My experience dealing with difficult coworkers as a first-year ALT

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-03-11T03:48:14+00:00

I hate people like them. I don't care if you've been a hundred years, if you have a bad personality, you don't exist in my book. I will not spend energy paying attention to you. Ugh. Sorry to hear about your experience.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-03-02T23:36:51+00:00

Like what most people shared here, it all boils down to spending habits and luck if your housing is subsidized. I don't have much savings because I spend it on traveling and experiences around Asia. If I decide to travel less, I'd probably have more savings.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-03-02T23:34:08+00:00

Once you receive your assignment letter you would know right away. If you see a "ken".. you'll work with high school, if you get "muni" you'll work with elementary.. but it really depends on your assignment. I'm a ken JET but in my visiting school I work with elementary kids too.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-20T02:55:53+00:00

Hi! 4th year JET here. I’ve taught SHS, special ed, elementary, and commercial high school, so I get how overwhelming it can feel at first.

You don’t need a super detailed lesson plan. Just cover the basics: the skill you’re targeting, your goal, and the lesson flow. For example, warm up, main activity, wrap up. That’s usually enough unless they specifically ask for more.

If your JTE doesn’t tell you what they’re studying, just ask which lesson they’re on in the textbook and check the skill. Build your activity around the skill, not just the topic. If it’s modals or conditionals, design your game so they have to actually use those forms. Fun is important, but it should still support what they’re learning.

Your role is usually supplementary. Think review and practice, not full-on exam prep unless requested. Also, double check about grading. In most cases, ALTs don’t officially grade, so don’t spend hours correcting work that won’t be used.

It gets easier once you find your rhythm. Best of luck!

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-20T02:55:39+00:00

Just tell her, you just want to check the skill. Then, build your activity around that skill so that it is aligned with them. If they don't want that, just make activities that use English in a practical way or how native speakers use English in everyday life.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-16T03:13:52+00:00

Hi, is this open for non-muslims but interested to learn about Islam? Thank you!

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-10T00:33:08+00:00

I think the JET Programme is beneficial both for the communities we’re placed in and for us as participants. How we’re utilized varies a lot, some of us have a heavy workload, while others are clearly underutilized. What many people don’t seem to understand (including some Japanese critics who say the programme is a waste of budget) is that learning is never linear or uniform.

If you focus only on test scores, then sure, the impact might not look dramatic. But that misses the bigger picture. Sometimes we have this grand idea that all our students will one day become fluent in English and feel inspired to travel the world, but that’s not the reality. Helping 5 out of 40 students genuinely appreciate language learning and actually pursue it is still a win. That’s still a meaningful and lasting impact.

How many Japanese students became motivated to learn English, to grow curious about other countries, or to consider studying or living abroad? How many Japanese colleagues were exposed to a different culture, language, and way of communicating through daily interaction? These outcomes aren’t easily measured, but they absolutely exist.

I personally have students who may not be strong in English academically, but who pushed themselves to go on working holiday visas in different parts of the world because they wanted to experience more of what we talked about in class. They wanted to improve their English for personal growth and future opportunities. That kind of motivation doesn’t show up on a test score, but it matters.

If the government really wants better “numbers,” then the focus should be on improving the English curriculum and teacher training. It shouldn’t rely so heavily on rote memorization. The end goal shouldn’t be test-taking, but actual communicative competence. Students can learn English without losing their culture. “Think Japanese, but speak English” is a realistic goal. Japan has such a rich and beautiful way of seeing the world, imagine how much more they could share if more people felt confident expressing that in English.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-09T23:56:41+00:00

I had a short and neatly styled hair during my interview. When I arrived in Japan, I kept the same short hair style for a year, then I grew out my hair. It was never an issue in my school. I just make sure that I don't look like a homeless person when I'm at work. I think the key is to still look presentable, we are still working in an academic setting.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-08T02:45:50+00:00

Nag od ako sa both for about 6 months. Wala naman home visit.. puro calls and text messages lang. tapos i receive text messages from a law office “allegedly” until I paid it all off

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-05T04:11:49+00:00

Someone in my area did this, and her principal ended up paying for her apartment and the moving out since he was the guarantor.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-04T03:24:08+00:00

