250,000 yen/month). Private lessons will not count.

I know I'm being off-topic right now, but I don't seem to grasp the concept of teaching in a coffee shop.

Why teach in a coffee shop, out of all places?

Or is that some culturally correlated thing?

Because I have never seen teaching in a coffee shop anywhere in the world. Be it Germany, Iran, Australia or the UAE.

Someone please enlighten me.


Remixer

Glenski,

Thank you very much for the useful information.

I was not being a smart alec, simply a bit of jest. Sorry if I caused any offence.

My visa status is just fine now, since I am in full-time work. But, I will lose sponsorship when I leave my current employment.

Are you absolutely, 100% sure that you can't get sponsorship for part-time work? If not, I'll do some research. If so, looks like I'll have to change my plans.

Remixer,

Teaching does happen in coffeeshops (not just in Japan) because it's just a convenient place for private lessons to take place. The same as lessons in someone's home (the teacher's or the student's). Usually people do it 'on the side' to make a bit of extra cash.

It's usually for one-on-one or very small groups.

the mighty quinn said:

Glenski,

Thank you very much for the useful information.

I was not being a smart alec, simply a bit of jest. Sorry if I caused any offence.

My visa status is just fine now, since I am in full-time work. But, I will lose sponsorship when I leave my current employment.

Are you absolutely, 100% sure that you can't get sponsorship for part-time work? If not, I'll do some research. If so, looks like I'll have to change my plans.

Remixer,

Teaching does happen in coffeeshops (not just in Japan) because it's just a convenient place for private lessons to take place. The same as lessons in someone's home (the teacher's or the student's). Usually people do it 'on the side' to make a bit of extra cash.

It's usually for one-on-one or very small groups.

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PART-TIME work sponsorship? I think that is doable maybe in English Eikaiwa things, but for coffee shop teaching? That is usually done by visiting ryuugakusei from what I have seen. I knew a guy who did that for some time in Japan during his stay and almost paid his whole study abroad trip. He was good a tit.

Remixer said:

I know I'm being off-topic right now, but I don't seem to grasp the concept of teaching in a coffee shop.

Why teach in a coffee shop, out of all places?

Or is that some culturally correlated thing?

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Remixer,
People sometimes want private language classes, and coffee shops are one of the more popular places to meet for them. They are not always noisy, and if you go to Starbucks, it is smoke-free, too. Other venues include restaurants, one's office after hours, parks, karaoke rooms, library study rooms, community centers, etc. You could even hold a private lesson in your home or your student's home, but there may be logistic problems. That is, not all teachers live centrally to the city, nor do potential students. And, many people would prefer to go to a class right after work, so someplace central to a business area is often ideal.

quinn said:

My visa status is just fine now, since I am in full-time work. But, I will lose sponsorship when I leave my current employment.

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Your visa is good until it expires. If you leave your current job before the visa expires, the visa is still valid.

quinn said:

Are you absolutely, 100% sure that you can't get sponsorship for part-time work? If not, I'll do some research. If so, looks like I'll have to change my plans.

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Would 99% certainty be sufficient? I've been here more than 10 years and never heard of anyone getting a work visa sponsored with a part-time job. I've been posting for 11 years and kept quite close tabs on the whole process, too.

Immigration wants to know that you have a guaranteed income (something that cannot be promised with private lessons) and an income that prevents you from becoming a burden on society (ie, sleeping on park benches). Self-sponsorship doesn't have a prescribed minimum salary, partly because it depends on the standard of living where you live, but I've seen people get it with as low as 150,000 yen/month. That's incredibly dirt-cheap wages! Figure you'd have to make something like subsistence wages closer to 180,000-200,000. You've only been here 4 months, though, so you don't qualify for self-sponsorship. Move to a new location tomorrow, and you still have 8 months or so left on your visa. Then, you have to renew with a new sponsor, or get enough private lessons to self-sponsor.

Essentially, what you are asking is whether you can get continued visa sponsorship for just a couple of days a week with one employer. Nope. Not going to happen. 100% sure there.

How about answering my question about those friends? People often write about acquaintances and their visa situations, but they often realize that they didn't know what it was all about, and then they learn that the situation is not what they had thought.

Emoni said:

for coffee shop teaching? That is usually done by visiting ryuugakusei from what I have seen. I knew a guy who did that for some time in Japan during his stay and almost paid his whole study abroad trip. He was good a tit.

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A ryuugakusei (foreign exchange student) cannot work on his student visa alone. They must get special permission after 3 months in school, and all they can do is work part-time. Picking up private lessons on the sly is technically illegal, but there really isn't a "private lesson police" to watch you. Unless one is in a position (like an ex-eikaiwa teacher or a college student) to pick up a lot of private lesson students, it isn't that easy to get started. Even in this day and age of the Internet, where students can find you on Teach in Japan. Teaching English, French, Chinese (etc) Private Lessons to Nearby Students - GetStudents.net and arrange for meetings, there are many factors against teachers.
1) You have to keep your name active on the lists, or you drop to the bottom and out of view by students.
2) Just having your name on a site doesn't guarantee anything. Your picture, profile, nationality, experience, location, etc. can disqualify you from any potential student.
3) Snagging an initial meeting also means nothing. You may have the wrong chemistry, or not agree on finances.
4) Private lessons are notoriously fickle. They will stop taking classes at the drop of a hat. KNOW YOUR BUSINESS BEFOREHAND! Teaching private lessons is not just a matter of chatting in Starbucks.

