Information
* this section has been plagarised from various Discussion Groups as well as ideas from this author.

"Teaching" Advice:

Do your files in class.  The 2 mins is for putting the files away and walking back to the teacher's room.  The students don't need your attention 100% of the 40 mins (you are not being paid enough for that kind of attention).

If you can't find a file, don't worry about it.  You didn't mis-file it and you are not being paid to look for it.

Remember:

• the 2mins is for picking lessons, not planning lessons.
• you are not a real teacher, don't be embarrassed if you don't know the answer to a student's question.
• The student came to Nova because it was the cheapest.  To them I say "You get what you paid for" -  Do you complain when a McDonald's burger doesn't look like the picture, or isn't healthy enough?

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When you sign up for Nova, you are literally signing up to be a monkey in a cage on display.  In the same the Yakuza shove Philippina girls into snack bars, so too does Nova when they sell the "interaction" experience.

They don't alleviate the distance and insecurity of the average Japanese from the real world, they augment it, and profit from it. Nova is distrubed.

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The Reality of Working at
a Language School in Japan
Taken From www.teachers.montoyahome.com

1 - Students never make progress unless they see the teacher as a director of his/her education (the basin into which a river is poured) rather than as the sole granter of sacred knowledge (the water itself).

2 - People pay tons of money, without necessarily being aware of it, for the quality of advertising and comfortable corporate hierarchy that represents a "legitimate" school.

3 - When children are concerned, the parents are the customers and all classroom activities are geared towards making a show for them. Education is a side-effect which may or may not happen; much like art may or may not happen on TV where the purpose of the station is to deliver viewers to advertisers. An ideal parent/customer of eikaiwa/juku has very little knowledge of the subject being taught, a keen interest in watching class, and no interest in seeing the subject matter displayed by teachers OR students in any kind of creative or individual fashion. They also highly prize the ritual of handing money to educational institutions in exchange for the impartation of sacred knowledge.

4 - Kids forced into the most juku classes seem to have the least positive attitudes towards learning. Thus a 15-year old who's been in juku since 2 will have no more english ability, and a lot LESS enthusiasm and interest, than a 15-year old who spent all his/her free time catching various beetles.

5 - Your role as genki gaijin trumps any educational credentials, training or individual characteristics you may or may not have.

6 - Parents may absolutely love sending their kids to your class but will always address praise for you to the nearest Japanese staff, much like circus fans avoid complimenting the tiger directly and instead talk to the guy with the tranquilizer darts and raw meat.

 

Juku = cram school

Eikaiwa = big chain english 'school' (ie Nova, Geos etc)