Working in Japan

[Ghost]

I struggled with two of the teaching activities, one was simplifying a complex word and explaining what it means, in my case it was Adaptable and thrives, my mind went completely blank and I found it difficult to find a very simple way of explaining it and coming up with a suitable scenario to put the meaning into context . The other one was getting him to repeat words to gradually build a sentence and then changing some words, for example "I look forward to meeting you soon", "I look forward to working with you soon" etc. The interviewer told me that I only needed to deliver the sentence in stages the first time only and that afterwards I could go through the whole sentence in one go when changing the words around.

In terms of what went well, I said that I'm available to start as soon as the visa goes through, I'm completely flexible in terms of days and hours I can work plus I'm willing to move to anywhere in the country. Also the activity at the end which was describing the difference between two similar words I managed to do perfectly. I also said that I'm doing a Tefl course later this month which he said would be a benefit as it would give me a solid foundation with my training

[kryss]

No difference. Its not needed.

Remember the old NOVA days? They would give you an extra 5000yen a month if you were a trained teacher, and almost the same for TESOL/etc. Those years in school really pay off huh?

[DeathAdder]

A CELTA or equivalent is necessary if you want to work at the British Council. You will also need two years post-CELTA experience.

I think for "adaptable" I would have started by introducing the word adapt. Perhaps asking the student if he would wear the same clothes at work and when playing tennis. When he says no, I'd say he would "adapt his clothing" to the situation. Then I'd ask if he was able to adapt his behaviour when he required, and when told yes, I'd point out that he was, therefore "adaptable".

I would then explain that it could be applied to objects as well as people with a few examples.

For thrives, something like this:

Teacher: Do you like working under pressure?
Student: No
Teacher: Do some people work better than usual under pressure?
Student: Yes
Teacher: Those people thrive under pressure.

Edit: sorry, just read your post again, and it said that your mind went blank, not that you couldn't do it. You may well have a better idea, but maybe my approach will help someone else who faces the same situation in future.

[Ghost]

Well just got an email back from Nova offering me a position Now to go through all of the red tape to get my visa, going to be a very busy next couple of months lol

[dave heats]

Congrats mate!

[randombs]

Congrats!

Good luck and don't let your interview performance faze you. I'm rubbish at teaching interviews!

[DeathAdder]

Where will you be based?

[kryss]

Grats! Now here's what you need to buy for me...

[Ghost]

Where will you be based?

No idea yet, at the moment I need to get all of the documents together and sent off for my certificate of eligibility. Once that has gone through and there's no potential issues then they'll probably decide then. In the interview I said that I would prefer Tokyo as that is where all of my old friends are but if that wasn't possible then I have no problems going anywhere. Tokyo would be more convenient but in the countryside it's a lot more laid back and less stressful, plus it's a lot cheaper as well so I'm sure I'll be happy wherever I go

[Ghost]

Well had a quick look at the contract and holy **** now I remember why people hate these sort of jobs >_< Have also looked online for people's experiences with nova and it's been pretty grim reading, pay packets always being down and varying massively between months, no health or holiday benefits that are legally obligated to full time staff etc. has anyone on here had any experience with nova post buyout?

[Darwock]

No, but know people that have. As I understood it things were pretty much the same, and I have to say that until my current job the Nova contract was the best I have had in the country. I think this was true for many people but Nova teachers loved to complain, typically being fresh out of uni people with no experience of actual work (they were even on TV protesting the working conditions while the company was already having all their customers cancel due to bad publicity).

Pay should not vary except upwards, depending on how much OT you put in. Holidays could be very flexible via shift swap which IS the best you will get in a teaching job (excluding ALT's massive unpaid break over summer).

[kryss]

Well had a quick look at the contract and holy **** now I remember why people hate these sort of jobs >_< Have also looked online for people's experiences with nova and it's been pretty grim reading, pay packets always being down and varying massively between months, no health or holiday benefits that are legally obligated to full time staff etc. has anyone on here had any experience with nova post buyout?

The health care and holiday bits were true before the collapse. But back then they had their own insurance, which actually paid out 100% (as I had the displeasure of having to find out the hard way). I never got hospitalised though.

There was some nasty stuff though, like my second week I overslept and missed a class, got a 5 class penalty taken from me. Never happened again of course. If I had called them it wouldn't have been anything more than the 1 class I missed.

