JET program wants warm bodies

[Taro Toporific]

Overall quality of ALTs declines despite increased demand
Yomiuri Shimbun, "Society" section / June ?30?

The quality of assistant language teachers (ALT) introduced by the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program to municipalities for their public primary, middle and high schools has declined, despite a growing demand for such teachers, according to sources close to JET...

The number of ALTs who quit before the year was up, for various reasons, such as homesickness and accidents, has increased annually, accounting for 2 percent of those employed by JET.

Last year, 151 ALTs resigned before their contracts ended.

...Prefectural education board members said that the application ratio was officially set at two-to-one, but that in reality, all applicants were reportedly hired, excluding those who were unqualified and those who turned down the job.

[Crispy]

Cry me a river, ya damn JET bastards. You coulda hired me, but I didn't even get an interview.

Er...I'll probably be applying again next year.

[Big Booger]

I can tell you why it declined, the economy is going down the shitter, and ALTs are under-qualified. They need more training in crosscultural communication. They need more counseling prior to coming to Japan. Many ALTs are out of their gord when they come here. They think of it as a trip to the holy land or something.. Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore

As for those returning, I can imagine why each and every single one of them returned. Some are pathetic lost souls without an ounce of responsibility. Some might have been sexually harrassed or assaulted. Others might have mental issues or sickness. But I am sure many are just sick of Japan. They have crap co-workers, crap teaching environments, and some have retarded, ADD and ADHD affected students who don't get treatment, some have Japanese English teachers who don't speak English, some have kyoto and kocho sensei's who are assholes. The list goes on.


Luckily, as I hear through the grapevine, these ALTs will soon have an ALT teaching union to help them. Right now they deal with AJET and CLAIR. That will change. A union will definitely be more powerful than the current ordeal. But there is no guarantee either way.

I wish all ALTs the best, they have a good situation, but they also have disparity between situations. That is something the boards of education should remedy. ALTs need more training and should at least have some cultural classes to help them understand that where they are going is different.

Also, I think the screening process for an ALT position should include a psychological evaulation to determine if an ALT is suitable psychologically. I know of several ALTs with serious mental issues, that affect their co-workers, students, and the general public.

They also need an evaluation system so that the ALT knows where they are in terms of job stability. Perhaps a performance evaluation by their fellow teacher's would help.. who knows Feedback, when constructive often helps one improve.

Further, the penalty for returning early should increase. Perhaps retroactively charge the ALT for costs associated with their return. This could be done by withholding their tax return, last months salary, and actively charging them for violation of their contract under law.

I think the quality of something however is very vague. How do you compare the quality of an ALT based on their early return? Couldn't it mean that perhaps something is wrong with the program itself? Perhaps there needs to be an investigation into this?

[kamome]

Have to agree with BB here about increasing penalties on JETs who quit before fulfilling their contract. I had a pretty crappy situation when I was a JET, but I stuck with it just the same. Unless something terrible really happened-like sexual harrassment-I can't understand how people could be so weak as to quit before their year-long contract was up. I mean, it's just a friggin' year. I lived with one small sink, a tiny 6-mat room, a Japanese style toilet, no washing machine, and a stinky kerosene heater for a year and never thought of quitting. The Japanese teachers I worked with mostly were assholes, but I dealt with it.

Quitting your job in the middle of the year puts a major burden on the teachers, and worse, deprives the kids of the chance to learn some English and get a little exposure to the world.

[American Oyaji]

Is there an age limit?

I mean, do you have to be under a certain age to be an ALT?

[canman]

But AO, I think now that they are desperate they are taking people up to 45. Also a lot of smaller towns are now hiring their own ALT's. As a matter of fact one of your comrades from Misawa Base had a big write up in the local newspaper. He retired from the Navy two years ago, and was hired on by a small town near the base. No experience and no degree. Now the reason I know this, is that his wife used to be my student. Why she didn't study with him, she told me" he can't speak the language". So I guess that is the new direction for jets. Crispy, are you sure you want to join these folks???

