Is Teaching Really 'Work'???

It has been awhile since I've written anything remotely uplifting with general overtone of happiness...but times are changing!!!

For some of you, you are hard at work on your TEFL course...some of you are stressing, pulling your hair out and wondering, "When will it end!"... Others are plowing through with hope to get a teaching job ASAP.

Whichever person you are; you all share one goal - to be a teacher in another country!

 

At the moment, the TEFL course might be getting you down; you are wondering if it's really worth all this time and effort. What if the children don't listen to me? What if I don’t like the school, or they don’t like me? I might get home sick! blah blah blah!!!

I say "blah blah blah" because you are not the first person to feel like this - virtually every TEFLer out there has had thought along these line - even myself! - When I first got my job, my suitcase was still packed even after a month of moving into my apartment and I had thought about quitting a number of times - one and half years later, a big earthquake and a tsunami, I find myself still here and still teaching.

Teaching is everything, but for me (and it goes without saying) plays a big part of my life here in Japan. I go to work 5 days a week, Monday to Friday, 830am-4pm.

"Where's the fun in that?" - I hear you ask.

Well, continue reading and you'll find out!

Working Hours!

For starters I would somewhat question the word "work". I mean, yes I am at school but am I really doing "work". I guess this depends on your definition of work. Recently I would say that I have been doing 'real' work, by which I mean teaching paragraph writing skills in English only to 240 first grade students at high school and then marking their papers along with helping my other teacher mark his papers - basically a lot of marking.

BUT don’t let this put you off. This is rare and usually only happens around exam time or during writing practice and only at a few schools. For most part you will spend your time, like I am now, doing what you want (within limits).

At the school I'm at now, I start at 815am... Again I use start loosely because I come to school at this time for the morning meeting (that i have to attend even though its in Japanese). Usually, whilst the teachers are having the meeting, I'm at my desk setting up my laptop and getting my paperwork into order. After, I do some photocopying. I teach at this school Monday- Wednesday. On Monday I teach 3 45min classes, Tuesday 5 45min classes and Wednesday 2 45min classes. I then finish at 4pm(ish).

So, you’re probably wondering what I do with the rest of my time!

I cut out stickers for prizes, draw pictures for prizes or for myself, I chat online (shh! I'm not suppose to but I use my own laptop and my own internet), I check emails, check Facebook, check chalkboard, do writing, read books, sometimes play games on my ipad (again shh! I only do this when no one is around - last year at my other school I would watch movies), recently I made a photo book about the tsunami, currently I'm making a desktop calendar for my mum, a wall calendar for my sister and a photo diary book for my mum and sister (xmas presents)... I also by myself gifts and do online shopping to treat myself for the 'hard work' I do.

Of course I do prepare for classes which might involve checking page numbers, printing off company worksheets or creating my own worksheet...but because this I my second year most of my worksheets are already made, I just have to adapt.

On Thursday and Friday I teach at a Technical High School. My hours are 830am - 4pm. BUT this is what my head teacher said to me, "830 is too early, you will just sit here. Come at anytime before 905, which is the first class. You can also leave after your last class." (My last class on Thursday is 230pm and on Friday 325pm)

Also with this being a Technical High School i teach mainly from the textbook and with some classes I play mostly games and chat to the students.

Other Teachers

You work at a school, so you will work with other teachers. Getting along with your teachers can be hit and miss, the same with them getting along with each other. At my technical high school, I love it. We get along, talk, sometimes play games, have fun - generally it's a relaxed atmosphere...whereas at my main high school it's bigger, more teachers and they don’t all get along. But, I like most of them and even though they are busier we are able to talk and have some fun.

Holidays

of course you get holidays...well, you do in Japan at least. You get paid for all national holidays and if you are suppose to be at work you get it off (unlike my last job in England)...The best part for me is my birthday (May 5th) is 'Children’s Day' - a national holiday...yup, I get my Birthday off every year. There's also the summer and winter break (unfortunately you don’t get paid for these, but its still time off). Sometimes you get long weekends and you also have personal days that you can use.

For example, last year we had a national holiday on a Friday and a Tuesday. Two friends and I booked off the Monday and had an even longer break in Hokkaido. We did the same this year in May so we could go to Kansai.

Pay

Of course this is one of the most important thing for most people out there - especially when you need money to support your stay in whatever country you choose.

In our contracts we are not suppose to discuss our personal wages - for the simple fact that they are different for every person and some people get benefits that others don't - however, we still talk about them...which has create some jealousy and even resentment from certain people.

For most interac position in japan the base salary is 230,000en - this can vary depending on the type of contract you sign (e.g. part time / full time...LC / ALT). On top of this are your bonuses (or in some cases - bonus)...they take into consideration your location, transportation costs etc. Generally staying in one location can help to increase your salary each year (depending on your branch). Also, being friendly and liking your manager(s) can help for a larger bonus.

For example, one of my friends lived in the city I'm in now. After the first year he transferred to Hokkaido, didn't like it and wanted to transfer back - at the time, if you resigned for the same location you gained a bonus in the form of a pay rise...eventually if you’ve been in a location the longest you might be asked to be a head teacher, whereby you get another pay rise. Had my friend stayed in the first location he would have had 2 pay rises and also might had been asked to be the head teacher for Junior high and Elementary - he missed out on these. He also chose to use his own car (in japan car tax is expensive, owning your own car is expensive, buying a car is expensive) but he wanted a manual car instead of an automatic...this is his 4th year in japan, this is my second year in japan...my company stopped the resigning bonuses (instead they make adjustments where they see fit)...yet my friend is only on an extra 7000yen a month...whereas my head teacher, who didn’t transfer and is also in his 4th year, is on about 20,000en more than me.

 

So, I hope this gives you some insight into what teacher is about - At times you will be required to work, which can vary from school to school AND country to country. Being at school can leave you with a lot of free time, which can be used to create fantastic lesson OR create good lessons and use the rest of the time of personal stuff. Investing in your own computer and Internet means checking email, shopping etc is ok. You can relax be less stressed and as some of my friends do, join club activities. The other teachers can be a laugh to work with and when you are not at work you can enjoy the endless amount of holidays for travel etc. And, can earn enough to live on, or even more by knowing the right people!

Basically, TEFL is worth it in my opinion, especially if you want a less stressful job!

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