Homeroom Teacher

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching English as a foreign language can be an intimidating task, especially for non-native English speaking teachers. This is true for many of my coworkers who are homeroom teachers at elementary schools in Japan. English has recently become a formal subject in elementary schools here and many homeroom teachers are intimidated by the sudden responsibility to teach a language they are not fluent in. Many feel that native speakers are better English teachers since native speakers have natural pronunciation and excellent command of the language. Co-teaching with a native speaker can put added pressure on homeroom teachers to speak perfect English in front of their students. Therefore many homeroom teachers feel...  [Read more]

Georgia Payne Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences The unofficial motto of the JET Programme is ‘every situation is different (ESID).’ This is completely true, and every JET’s day looks different depending on whether they work in a public or private school, whether they have co-JETs or are solo, their teaching partner’s style, and the school’s schedule. I teach in a private junior and senior high school in central Tokyo, where students are aged 12-18. The following is my own experience, but every ALT’s (assistant language teacher) experience on the JET Programme is vastly different. In Tokyo, almost everyone commutes via train, and depending on where you live, your commute could take...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences I work in two schools. I am an assistant language teacher at one commercial (low-level English) high school, and an integrated (high-level English) academic junior high and high school. I have had experiences with different kinds of students, Japanese-English teachers, and classroom atmospheres. In Japan, students take an entrance exam to get into high school. If they scored low on the entrance exam, then they are placed in the lowest ranking class. Each school has a certain number of classrooms for each grade. Both of my high schools have six classes total for each grade. There are usually around forty to forty-two students in each class as well. Teaching forty plus students in a crowded classroom is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences I am in my 3rd year of working in the countryside of Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in public elementary and junior high schools. An ALT's official job description is to be the assistant to a Japanese Teacher of Language (JTL). In my experience, especially in elementary schools, the ALT is not seen as an assistant but as "the English teacher" since the regular homeroom teacher has no training or experience with ESL. In most cases, the ALT has a degree in a field unrelated to teaching and has no qualifications. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Carl S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. At the moment, English in...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In Japan, elementary schools typically employ an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) to provide support to homeroom teachers during English classes. I have been working in such a capacity for the past two and a half years, first through an international program and currently as a direct-hire via my local city hall. Until recently, mandatory English classes at the elementary school level have been limited to the fifth and sixth grades, but new national requirements are being rolled out that will require mandatory English classes as early as third grade while doubling English classroom hours for the fifth and sixth grades. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Rodica C. Please note that this blog...  [Read more]

Asia Ridley TEFL Information Alumni Experiences English education in Japan has been prominent for decades and starts in elementary schools. It is in high demand as the relationship between the U.S. and Japan as well as the abundant amount of tourism. Last year straight after graduating from university in the United States, I moved to Japan and began teaching English. I was fortunate to pass the interviews and become part of the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme {JET}. Being an assistant language teacher {ALT} in the Japanese education system versus a conversation school has its differences. Therefore I will be diving into how one can contribute to the classroom as an ALT. In Japanese elementary schools, all the students...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences What do you think of when I say the word “teacher”? When I think of this word, I think of the “teacher when I was a child. The person who talked and I listened. The person who gave me instructions and I followed. I think in today’s environment this word has changed. What does the word “teacher” mean today? We’ll look at what the roles of a teacher are in today’s ESL world in Japan, where I’ve taught for over 14 years. We use many synonyms for the term “teacher”. In elementary schools, junior high schools, and high schools in Japan we use the term “ALT” (assistant language teacher) or “AET” (assistant English teacher). In business courses, we use the word “instructor”. In...  [Read more]