[Big Booger]

Applicants to the position of ALT must: Be interested in Japan, and be willing to deepen their knowledge and appreciation of that interest after arrival.
Be both mentally and physically healthy.
Have the ability to adapt to living and office/school conditions in Japan.
Be a citizen (not just a permanent resident) of the country where the recruitment and selection procedures take place. (Those who possess dual citizenship with Japan must renounce their Japanese citizenship before the date of departure for Japan.) [See Note 1]
In principle, be under forty (40) years of age (as of April 1st in the year of participation on the Programme). One of the main purposes of the Programme is to foster exchange between Japanese youth and young professionals from the countries participating in the Programme.
Have excellent pronunciation, rhythm, intonation and voice projection skills in the designated language [See Note 2] in addition to other standard language skills. Have good writing skills and grammar usage.
Not have participated on the JET Programme since 1993.
Not have declined a position in the JET Programme after receiving notification of placement in the last JET Programme year. However, exceptions to this rule may be made in cases where it is determined that the participant had a valid, unavoidable reason for withdrawing.
Not have lived in Japan for three or more years in total since 1995.
In the case of entry into Japan for participation on the JET Programme, agree to reside in Japan under the status of residence stipulated in Article 2-2 of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act.
Be interested in the Japanese educational system and particularly in the Japanese way of teaching foreign languages.
Be interested in working actively with students.
Hold at least a Bachelor's degree or obtain one by the departure date of Group A participants, or be qualified to teach at primary/elementary schoools or obtain such qualifications by the departure date of Group A participants.
Be qualified as a language teacher or be strongly motivated to take part in the teaching of foreign languages.
In addition to the above, applicants from non-English speaking countries must:


Have a functional command of English or Japanese language.

Successful applicants are expected to make an effort to study or continue studying the Japanese language prior to and after arriving in Japan.

Those are the requirements for the JET programme.

[kamome]

As a past member of JET, I have actually sat on interviewing committees to pick future JET participants. Believe me, if I could have performed psychological evaluations of the applicants, I would have. But the selection process at the interview stage (at least where I was--it may differ according to the locality) involves panels of 3 people who interview the applicant and then come to a consensus on each person.

Many of the people I wanted to exclude were admitted because I was outvoted 2-1 by the others on the panel. Similarly, candidates that another panelist wanted to exclude were admitted because they were outvoted 2-1. The result is that candidates will get in unless there is such a serious or obvious red flag that 2 out of 3 panelists pick up on it and vote 'no'. I therefore think the system creates too low a threshold. Too many people are getting admitted because the need to fill a position outweighs other considerations. So weirdos and immature people wind up getting sent to Japan with Monbusho footing the bill.

That being said, many of the JET people are well-adjusted, upstanding role models that have a positive effect in Japanese schools. The process just needs to be tweeked to weed out the problematic candidates.

[Big Booger]

I hear you kamome. Totally spot on. Also, I know a few ALTs who have shit environments. They live in crap conditions and suffer the humility of it all, while being alone without friends or family.

I know I know, cry me a river.. hehehe and then you have others that deal with GAIJINHARA.. gaijin sexual and nonsexual harassment.

I think those that leave usually leave for more than just simple personal issues.. they are leaving and what is causing them to leave should be investigated.

But the selection process sounds like crap.

And I know a few ALTs who could be classified as the serial killer type. Loners, like to play with fire, and nearly 35.

[kamome]

One problem with the selection process is that there is no uniform guideline for interviewing or selecting candidates. A person can get into JET from Seattle while getting denied in Los Angeles. Just depends on who is on the panel that day, the questions they happen to dream up at the moment, and the intuition of the interviewers. Also, if a particular panel doesn't care about the quality of the written personal statement, candidates with lousy written English skills who interview in front of that panel still can be admitted.

