What Can You Gain from Japanese Schools?

credit: www.japantimes.co.jp

A Filipina recently asked me if she should enroll her daughter in a Japanese public school or in a private school. Since she knows I'm a teacher, she asked me what would her daughter gain in a Japanese school.

I told her that her daughter will have language and cultural exposure. I can't think of anything else during that time. 

But if I'll be asked again what can you gain from studying in a Japanese school, I'd share the following...

1. You'll have an early training for hard work and time management.

Even if I have part time jobs after working at the school, my tight schedule is nothing compared to the students here. If you're in junior high school, you'll go to school at around 6 or 7 to practice sports. Then you'll have school from 8 to 3. Sports club again until 6 or 8 pm. Then you'll go to cram school or juku. Before you sleep, you have to  do homework. You also to give up your weekends for more sports practice. This kind of schedule will get tighter when you go to high school. By the time you enter the Japanese workforce, you'll be more than prepared to work as hard as the others who can survive with barely 4 hours of sleep.

For ALT's: Keys to Teaching Well with Japanese Teachers

Mother-Baby Crying Bears at Odaiba

ALT stands for Assistant Language Teacher. 

Because an ALT is an assistant in the Japanese classroom, there's a Main Teacher. 

The Main Teacher is a Japanese Teacher who is believed to be competent enough to teach English. They are called JTE. How competent the JTE's are to teach English is a possible point of contention. (I'll write on it next year when I'm done with my job.hehe!)

JTE's are expected to teach with ALT's at least once a week. However, to what extent should they work together depends largely on the JTE. 

Here are the types of "team teaching" of ALT-JTE in Japan:

• ALT teach during the whole class period while the JTE stands at the back of the room. The JTE will only help when asked. 
• ALT  do the reverse- they stand at the back of the room and will only help when the JTE request for assistance. 
• ALT  is given half of the class time. I like this kind of ALT-JTE team teaching. I get to teach but half the effort.
• But my favorite is when the ALT and JTE actually teach as a team. It's when I can rely on the JTE to support me and when the JTE can also depend on me to deliver a great lesson.

I've worked with more than 10 JTE's in my 3 years in Japan but I've only experienced consistent great team teaching with 3 JTE's. Because of this, they're my favorite JTE's, unsurprisingly.

So what makes a good ALT-JTE tandem for team teaching?

Why the Japanese Live Longer

Giant Buddha at Kanaya, Shimada

Long time no write.

I had some pains on my right hand so I gave it a rest from typing.

Now that I'm feeling a little better, I will let you on to the Japanese secret of long life.

Their secret is really no secret at all. But the Japanese are just more observant of what science says to have long lives namely- healthy food, regular exercise and a safe environment.