Glenski> I totally agree. Giving people private lessons should be thought of in terms of extra beer money etc. It is certainly not a dependable source of income.

Glenski said:

A ryuugakusei (foreign exchange student) cannot work on his student visa alone. They must get special permission after 3 months in school, and all they can do is work part-time.

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Forgot that part. Yes, you need special permission. However,it is extremely easy to get.

I had a mate who married a Japanese lady and moved here hoping to find work. He's an experienced motorcycle mechanic but as he has very limited Japanese, no bike shop would go near him. He was able to sustain himself for a few months by teaching English in coffee shops. His wife distributed his homemade meishi among a dozen or so friends and he soon had a fair-sized clientele base. All he had to do was turn up at the appointed coffee shop and encourage his client to chat away in English. Easy money!

Taiko666 said:

I had a mate who married a Japanese lady and moved here hoping to find work. He's an experienced motorcycle mechanic but as he has very limited Japanese, no bike shop would go near him. He was able to sustain himself for a few months by teaching English in coffee shops.

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Don't forget to mention that he was able to stay in the country longer than a 90-day tourist because of his spouse visa.

His wife distributed his homemade meishi among a dozen or so friends and he soon had a fair-sized clientele base.

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A dozen is not what I'd call "fair-sized". How much "easy money" did he take in? Please don't say 1500-2000 yen per student per hour.

Glenski said:

A dozen is not what I'd call "fair-sized". How much "easy money" did he take in? Please don't say 1500-2000 yen per student per hour.

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I think he was saying that passing out cards to a dozen friends got word around for him to build a nice sized clientele.

ok, Damicci. Given.
And the "easy money"?

Glenski said:

ok, Damicci. Given.
And the "easy money"?

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You're right Damicci, his wife's distribution of his meishi allowed word to get around.

I said the money was 'easy', not plentiful! I believe he was getting around 2000 yen for 60 mins, with perhaps an average of 3 sessions a day. I say 'sessions' rather than 'lessons' because he was literally just chatting with his clients, with perhaps a few English pointers here and there.

He treated it as something to present to his wife while he was busy trying to find a 'real' job.

Chidoriashi said:

Glenski> I totally agree. Giving people private lessons should be thought of in terms of extra beer money etc. It is certainly not a dependable source of income.

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If one has a visa, perseverence and talent, I don't see why it can't become a reasonable source of income.

I did not say it could not be reasonable or even substantial source of extra income. The problem is it is not reliable, as people come, go, cancel lessons etc.. It is better to have a contract, and then get some extra stuff on the side. If you imagine someone doing what you are saying they might as well just try to open up their own school. But for those who do not seem like they have such diligent intentions in mind (like the OP), i would not recommend betting your rent on it. Would you come here and try to make a decent living with a handful of students teaching out of coffee shops?

Chidoriashi said:

I did not say it could not be reasonable or even substantial source of extra income. The problem is it is not reliable, as people come, go, cancel lessons etc.. It is better to have a contract, and then get some extra stuff on the side. If you imagine someone doing what you are saying they might as well just try to open up their own school. But for those who do not seem like they have such diligent intentions in mind (like the OP), i would not recommend betting your rent on it. Would you come here and try to make a decent living with a handful of students teaching out of coffee shops?

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Chidoriashi said:

The problem is it is not reliable, as people come, go, cancel lessons etc..

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True, but that's same for any self-employed person in many walks of life. It takes a certain type of person to make a success of it.

Chidoriashi said:

Would you come here and try to make a decent living with a handful of students teaching out of coffee shops?

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Obviously coming to Japan to start any sort of business with no other means of support is incredibly risky and practically impossible given the strict visa regulations. But for a person who is already resident, can afford to take a risk and is of the 'right stuff', why not? A handle of students in a coffee shop could turn into your own school in a few years...

Chidoriashi said:

But for those who do not seem like they have such diligent intentions in mind (like the OP), i would not recommend betting your rent on it.

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Also true. I think I was in the realm of the hypothetical.

To be brutal, if somebody doesn't have the wherewithal to come up with their own ideas for contacting Japanese people and promoting themselves, they're not of the 'right stuff' to succeed at this sort of thing.

Taiko666 said:

A handle of students in a coffee shop could turn into your own school in a few years...

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Possibly, but in the meantime, I would want a steady income from a contract.

I think I would go with some sort of reliable, definite source of income to use as a base (whatever percentage of the whole that may be), and then use the coffeeshop lessons around this.

However, if you could come up with a way of promoting yourself so you always had students knocking at your door, then there's no reason I can see why you couldn't have you're income entirely come from coffeeshop lessons, even taking into consideration how unreliable people can be. There might even be a way of convincing the visa people that you're getting enough income from this to support yourself.

Completely hypothetically of course...