[Big Booger]

Sounds like the interview process needs an overall. I would hate to think I was rejected because the interviewer didn't like to hear what I said.. sounds like personal bias can get in the way more so than with a set of guidelines in place.

[kamome]

Sounds like the interview process needs an overall. I would hate to think I was rejected because the interviewer didn't like to hear what I said.. sounds like personal bias can get in the way more so than with a set of guidelines in place.

If it's one interviewer's personal bias, chances are the other two panelists would still vote the guy in. The problem with the process is that it's too lenient, remember?

[nigerian_nampa]

I applied for JET and was rejected, for reasons they wouldn't explain to me. But my particular set of interviewers didn't seem to know what they were doing. They would ask me broad questions with a very specific target answer in mind, and if I didn't give them their target answer they would try to "lead" me to the answer with hints etc. For example, they asked me what Canadian literature I would like to discuss with my students. I gave a few examples, but they wanted to hear "Anne of Green Gables". They kept saying "Is that all? Isn't there anything else you'd like to discuss with them?" "How about something with a young character?" "I'll give you a hint...it was also a tv show" "The story takes place on Prince Edward Island". When I finally said what they were waiting for, one of them said "I think we had to give you too many hints for that one". Well, fuck, I didn't know it was a guessing game!

They also asked me where I would relax after work. I said I'd go to the gym if there was one, or I'd read or study Japanese at home. But they wanted me to say that I'd spend time outdoors to "appreciate nature", and tried to lead me to that answer.

They had no interest in sending me to Japan, they wanted to send clones of themselves. But I'm happy I didn't get accepted by job, because I'm happy with my current setup.

[nigerian_nampa]

The problem with the process is that it's too lenient, remember?

I think that depends on the consulate and how many applicants they have to choose from. I applied in Vancouver, which always has a huge number of applicants so a lot of people get rejected. Some consulates in the US send most people who apply, because they really have little choice. If their quota is 100, and they have only 50 applicants, then they're going to be begging even the biggest dipshits in the city to apply. If they stopped having local quotas, and switched to regional or national quotas for example, that might change.

[Skankster]

-
-
The JET program is taking idiots these days.
I know of them taking bouncers these days.


Sounds like my experience regarding the Mombusho Scholarship.
but...

Look at me NOW!!


I still have a hard time finding people that speak Japanese better than I do.

[japslapper]

[prolly]

i was seriously considering applying despite being overwhelmingly overqualified, as a step into japan. but then my original plan involves dumping 6 months in to work elsewhere - which doesn't seem to go over to well, apparently.

do they really keep your passport?

[nigerian_nampa]

i was seriously considering applying despite being overwhelmingly overqualified, as a step into japan. but then my original plan involves dumping 6 months in to work elsewhere - which doesn't seem to go over to well, apparently.

do they really keep your passport?

I don't think it's normal for them to keep your passport. This particular school board just seems nasty. Most JETs go on trips overseas during their contracts, so they must have their passports.

[jingai]

Passport holding? Must be a yakuza-run hostess bar masquerading as an English teaching program. Come to think of it, that's a good cover...

They might want it to make a copy, but can't legally confiscate it-you need it to show the cops until you get a gaijin card.

[djgizmoe]

They should not be able to take your passport. You should've complained to CLAIR, AJET or anyone else that would listen. In fact, I'd let CLAIR know about that ASAP so it doesn't happen to anyone following in your footsteps...

http://www.clair.or.jp/e/index.html

BTW, I had a blast on JET (posted near Nagoya), and I learned a lot about the Japanese educational system in the process. But JET is essentially just a placement service, so experiences on the program vary wildly. As for the quality of JETs going down:
1. Last I heard, on average 2/3rds of applicants are turned down. If anyone knows better, gimme a link.
2. Many cities are going for private company ALTs these days. No limit to how long they can stay, and cheaper. See Interac: http://www.interac.co.jp/recruit/cgi-bin/index.cgi/lifeinjapan/movingtojapan.html
3. Everything BB said about reasons for JET breakdowns is right on the mark.

