Educational Policy, Teacher Training, Hiring Practice
My experience in recruiting teachers A position advertisement posted in 2005 Title: EFL Teachers (Gaikokujin Kyoshi: Foreign nationals) MA in TESOL or equivalent (Required) Teaching experience overseas and/or experience with working Japanese speaking students (Preferred) One year contract renewable up to five years.
Prevailing Beliefs Teachers (both NESTs vs. NNESTs) coming to Japan are often frustrated because… 1) “’Foreign teachers’ are paid more, and work less”, they just teach English. 2) “’Japanese teachers’ has a life-long employment, while we foreigners are not”. These prevailing complaints reflect the lack of understanding about the school system. It often creates unnecessary division in the profession
EFL in Japanese Schools At Present Grades 1-6: A part of international understanding ‘activities’: Variation among schools. Grades 7-12: ‘Foreign language’ as a required subject: Most schools offer English as the only foreign language. 3-6 hours a week.
K-12 Teacher Employers Public Schools: Local Boards of Education (47 prefectures and 20 ‘designeted’ municipalities (Tokyo, Osaka, etc.) Some require Japanese citizenship or permanent residency to become a full-time teacher. Private Schools: More freedom as to whom to hire. Still require approvals from local authorities.
New Regulation from April 2011 Two Major Items “Course of Studies” : The National Guideline. An introduction of ‘foreign language’ activities to 5 th and 6 th grades. Upper Secondary (10-12 th grades) EFL classes must be conducted in English only. ‘Classes’ vs. ‘Activities’
Credentials for Teaching K- 12 in Japan Kyouin Menkyo jo (Teaching License) Need 30+ extra credits in designated areas specified by law. Teacher employment exams Oda, M “Teacher Education in Japan: Clearing the Ground” in Choi, Y. H. and B. Spolsky, eds. English Language Teacher Education. Seoul: AsiaTEFL. Pp (
Status of teachers Nearly all ‘full time’ teachers are Japanese nationals or permanent residents. (some regional public schools only hire Japanese nationals as ‘full time’ teachers) Foreign nationals are usually employed as ‘Special visiting instructor’. Requirements vary depending on prefectures. These ‘Special visiting instructors are not authorized to grade students.
Eligibility for ALT (1) From 14. Hold at least a Bachelor’s degree or obtain one by the departure date, or be qualified to teach at primary/elementary or secondary schools or obtain qualifications by the departure date. 15. Be qualified as a language teacher or be strongly motivated to take part in the teaching of foreign languages. ODA, M Teacher Education in Japan 9
Eligibility for ALT (2) 16. Successful applicants are expected to make an effort to study or continue studying the Japanese language prior to and after arriving in Japan. 17. In addition to the above, applicants from non-English speaking countries must have a functional command of the English or Japanese language. (Emphasis added by MO) ODA, M Teacher Education in Japan 10
What can we do? Those who plan to apply for an EFL teaching position are recommended to learn about the educational system and the status of ELT. (e.g. Braine ed. 2005) Ask employers what they really expect foreign teachers to do in relation to their Japanese counterparts. Don’t blame schools for what they cannot control.
How to encourage NNESTs to apply. Convince the school administrators, and more importantly parents by providing research findings. (Easier with private schools) 1) English as an international language. More opportunity to interact with non-native speakers. 2) There are more NNESTs than NESTs.
We are in transition Developments of NNEST research for 10 years. (Both by NES and NNES researchers) Political issue vs. Academic issue We should be cautious not to create further division between NNESTs vs NESTs by over- promoting advantages of employing NNESTs.
A final note Someday, we only need to state ‘We want a qualified English teacher” and it takes care of everything.