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The JET Program, Rural ALT |
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Mihara Elementary and Middle School (in background) Unfortunatly, most public schools in Japan look like prisons or military baraks. Very utilitarian, no air conditioning and kerosene heaters in winter. Fortunatly these are fairly new and kept in good repair. |
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| With this page I hope to give you a little glimpse of what this job is about, at least from within the very limited context of the Mihara Experience (tm).. Officially my position is that of an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) helping the middle school English instructor or elementary homeroom teacher with all things English. On the books this consists of anywhere from 7 to 9 classes a week, sometimes less, usually from 8am until 4pm. Off the books I am to help with "international education." Largely this is set to decorating the schools for holidays, doing special assemblies and working outside of class at school events or village functions. Really this means I stand around, look pretty, and talk with folks. Put very plainly, this job is not hard. Heck, often it is not even a challenge. Being a ALT in Mihara means enduring long period of waiting (perhaps including lesson planning) followed by short spurts of controlled chaos (defined as classes). |
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Most of the student body assembled for the opening of the annual Sport Festival. October 2002. |
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Student calligraphy on display at the village Cultural Festival. November 2002. |
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| At the middle school, there is a real curriculum and the kids are required to learn English. As such, they have a full-blown and qualified English instructor who does a bang up job. Mainly I help with points of cultural information, speaking practice, tests, grading notebooks, and playing a support role in class. This suits me great because I cannot explain complex grammar concepts in Japanese. The kids are wonderful, regardless of how much they actually learn, and I have no gripes with anyone. My middle school posting is a little slow, but very low stress and pleasantly satisfying. |
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At the elementary school I work much harder both in and outside of class. Teachers here speak very little English as opposed to the middle school teacher's near-fluency. First there is that obstacle to overcome. Second is the task of planning lessons appropriate to skill and age level. Third is living through the lesson and fourth is living through the day. Elementary school kids do not have to remember what you teach them. There are no tests and you see them in class once a week at max. As such, language instruction is game-oriented and based on repetition cleverly disguised, and oftentimes not so, as activities. The kids do retain a surprising amount, especially the younger kids. |
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Some elementary kids at Sports Festival. Divided into Red and White Teams, a bored person could think of this as a skillful interpretation of certian periods in Russisn history. |
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| Right: Halloween shot of first graders. |
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When I mention living through the day, I refer to how the kids treat you outside of class. By no means is a Mihara ALT shunned or bullied, but rather they carry the curse of being too popular. An ALT is not a regular teacher. She or he is not responsible for discipline and as such fall into the category of a fun adult as opposed to a authority figure. I am not saying the kids don't love their normal teachers, they do, but I have never seen a normal teacher brought to the ground by a swarm of six year olds. This happens to me on a fairly regular basis. Remember all the TV shows that go on safari in Africa and you see a big buffalo or ox brought down by a band of wild dogs (I'm going for scale here not ferocity) or hyenas? Yep, that big ox is me. Recently kids have decided it is fun to grab onto my legs and hold on while I drag them across the floor. Then two or more kids decide they have to help me, after four children have proved more than I can pull, by pushing or pulling. The inevitable result is me winding up on the floor. Then the game becomes "Pile on Mr. Ford" with most of a class climbing all over me until I manage to escape. My only refuge is the teacher's room, which no child, no matter how hyped up, dares enter without permission. If I can make it that far, it is like making it back to the protection of the herd. All good fun! Just as the kids get a kick out of my special status, so do the other teachers (I like the think). |
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Above: Hiking in early fall. |
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| When all is said and done I work maybe 15 hours a week plus the day I spend at the Board of Education office playing on the Internet (when do you think I made this web site?). The other things that keep me busy I come up with myself. Making decorations, class materials, brain storming ideas, studying Japanese or getting some reading done. A lot of this job is what you make of it, and how you choose to spend your free time. If you did the absolute minimum, I have no idea how you would maintain your sanity. It would be that boring. However, you are given such a free hand and encouraged to create projects when it comes to other work related activities, that you can make almost anything happen. There is a lot of freedom as an ALT in Mihara and you are expected to do something productive with it. |
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for ALT related photos |
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to front page |
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