If you're really interested, check out "Importing Diversity", the only decent look at JET currently in print.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0520216369/qid=1099006750/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/102-0174608-8256901?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

[Thanatos' embalmed botfly]

OP, would it blow your cover to hint at your locale as a forewarning to future warm bodies?

[Big Booger]

We tried to organise an ALT union in Hyogo prefecture to prevent this kind of shit... It failed due to lack of interest. AJET licks balls... Sorry to say.

They organise great parties and events and so on, but as for any legal pull, they are the tree shrews bollocks... They have their meeting with CLAIR, and it is pretty much puppy play. AJET have no authority whatsoever in situations like this. Contacting a PR or the JET director might have helped.. then again you might get that "Shoganai" bullshit...

I enjoyed my JET stint. That is not to say it was always peaches and cream. In fact, in retrospect, I believe I had fits of depression, and some very low lows.. all in all it made me a better person. (think inaka living, no other gaijin in the town *that speak English), and the daily dronish environment of kyoiku..

I didn't see any kiddie porn, or anything wacky like that.. not to doubt the story. I totally believe it. I think there are worst cases out there...

[Mulboyne]

Asahi: Alternative to JET program cuts costs, not quality, in classroom
A Hokkaido businessman is offering school boards a money-saving way to attract foreign teaching assistants: outsourcing. Tatsuya Sekito says the Japan English Conversation School Council, a venture he set up last summer with 11 other private schools, plans to bring in English-speaking assistant language teachers (ALTs) to municipalities in Hokkaido next year for many elementary, junior and senior high schools.
...The company can do the job for less than the 6 million yen per teacher it costs to maintain an ALT for a year through the central government's program. The JET total cost covers a salary of about 300,000 yen per month, travel fees to and from Japan, social insurance premiums and commuting to and from work...Sekito's company can bring in an ALT for 4.5 million yen to 4.8 million yen per year. It does it by paying the assistant 50,000 yen less per month and finding cheap round-trip flights, he said. More than 10 municipalities have shown interest in the service.
This year, eight municipalities in Hokkaido opted to drop out of the JET program, while 123 cities, towns and villages, or 60 percent of Hokkaido's municipalities, continued using it. Six of the eight municipalities that dropped out of JET are using substitutes-Japanese employees of local governments who studied English abroad, or foreigners who live in the neighborhood....Atsushi Fujimoto, employed by the board of education in Makkari, Hokkaido, is a substitute ALT at Makkari Junior High School. He once studied in the United States. "I can't imitate native-speakers' English and I don't have the special teaching skills that Japanese teachers have. I sometimes feel awkward in the classroom," Fujimoto said.
...Three ALTs in the city of Yuki in the prefecture lost their jobs to people recruited by private entities. One official in the city's board of education said the cost was just two-thirds that of the JET program. Another problem is quality. Many people have questioned the skills of the ALTs dispatched through the JET program. A few foreigners, it seems, weren't too keen to interact with the students. "This happened because the JET program has grown too large. We don't need teachers who come to Japan to be tourists," the official said.

[emperor]

Im going to apply for a CIR or ALT position with JET later this month.
Im thinking of either setting Hokkaido or Kyushu locations as my preference.
I think Ive seen enough of the big city life.
I know it gets mighty cold up north, but I read its far more likely the accom. will have central heating and/or insulation... and summers are meant to be more pleasant.

Any thoughts?

Can anyone remember a thread or recommend a link with 'rankings' re: satisfaction & reapplications?