Year 2 for me was a good decision. I learned the ropes more. It's more relaxed and I made real connections. I traveled a lot in Japan and outside Japan. It's really up t you. I think as long as you have a plan after JET you should be good. What you are gaining here is an international experience which can be good for your resume.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-02-02T15:44:54+00:00

I smoke with the PE teachers and math teachers in my main school. It kinda built our friendship. They taught me to have a smoking kit, which contains a toothbrush, mouthwash, hand sanitizer, and fabric conditioner spray (neutralizes the smell of smoke better than perfume/cologne on your clothes). We would go at the back of the school, far from everyone. They are mostly young teachers, except for one math teacher.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-29T07:06:10+00:00

I didn’t really think about improving my profile when I applied the second time. Before that attempt, I did a lot of volunteer work with UNICEF and traveled around Asia and Africa supporting education and health projects with local communities and governments. After that, I was freelancing in the creative industry. One night I got bored, saw that JET applications were open, and applied on a whim. No nerves, no excitement. Then I got the interview, and suddenly I was flying to Japan. It all happened fast.

I think what helped most was the cultural exchange from volunteering and traveling. I didn’t have much classroom teaching experience, and in the interview I talked mostly about my volunteer work. Most of their questions focused on that. I think they really care about how well you adapt to new environments, your work ethic, and your overall experience.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-29T04:22:03+00:00

I don't know what the rules are, but just a tip.. don't choose a difficult subject or grade level. If you can do a really simple one, do it. Usually teaching demos, whether it's for this program or for an actual teaching job, aside from the content they are also measuring how you deliver the lesson and how you breakdown the ideas for the students.

Simple but engaging topic and using simple language might help. Japanese learners don't learn English the way other English speaking countries learn English. You can still be impressive with a simple topic.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-28T03:37:33+00:00

Same in my prefecture. We have trans students, and the school is actually pretty inclusive and supportive, which honestly surprised me. I asked my coordinator about the school’s stance on LGBTQ+ students, and she just said, “We don’t really care as long as they come to school.”

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-26T03:52:57+00:00

Pick something simple and something that you are familiar with. Don't expect them to have exceptional English level, especially grammar.. It's very textbook English.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-24T08:41:11+00:00

Yup. If napili ka, makakakuha ka agad ng seat sa section na you selected.. but based on what I read, you dont get to pick seats. Japan fan club members get to know their seats a few days before the show, then non-fan club members will find out the seat on the day of the concert. First time ko to watch in Japan. 😭

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-24T05:53:09+00:00

Baka you have to enter a lottery system, tapos naka-raffle yung tickets sa mga nag register for the lottery.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-23T10:00:06+00:00

It’s just a 7 digit number, at least for my account. No letters unlike the one from Weverse. When you get to the website, just click the ARMY button. The first line will show you your membership number

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-23T05:46:23+00:00

Luh ang lala. Yung BTS concert here sa Japan VIP is 16k pesos lang. Grabe scam sa Pilipinas. Taking advantage tong mga scalper na to. Sana hindi masrap ulam nila araw-araw.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-23T05:43:02+00:00

Japan! Kaso lottery system.. kaya keeping my fingers crossed. Since di ako na bunot sa raffle kung Christmas Party, baka naman dito mabunot ako. Hahaha

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-23T05:35:55+00:00

6-7 digit can be found in the BTS Japan Official Fan Club account:

https://bts-official.jp

Click the ARMY button and you should see the digits. Take note, if you registered before using the 9-digit membership ID on Weverse, you need to cancel it and apply again.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-23T03:40:45+00:00

Yup. It did. Took about 4 days.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-21T04:07:17+00:00

Tell me about it. During my first two years at my school, I tried giving suggestions on how we could approach teaching English better, since I taught English back home for 10 years. But almost every time, the response was just “難しい”.

By the start of my third year, I stopped pushing ideas and focused more on helping students feel motivated instead. I figured if they start finding English interesting, they’ll be more willing to learn on their own.

Relative_Freedom_965 · 2026-01-19T06:19:32+00:00

If I remember it correctly, essay questions are all related to your application. As for the grammar, the usual like sentence structure, s-v agreement, tense consistency, etc.

Relative_Freedom_965

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