In all fairness, national holidays are crazy busy everywhere and I was quite happy to be in work instead of dealing with that. We got 2 weeks paid vacation a year, plus a few extra days over the New Year when all the schools were shut. We had two regular, fixed days off a week, and we could make ourselves available for overtime on those days if we wanted to.

[Ghost]

Just a bit of a quick update, my CoE arrived on Monday and I went to the embassy on Wednesday, just waiting now for my passport to be returned with my visa which should be Tuesday. Everything else has been an absolute mess.

I requested 6 weeks ago that I wanted to be placed in Osaka, they emailed me confirming that they got the request and would let me know where my placement would be at a later date. Once they emailed me that my CoE had been processed I emailed them again asking if there was any update on my placement, I got an email saying that I was going to be in the Kanto region and that my induction seminar was the second week of january (meaning I wouldn't get a full months wage until March 15th), my placement is still being decided on and Ill be informed nearer the time.

I emailed them back asking them again for my placement to be in Osaka if it has still not been finalised yet, even saying that I can find my own accommodation in Osaka if needed. If that was not possible I asked where in Kanto I would be placed as if it was in Tokyo I would be able to find my own accommodation but if it was outside I would need assistance. I also asked if there were any dates in December for the induction as I was under the impression that I was starting in December and had already quit my job here and handed my notice to where I was living.

After 4 days I get an email back asking if I can attend the training on the 16th of December (which is fine) and that my placement is in the Kanto region, the exact place of my placement is still being decided and that if I want assistance on finding accommodation then I need to give their team 3 weeks notice. Ive emailed them back saying that I will be arriving in Japan on Friday next week but I can't look for any accommodation until I know my placement but all I got back was that my training will be done in Tokyo and that Ill be informed where I will be based nearer the time.

So not only has my request been completely ignored, I still have no idea where I will be living or working 5 days before arriving. I can't believe how incompetent they have been with all of this, Ive even gone out of my way and offered to arrange my own flight and accommodation as long as they can give me some details. Im half tempted to just fly out to Osaka, where I want to be, and try to find another job while Im out there with another company. Although looking on gaijinpot 99% of the jobs advertised for Osaka need you to be there before applying and the one that I found that I could apply for already had over 100 applications. If this was organised better then it wouldn't be a problem, but I don't want to arrange accommodation in Tokyo and then find out that Im actually placed in Chiba or Ibaraki and have to commute an hour or so to work and paying ?15-20 a day on transport.

[kryss]

They used to cover transit passes, you should ask if they still do.
Also, I can put you in touch with a rental dude in northwest Chiba (just don't mention my name) who speaks English.
Worst case scenario.

[randombs]

My company also told me not to arrive in Japan until a day or two before training, probably for the same reason. I doubt it's incompetence; they're more likely still deciding where to put you. As you've mentioned, the only one saying Osaka is you(unless you applied for a job posting that specifically said Osaka) and they don't have to honour that.

I think Nova owns their own schools so it may not be the same but in my case, they were still finalising contracts while we were doing the training. Heck, a bunch of people who had international driving permits suddenly got sent to Kansai despite applying for Kanto! Maybe I would have, too, but I didn't get one.

Now, you could well do what you're planning and get shafted by them or they may accommodate you. The problem is you've already discussed it and been told Kanto.

When we arrived in Japan and went to their office for the introduction someone told them he'd already put down money on an apartment in Ikebukuro. After being told he should've waited until training, the company shuffled things around and he ended up being placed at a school half an hour away! You could try that but it's not guaranteed.

The good thing is that your visa isn't tied to the company so once you're in Japan you're free to look elsewhere. I guess you'll have a humanities visa instead of instructor which is a lot more versatile.

In the interview I said that I would prefer Tokyo as that is where all of my old friends are but if that wasn't possible then I have no problems going anywhere. Tokyo would be more convenient but in the countryside it's a lot more laid back and less stressful, plus it's a lot cheaper as well so I'm sure I'll be happy wherever I go

If you said that in the interview then why were you suddenly pushing for Osaka? What changed?

Don't forget that most teachers are coming for a Japan adventure and don't really care where they're placed.

I told my company in the very first interview that I needed to be placed as close to Tokyo as possible because of my gf. I sweetened it by saying I'm serious about staying in Japan long-term(which was true), would be an asset to them(also true), and am loyal to my companies(mostly true).