Comments for TEFL Journey

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:47:40 +0000

Hi there Lavi, thanks for your comment. You normally need to have completed your undergraduate degree before being able to work as an English teacher in Japan (an undergraduate degree is a condition of the Specialist in Humanities/International Services that the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs issues to most English teachers.) You will also usually need to have a sponsor (the company you intend to work for). TEFL.com and ESLCafe.com are both good places to start looking for English teaching jobs in Japan. Hope this helps. Good luck!

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by lavi

lavi — Sun, 13 May 2012 09:02:09 +0000

hi i want to know how can i apply for the teaching in japan as a english teacher as i am undegrat and currently based in delhi.

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Fri, 11 May 2012 23:59:23 +0000

Hi there, thanks for your comment. Yes, regarding foreign women with Japanese men, it's certainly not the norm in my experience, but not unheard of either. There are numerous international schools in Japan, but I'm not aware of any websites that deal specifically with recruiting for such institutions. Sometimes international schools advertise vacancies on the usual websites, such as Ohayo Sensei and Gaijin Pot. However, these jobs tend to be highly sought after by the ex-pat community (especially those with PGCE qualifications), and such positions, when they become available, tend to go to friends or acquaintances of teachers already working at the school concerned. Developing a good network of professional acquaintances is therefore very important in terms of finding one of these positions. Also, teaching at international schools tends to be less related to TEFL and more related to English as an academic subject as it is taught to native speakers of the language in the UK, America, etc. Therefore, as I mentioned above, a PGCE (Post Graduate Certificate in Education) and/or QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) is almost always required for full-time teaching staff. Hope this information is of some help! Paul

Comment on A TEFL box of tricks by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Fri, 11 May 2012 23:44:31 +0000

Hi there,

Thanks a lot for your comment. Yes, you’re right; over-use of any kind of incentive can reduce the value of the incentive in the students’ eyes. A ‘judicious use’ of incentives is therefore recommended. Making lessons ‘better and more fun’ seems like a great way to increase student motivation. I would be interested to know how you go about achieving this in your teaching contexts? Thanks again!

Paul

Comment on A TEFL box of tricks by ESLinsider

ESLinsider — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:32:27 +0000

Using name cards must be a way to mix up students and the energy in the classroom. It’s funny that the trouble makers often sit together and are friends.

I suppose that using rewards like stickers is o.k. if done occasionally and sporadically. Rewards tend to lower motivation and students just get focused on the end, so I have pretty much stopped using any rewards. Instead I focus on making better lessons that are more fun.

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by ESLinsider

ESLinsider — Fri, 11 May 2012 01:34:46 +0000

That’s pretty rare to hear of a foreign woman with an Asian man over there…haha…Say I am wondering if there are many international schools in Japan and if you know of any good sites where you could find these sorts of jobs?

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Wed, 09 May 2012 09:41:13 +0000

Peter, You might also like to check out this article for information about impending changes to foreigner registration in Japan.

Comment on Promoting speaking fluency by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Wed, 09 May 2012 09:30:04 +0000

Hurry, thanks very much for your kind comment! I’m glad the information in this blog is useful to you. I look forward to reading further comments from you in the future.

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by Paul Raine

Paul Raine — Wed, 09 May 2012 09:28:18 +0000

Hi Peter, thanks for your comment. To teach English as a foreign language in Japan, your daughter will need a working visa (the visa normally issued to English teachers is the "Specialist in Humanities/International Services" visa). To get the visa, she will normally need an undergraduate degree in any subject and a sponsor in Japan. The sponsor will usually be the company she intends to work for. Japanese language ability is not normally a job requirement for native-speaker English teachers in Japan, but will definitely be useful for daily life! Hope this helps! The best of luck to your daughter with her future career.

Comment on Being a female English teacher in Japan by Peter

Peter — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:14:33 +0000

Hello! my daughter has been thinking of teaching english as a language, meaning she has to learn japanese. right now she is 15, hoping to go to japan at 17 for a year, would she need be at college or still be in high school? do you have any advice you could maybe give her.