Teach English in Korea - How legitimate is this?

[Toonces]

I assumed that's what you meant, but most communicative approaches adhere to the target language principle for a reason. With younger learners in particular I don't see using the target language as a problem because it both helps maximize their exposure and forces them to figure out meaning. IMO expediency is weak excuse, especially since if you so desire you can demonstrate your ability in Japanese in other ways - and outside the classroom.

Oh, I believe you misunderstood my position. During in-class time at Elementary there's never use of the native language by myself and only by the classroom teacher as a last resort for more complex theories.

In what situation have you taught ESL? And at what grade level? My students are 6 to 14 years old and range in class time from 6 hours (per year) to 3 hours a week in their public school curriculum. Flexibility in communication approaches is necessary to further encourage interaction and use of English.

And that brings me to another point. Everyone I know who went to Japan to teach is either still there, basically stalling their life (and they all have degrees but now absolutely nothing to show on their professional resume unless they want to teach english forever), or did leave but still it seemed like a waste of time. It can be fun and all that but do not expect to save money, since most don't. Also, if you go there because you have no idea what else to do, that is a big problem and you should solve it now before prolonging it; at some point you'll probably want a 'real' job and it won't really help toward it.

That's the case in many situations and a real problem for some when (if) they want to return home. Be sure you understand what you're getting into and what you want to take out of your time abroad. How you view your goals means it's either a colossal waste of time, or the most rewarding and fulfilling ways to spend a few years.

 

[grrl]

Oh, I believe you misunderstood my position. During in-class time at Elementary there's never use of the native language by myself and only by the classroom teacher as a last resort for more complex theories.

In what situation have you taught ESL? And at what grade level? My students are 6 to 14 years old and range in class time from 6 hours (per year) to 3 hours a week in their public school curriculum. Flexibility in communication approaches is necessary to further encourage interaction and use of English.

I guess I did understand. You mean you're told to never use Japanese with them? That's a bit f*cked up.

I've taught ESL and EFL for about 15 years now. I did some elementary and middle school classes my first couple of years but now only teach adults, with the occasional youngish tutee.

 

[Terzo]

That's the case in many situations and a real problem for some when (if) they want to return home. Be sure you understand what you're getting into and what you want to take out of your time abroad. How you view your goals means it's either a colossal waste of time, or the most rewarding and fulfilling ways to spend a few years.

If you don't mind me asking some advice, doing the JET program is something I've considered. However, I'm wary of what you caution against. I graduated less than a year ago and have been working in a lab. It's a decent job, but not the greatest resume builder. I'm currently looking for a "better" (for lack of a better term) job. While I would like to go to Japan, I want to build work experience so that I wont have difficulty finding a job upon returning. I'm just unsure of how much work experience is enough, but figure that doing JET is better when you're younger. To try and sum it up, I feel like the window for gaining job experience and the window for going to Japan overlap very much.

What was your through process on deciding to teach in Japan? And I assume that it would be a waste of time if you're using it to "stall" in life, but what motivations would lead to it being a rewarding experience? I wasn't really interested in Japan until college, where I picked up the excitement from one of my friends (who just recently studied abroad there). Honestly, I want to go there to dispel the illusion, since I'm 99% sure I have a somewhat idyllic and unrealistic view of Japan. In a sense, I want to get it out of my system. I would say that I'm genuinely interested in the culture, though.

 

[Toonces]

If you don't mind me asking some advice, doing the JET program is something I've considered. However, I'm wary of what you caution against. I graduated less than a year ago and have been working in a lab. It's a decent job, but not the greatest resume builder. I'm currently looking for a "better" (for lack of a better term) job. While I would like to go to Japan, I want to build work experience so that I wont have difficulty finding a job upon returning. I'm just unsure of how much work experience is enough, but figure that doing JET is better when you're younger. To try and sum it up, I feel like the window for gaining job experience and the window for going to Japan overlap very much.

What was your through process on deciding to teach in Japan? And I assume that it would be a waste of time if you're using it to "stall" in life, but what motivations would lead to it being a rewarding experience? I wasn't really interested in Japan until college, where I picked up the excitement from one of my friends (who just recently studied abroad there). Honestly, I want to go there to dispel the illusion, since I'm 99% sure I have a somewhat idyllic and unrealistic view of Japan. In a sense, I want to get it out of my system. I would say that I'm genuinely interested in the culture, though.

I decided to travel for a few years, and Japan provided the best opportunity to fulfill that goal with a good job and an interesting base upon which to travel out into Asia. I don't consider my time here a waste, nor my life stalled. Although I can see how someone measuring with a different metric might think so.

If you're looking for work experience, there are jobs in science here. I have a few friends working in various lab environments living in Tokyo. Jobs exist in many different fields here, not as numerous as teaching, but they're available if you want to pursue that avenue.

What do you want to take from living in Japan? I took a long time thinking about what I wanted after school, and living abroad was something that I felt would be postponed indefinitely if I stayed and developed a career. You seem pragmatic about the situation though, as those preconceptions are most likely wrong; mine sure were. Why not take a few weeks and visit first if you're unsure? It may satisfy that "get it out of my system" feeling.

 

[Terzo]

I decided to travel for a few years, and Japan provided the best opportunity to fulfill that goal with a good job and an interesting base upon which to travel out into Asia. I don't consider my time here a waste, nor my life stalled. Although I can see how someone measuring with a different metric might think so.

If you're looking for work experience, there are jobs in science here. I have a few friends working in various lab environments living in Tokyo. Jobs exist in many different fields here, not as numerous as teaching, but they're available if you want to pursue that avenue.

What do you want to take from living in Japan? I took a long time thinking about what I wanted after school, and living abroad was something that I felt would be postponed indefinitely if I stayed and developed a career. You seem pragmatic about the situation though, as those preconceptions are most likely wrong; mine sure were. Why not take a few weeks and visit first if you're unsure? It may satisfy that "get it out of my system" feeling.

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that you were wasting your time or stalling. I was just referring to Skoorb's statement about wasting time/stalling. I thought you were the one who said it, but reading back I see I was wrong.

I had pondered a non teaching job, but I don't know where to start with that. I was under the impression that work visas are very difficult to get, and I don't even have the benefit of speaking Japanese (I've bought an introductory book which I am going through at a very slow pace). Not to mention the differences in work expectations. Here I feel like I spend a lot of time between work and commuting, but at least I have my weekend. This is all second hand, but from what I hear many jobs in Japan will expect you to work long days and even Saturdays. And while this could vary with location, it sounds like the average commute is much longer than in the US. It seems like the schools would offer more free time, at the very least through the various breaks (spring, summer, winter, etc.).

I think I want to get the same out of it as you, the experience of living abroad. I have a pretty positive impression of the south asia/asia pacific areas, since I have or had many friends that are 1st or 2nd generation from those areas (off the top of my head, China/Taiwan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and Malaysia). I think Japan is an attractive choice because of the unique relationship our countries have had since WWII. While there are certainly significant differences, I feel that Japan and the US share more in common than we do with the other countries.

I agree that I should find the time and money to visit it. I want to experience the culture though, and I don't think you can really get that by spending a week or two in the country. Still, getting a taste of what it would be like is probably a prudent move before making a long term commitment.

 

[huynhc]

korea > japan if you want to live a bit more comfortably on a teacher's salary. our dollar just aint that strong these days. you could always visit japan while in korea (or other asian countries for that matter).