[AssKissinger]

I think the worse situation is to be in suburbia or industrial crapville. True inaka is interesting but semi-inaka sucks. Kyushu will have a lot of cool places, of course, but also a lot more of the kind of places I hate. Like the edge of some crappy city that wouldn't be so bad if you lived in the heart of it but you end up in a neighborhood with fuck all to do and the transportation is inconvenient and there's just crappy generic businesses and ugly factories and cars and so on. To me that's really depressing. But even a small city is ok if you're in the heart of it. But, in my opinion, Hokkaido or northern Honshu are better bets than Kyushu. Especially, if you what you want is real inaka. You can have a really intense cultural experience up there. A good measuring stick is are you the only Westerner in the village. If so, it's bound to be pretty interesting. I think you're totally on the right track. Good luck.

About the weather, even if you don't get central heat, those kerosene deals will keep you snug as a bug, don't worry. I used to hate filling those fuckers up though. I ALWAYS spilt kerosene. Probably because I was drunk all the time.

[emperor]

in my opinion, Hokkaido or northern Honshu are better bets than Kyushu. Especially, if you what you want is real inaka. You can have a really intense cultural experience up there. A good measuring stick is are you the only Westerner in the village. If so, it's bound to be pretty interesting.

Alright, so Ill aim north - should make for some nice jaunts over to Russia.
I havent been north of Niigata-ken, are Yamagata, Sendai and Fukushima too close to civilisation/industrial crapvilles? Akita, Morioka? or should i just stick to Aomori and higher?
The upside to inaka life seems to be the lower costs and more chilled lifestyle and locals.
The downside would appear to be not being able to go booze with other gaijin when I get homesick and bang a different j-girl weekly without half of the town knowing all about it... one probably has to get married, work in the father-in-laws' rice field and get a certificate of approval from the mayor before getting any action??

(Actually I half-remember an article or thread which talked about how all the girls in their 20s were moving away to the city and all the lads were left at home with mom, pop and the only the local whorehouse for company)

even if you don't get central heat, those kerosene deals will keep you snug as a bug, don't worry. I used to hate filling those fuckers up though. I ALWAYS spilt kerosene. Probably because I was drunk all the time.

Ill probably end up drinkin kerosene when i run outta booze: I hear the shortest beer-runs can be a good hours drive from some places!

[AssKissinger]

Yamagata, Sendai and Fukushima too close to civilisation/industrial crapvilles?

IMO yes but it's different strokes.

Akita, Morioka? or should i just stick to Aomori and higher?

Akita is awesome.

The downside would appear to be not being able to go booze with other gaijin when I get homesick and bang a different j-girl weekly without half of the town knowing all about it... one probably has to get married, work in the father-in-laws' rice field and get a certificate of approval from the mayor before getting any action??

Well there will be drawbacks but the woman issue doesn't need to be one. A lot of gaijin take an unnecessarily defeatist attitude about it. I think you can very easily end up inside the best cunt in the world out there. And pretty much no matter where you are they'll be a few more JETS under the same jurisdiction of a certain supervisor or whatever. You'll meet them by default and probably end up hanging out at least once a month or whatever. It's up to you. You gotta be like on an island or something to have NO access to other foreigners.

[Kanchou]

Hey, I've got some questions...

Does anyone have any experience (or any stories?) of JETs in Gunma? Especially Takasaki or Shibukawa...

My choices for the JET program (which I'm considering once I actually earn a four-year degree) would probably be something like... Saitama, Hachioji (or another place on the outskirts of Tokyo such as Tama), Chiba, Hakone, Nikko, Takasaki (getting a bit more specific), or some other place in Gunma that at least slightly resembles an urban area (Shibukawa for example)...

I'd like someplace near the mountains but not IN the mountains. (and not more than a few hours from Tokyo, preferably)

(Since Tokyo itself is basically an impossiblity of odds... )

What places *DON'T* have the JET program, anyway? Or are virtually impossible to get assigned to?

[dimwit]

Why are you looking to be near the mountains?

[kurohinge1]

Why are you looking to be near the mountains?

Maybe he likes mountin' women.

*boom tish*