Are there any taxes or things to take into consideration? Obviously if it's cash-in-hand, might not be a problem, but legally...?

the mighty quinn said:

However, if you could come up with a way of promoting yourself so you always had students knocking at your door, then there's no reason I can see why you couldn't have you're income entirely come from coffeeshop lessons,

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Based on my limited experience even seasoned teachers in large urban centers have problems creating tidal waves of students out of thin air. It's usually a clientele base of students they've had at eikaiwas or other places they've worked, with whom they've developed a relationship, and both of whom have agreed for various reasons that it's acceptable and beneficial to move the enterprise out of the safe, refundable, predictable workings of a school and into a coffee shop. Building a steady clientele of privates to live off of is a slow steady process, each is usually hand-picked or close to that in terms of time/effort.

In short, people with cash will pay the extra for formal lessons at a school.

People who will 'try you out' will have little money, most likely be a little scattered since they'll be students and young folk, fail to turn up sometimes since they're in no danger of losing reservation money, etc.

Again, based on my limited experience, the kind of Japanese you're seeking (steady, predictable paying clientele) generally prefer a sure bet in exchange for a higher price vs. the bargain deal with an unknown. I also see limited Japanese ability as a bit of a problem.

I'd suggest sticking it out where you are and seeing about a transfer within your current company to Tokyo or Osaka. Get on the books too if you plan on staying here any length of time, having some Japanese ability will enhance your experience tenfold.

Taiko666 said:

I said the money was 'easy', not plentiful! I believe he was getting around 2000 yen for 60 mins, with perhaps an average of 3 sessions a day. I say 'sessions' rather than 'lessons' because he was literally just chatting with his clients, with perhaps a few English pointers here and there.

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Another disgrace to the teaching community, while slapping Japanese students in the face. I knew this would be the answer.

If one has a visa, perseverence and talent, I don't see why it can't become a reasonable source of income.

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It will take a lot of P and T. I know firsthand. Most people don't survive on private lessons alone, let alone make them a "reasonable source of income". Those that do have formed a school, not taught out of coffee shops.

Been online and in Japan for over a decade and have not heard of anyone who did it without forming their own company.

Oh, and having "a visa" is too vague. Spouse visa, ok. But for a regular work visa? Nope.

quinn wrote:

However, if you could come up with a way of promoting yourself so you always had students knocking at your door, then there's no reason I can see why you couldn't have you're income entirely come from coffeeshop lessons, even taking into consideration how unreliable people can be.

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Please! Don't speculate on what you don't know.

As for taxes, technically you're supposed to report any income, but I know of NOBODY who does that for private, cash in hand private lessons.

Chatting is good practice, but it isn't teaching in my opinion. I felt horribly guilty if anyone tried to paid me for just "chatting" to be honest.

I've done some English teaching, a few professors at a university as well as university students at a few colleges, and while not trained or licensed in anyway and it was only a couple times I always had a lesson plan prepared and checked specifically what the client needed first. Any specific questions I couldn't answer I would go and check up and cover on the next lesson. I was no expert but I did what I could to advance the students knowledge both of the subject as well as strength a hold on what they have learned already and push them forward.

Glenski said:

Another disgrace to the teaching community, while slapping Japanese students in the face. I knew this would be the answer.

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I think you're over-reacting a bit there Glenski. Anyone who's seriously studying a language knows first hand that any amount of time with a native speaker of that language is invaluable.

While it's certainly not the pinnacle of English education, a native speaker giving you pointers and providing you with an opportunity to use what you're studying for one hour (and I'm sure it spilled over into the 1 hour and 15 minutes, perhaps even 1 and a half hour range as it does with my private teacher), is a lot more helpful than most textbooks.

For 2000 yen, with a person who's being upfront about their capabilities and in a situation where everyone is clear on what they're getting and what's happening, you're getting decent value in my opinion. I'd pay 2000 yen for an hour where the focus is completely on me and a native speaker is correcting my mistakes and telling me things not found in textbooks, definitely.

It's all relative; although on the lowest rung of the ladder in terms of formality these arrangements have tangible benefits provided the right people are involved.

The problem is that in some (read: most) cases the Japanese educational system has not exactly yielded the kind of student who can benefit from that kind of environment; I mean the kind of environment where you are perceptive and free-thinking enough to absorb the intangibles based on simple native exposure and interaction and make your own connections between what was written in the text and what's happening in front of you. This is true to the degree that even when enrolled in some of the best locations and programs students continue to languish.

But all that aside, many Japanese students seek out a curriculum, some kind of system that they can follow, stay the path, etc. The Berlitz method, the Nova system, the whatever. For these masses the eikaiwas, the expensive schools, the 'academies' and 'institutes of', are more reassuring despite the results being essentially the same.

And once again I'm talking about speaking focused classes, universities and whatnot offer a completely different approach and purpose.

What I would consider a slap in the face are teachers employed all across Japan who for various reasons are protected by contracts and employed full time and therefore do not 'work for their money', they are for all intents and purposes assured a salary whether the student walks away satisfied or not. I don't think you can peg that kind of criticism on teachers in any one industry, they exist at all levels, although I'd agree they do inhabit eikaiwas more often than not.