Brittany Varano Destinations Alumni Experiences For those thinking of teaching English in South Korea, the EPIK program offers one of the best job opportunities in Asia. An acronym that stands for "English Program in Korea," EPIK hires native English teachers to co-teach or lead English lessons in public elementary, middle, and high schools around the country. I got my start in the world of TEFL through the EPIK program and fell in love with the lifestyle of an EFL teacher in Asia - so much so I stayed for two years! The work was enjoyable, my EPIK salary went a long way, the benefits were hard to beat, and the expat community I met through it all helped foster lifelong friendships I hold dearly to this day. To be considered...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In the wake of the upcoming 2020 Olympics in Japan, there has been an increase in elementary school level English classes. As an assistant language teacher half into my fourth year, I have had the rare chance to work the entirety of my time in one elementary school where I have had many great memories. However, being present every day I began to notice that some students were struggling or in some cases, not even trying when it came to English class. Talking with my peers and colleagues from other elementary schools as well as my own, there are some common problems that many students seem to experience in an English class. These problems include learning in a counter-productive environment, inconsistent...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Destinations Teaching Ideas Japan is a country facing rapid change. Due to an aging population and a scarcity of workers, Japan is opening its borders to foreigners, many of whom speak English. This, along with the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, has led to an increase in demand for English teachers. I currently work in Japan, and have had the experience of teaching English to high school Japanese students for the past year. Over the course of this year, I’ve learned of many problems that students in Japan face when learning English. Of those, the top three problems for students in Japan are pronunciation, shyness, and large class sizes. This post was written by our ITTT graduate Kaavya P. The phonology of the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences My attachment to teaching starts when I was a child and observing my mom teaching private lessons. I have grown to love teaching. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Roza A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. My first experience was while I was in my third year of university volunteering to teach my classmates the subjects they were weak at. Then I volunteered in one of the offices of American Corner in my city part of the American Console in Iraq and opened a course there teaching English as a second language. The two earlier volunteering experiences I had were great, mostly because the students were adults and highly...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Formal English education first took root in Japan with the creation of the first English schools in 1865 and has since steamrolled into an aggressive effort by the government to produce an English-proficient population. The Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) was established to introduce native speakers into English classrooms, and English instruction continues to become mandatory for increasingly younger students in primary schools. Despite these efforts, an English Proficiency Index conducted by the organization English First gave Japan a “low proficiency” score, with the island country lagging not just the multicultural countries of Singapore and Malaysia but also its East Asian neighbors China...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences “Why do I have to take a TEFL course?” I asked this question when my daughter suggested to me to enroll in this course. Having decided to say goodbye to my current job as an international homeroom teacher, I am now embarking on a new journey of applying abroad for a teaching position at an international school. Thanks to the Americans who defeated our Spanish colonizers way back the 19th century, they brought their educational system to the Philippines. Ever since I started school, I have been taught the American way using the English language as the medium of instruction. However, even if I am learned in English, I have to get a TEFL course to prove my competence in the English language. So here we are....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Classroom Management is a method used by many teachers to help students be disciplined, organized, and most importantly develop an atmosphere that is conducive to learning. It aims to control student's behavior and assist them to be more academically productive. Classroom rules implementation can be of great help to achieve a well-maintained class environment. It serves as a guide for the students to know their limitations and allows them to observe if their actions are appropriate or not. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate ANDREA D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There are enormous numbers of rules which we can be utilized to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences This essay seeks to explain how the Japanese ‘Katakana’ and ‘Romaji’ alphabets cause barriers to the introduction of English education in Japanese elementary schools. It will look at how these alphabets affect the pronunciation, writing, and reading abilities of Japanese students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ethan M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The main two, ‘Hiragana’ (the base Japanese writing system) and ‘Kanji’ (Chinese characters), are not relevant to English. The remaining two, ‘Katakana’ (used for ‘borrowed’ words from other languages) and ‘Romaji’ (Roman letters) are often used...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In many societies, it’s become seemingly common for parents to focus their role in a child’s education mostly to control their academic progress. Many drop their children in school and right there, their mindsets switch to ‘adult matters’. They only visit schools when they’re summoned by school administration because a child’s behavior has become unacceptable. Few are active on matters that touch on the child’s well-being and rarely attend parents’ forums called to discuss curriculum, child well-being issues, and emerging trends. Truth be told, the role of a parent in the life of a child as far as education is concerned is of key importance, and parents who play active roles in the lives of their...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas 7 years ago, when I was just starting my career as a teacher, I asked myself: what my role as a teacher is. After all these years I could finally admit that I managed to define the most important teacher's role for myself. I’ve been teaching at international preschools and kindergartens as a Homeroom Teacher, and for me, the most crucial and broad role is to create a positive classroom atmosphere, which implies the standards, the mood, and attitudes, that make nurturing learning environment. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mariia E. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Positive classroom atmosphere feels warm and safe, welcoming...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences At the cafeteria during lunchtime, a student of mine approached and asked me, “Why did you become a teacher?” Dumbfounded by this brazen question, I did not know what to say. I could have chosen motherhood statements like “I want to make a difference in the world,” “to have a positive impact on my student’s lives, “or that “I love children.” I ended up saying to him, “Well, I am good at teaching.” However, the truth of the matter is, I needed a job and there was an opportunity so I took it. You can say it was fate that called me to be a teacher. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine myself being a Grade 3 homeroom teacher! After having experienced a variety of jobs in my life from...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas For the past four years, I have worked in Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) of English. Before this, I had limited experience operating in a conventional classroom, teaching young learners. I trained adults who were self-motivated and designed curricula for vocation institutions. Now, outside of my expertise, here I am teaching at a junior high school – my base school and an elementary school. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Aeika P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The city in which I live is very rural, farming and fishing are traditional...  [Read more]