Welcome to the Teaching in Japan Page. This page is dedicated both to those who are thinking about teaching in Japan and those of us who are currently living and working in the land of the Rising Sun. While there are many Japan-related sites on the web, there is still a great deal of misinformation about living and teaching in Japan. We seek to create a forum to disseminate reasonably unbiased information based upon the experiences of teachers living and working in Japan. There's a good deal of information here, so especially for those of you thinking about relocating to Japan, take your time and read through the material here and feel free to post your questions in our discussion forum linked below.
Here's the place to start looking for answers to the basic questions about teaching in Japan. The Editors of the Teaching in Japan Page have tried to answer some of the questions which we have seen most frequently posted in both our own forum and other web forums concerning working and living in Japan. Check out our Frequently Asked Questions Section today!
James English School: Teach in Northern Japan and Love It! James English school was founded in Northern Japan in 1976. Since then, they have grown into a chain of successful English schools. JES is large enough to have a significant presence in Northern Japan while at the same time, is small enough to be able to treat teachers as individuals. James English School teachers remain with the company for an average of 3-5 years, which speaks for itself. If you're looking for an alternative to the big, national language schools, check out James English School today!
Want to test your knowledge about living and working in the Land of the Rising Sun? Try our Teaching in Japan Quiz today!
First Issue Available: Teacher Talk Japan is The Teaching in Japan Page's new quarterly journal written especially for teachers in Japan. All of the articles in Teacher Talk are written by teachers currently working in Japan, and they discuss issues ranging from successful activities for use with Japanese students to current trends in the job market here in Japan. We would like to thank the contributors to our first edition and also place a call for papers for the next edition of Teacher Talk. If you are teaching in Japan and are an aspiring writer, or just want to have your views published, please check out our Call for Articles and consider submitting your work for publication in the next issue of Teacher Talk Japan.
Sponsor The Teaching in Japan Page for 2004. Our site has grown rapidly over the last year, and we are proud to be listed in the top five on both of the world's most popular search engines, Google and Yahoo. If you have a product or service to market to those teaching in Japan or people who are interested in coming to Japan, this is the place to list your product. Don't just take our word for it: go to Google and type in "teaching in Japan" and check our site's ranking! We are offering a "Founder's Special" for those advertisers who come on board early in 2004 to sponsor our new online journal Teacher Talk Japan. For more information, click here for advertising policies, or send your inquiries to Editor, The Teaching in Japan Page
The Continuing Education Section is a new section of our website which descibes some of the options for further education in the field of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL/TESOL). After teaching in Japan for a few years, many teachers discover that if they really want career advancement in Japan, it is neccessary to upgrade their qualifications by enrolling in a graduate program. Paul Hackshaw, a Japan-based university teacher with 14 years experience teaching in Japan, shares his experience of completing an MA Degree while living and working in Japan. Paul gives detailed information concerning attending one of the US graduate school branch campuses located in Japan, and he also provides a detailed list of Distance Learning programs which are available to those working in Japan.
You may also want to check out our Teaching in Japan Page Site Guide which provides links to over 20 Japan-related pages within our site.
Language School Survey: Now you can easily compare the working conditions and compensation offered at the largest Japan-based language schools as we have received responses to our survey from four of the largest language schools in Japan. We've assembled the information for you all in one place! The Teaching in Japan Page editors go straight to the horses' mouths as we post the results of our survey of the big four language schools in Japan: NOVA, GEOS, AEON, and BERLITZ. We sent a detailed survey to the Personnel Departments at each of the "big four" language schools in Japan. Read their responses in our new Language School Survey
For those of you teaching at the high school or university level in Japan, you may want to check out a new site created by the Editor of The Teaching in Japan Page. This site, EFL Literature Circles, introduces a new concept for teaching integrated skills to Japanese EFL students. Literature Circles are fun, focused, classroom-based reading groups which combine the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking. The EFL Literature Circles site describes why teachers should be using literature circles in Japanese EFL classrooms, text selection for EFL literature circles, and how to get started using this collaborative learning model. Check out EFL Literature Circles today!
Lesson Planning Help! If you are currently an EFL teacher in Japan, or if you plan on coming to Japan anytime soon, you should really check out Edutainment: How to Teach English with Fun and Games. This teacher's resource was written by a very experienced Japan-based teacher, so not only is it filled with interesting EFL games and great songs for cloze excercises, but the activities in this book are Japan-tested, so you can be sure that Japanese students will respond well to these activities. The Japan-based author of Edutainment is so sure that you're going to like it that he offers a 110% Money Back Guarantee!
Japanese Culture Aisle Check out our recommendations for books relating to many aspects of Japanese culture. You'll find a variety a topics covered, ranging from How to Take a Japanese Bath to A Dictionary of Japanese Food. Please support our site by browsing these titles today!
The Teacher Empowerment Page David Martin, Japan-based author, teacher and founder of EFL Press, shares his views on Japan-specific issues such as: How to get your (Japanese) students to speak in class; How to be an effective EFL teacher (in Japan); and How to be an effective EFL writing teacher. David Martin has put together some of the best advice that the we have yet to find on the web, so if you are already teaching in Japan, or if you hope to be here soon, check out these informative Teacher Empowerment Articles today!
The Teaching in Japan Page introduces our new Teaching Tips Section. Please check out the first installment of our attempt at providing detailed, practical teaching advice for those new to teaching in Japan.
The Great Escape For teachers who need a break from Tokyo, why not take a trip to Hawaii. Recently, the Teaching in Japan site administrator and his wife have purchased an ocean-view Waikiki condominium which is available for vacation rentals at reasonable prices. Great location: 4 minutes to Waikiki Beach and less than ten minutes to the beautiful Kapiolani Park and the Honolulu Zoo. Aloha!
We've updated our Discussion Forum with a board which loads much faster, and since we have moved the board to our own server, we are now able to store many more messages; thus, messages will now be accessible for a much longer period of time.
Where should I work in Japan?
What types of jobs are available?
What kind of students can I expect to teach?
What are the educational requirements for working in different types of organizations in Japan?
Teachers currently living in Japan, or anyone interested in EFL/ESL in Japan, please feel free to post questions in our forum.
The Teaching in Japan Reference Center
The Teaching in Japan Page is proud to be associated with Amazon.com
Our Teaching in Japan Reference Center provides recommendations for resources that we believe to be helpful for new teachers who want to teach in Japan. We provide recommendations for general travel guides, specific Japan-related employment resources, Japanese language, and Japanese culture resources. Our selections are made by teachers who are currently living and working in Japan. Our hope is to provide some Japan-specific resources which contain reasonably unbiased information for the new teacher. The Teaching in Japan Page is maintained by college-level Instructors who are working and living in Japan; we put a good deal of time into providing this service to teachers who want to work in Japan, so please support us by browsing our bookshelves and using our search box when purchasing from Amazon.com.
We've assembled a list of recommended web resources for Japan job hunting. These resources are those websites which we've reviewed and found the most reliable. However, the Teaching in Japan Page does not endorse any particular job to be found on these sites. As with any employment decision, do your research! Check out our new Japan Job Links Page today.
James English School: Teach in Northern Japan and Love It! James English school was founded in Northern Japan in 1976. Since then, they have grown into a chain of successful English schools. JES is large enough to have a significant presence in Northern Japan while at the same time, is small enough to be able to treat teachers as individuals. James English School teachers remain with the company for an average of 3-5 years, which speaks for itself. If you're looking for an alternative to the big, national language schools, check out James English School today!
