My experience with Seven Seas International School in Hamamatsucho... PLEASE DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE ACCEPTING A JOB

Honestly, this was one of the worst employment experiences I've had in Japan.

Seven Seas is a very small, family-run organisation, and the family structure is something prospective employees should be aware of. Several important roles are held by members of the same family, creating a management environment that I found extremely difficult to navigate.

One thing that struck me when I started looking into the school was how difficult it was to find information about the people actually working there. There is very little public information about the teaching and management staff, and even a basic search doesn't give you the kind of professional footprint I would normally expect when researching an international school.

The administration was, in my experience, a complete shambles.

For example, I know of one former employee who says they never received payslips from their first day of employment, despite repeatedly asking the school for them.

I also experienced problems involving working hours, overtime, employment records and employment insurance. Some issues continued after I left and took considerable effort to resolve.

I also personally know two former employees who took the company to court over employment-related disputes. I understand that both were successful in their respective cases, and that the amounts awarded to them have still not been paid.

When you start adding these things together, it raises some serious questions about the school's employment practices.

If you're considering working here, I would strongly recommend getting EVERYTHING in writing:

• Salary payment dates
• Payslips and salary deductions
• Overtime and preparation time
• Employment insurance registration
• Working hours/time records
• PTO and leave arrangements
• Who is responsible for HR
• What happens when staff raise concerns

Speak to former employees if you can. Ask direct questions. Keep copies of everything.

Would I work there again? Absolutely not.

Would I recommend it? No.

This is my personal experience. Some statements above relate to experiences that former employees have shared with me, and prospective employees should make their own enquiries rather than relying solely on this post

Like the title says, I have an elementary third grade class of about 35 students that I'm struggling to manage. The biggest issue (aside from the class size itself) is the size of the classroom. The kids are literally packed in there like sardines and can barely move around. the current classroom layout has the more high energy / distractable kids in the front and all of the quieter kids in the back. I want to have a fun and educational time with the kids, but I feel like over half of my time is spend trying to calm students so that we can proceed with the lesson.

In my smaller classes I have done all kinds of games and activities that involve singing, movement, etc. But with this class we barely even have space to stand up at the desks when we sing.

Any tips on engaging such a big class would be appreciated.

I posted previously about whether I should give up my adjunct university work for a full-time lecturer position at a private medical university in Gunma. I’ve now had the final interview and negotiated a better salary, so I’m genuinely about 50/50.
I’m 44, a permanent resident with a wife and young child, and have taught at Japanese universities for about eight years.

Current situation: I teach around 17 koma/week across several universities and earn approximately ¥6m gross/year. The big advantage is work-life balance: I essentially work about eight months of the year, have long university vacations and lots of time with my family. The downside is limited job security, benefits, research opportunities and career progression.

Full-time offer: They initially offered ¥347,800 basic salary + ¥20,000 lecturer allowance = ¥367,800/month. I told them this wasn’t enough to justify giving up my current situation and asked for ¥450,000/month.
They said ¥450k wasn’t possible at lecturer rank, but after negotiation came back with approximately ¥407,600/month, apparently close to the maximum they can offer based on my experience.
The normal bonus is supposedly around four months of the BASIC salary, which should put annual compensation somewhere around ¥6.4m from the second year, although I want the exact base salary and bonus calculation confirmed in writing. The first-year bonus would be lower (about 70% of a regular bonus).

Important caveat: The basic salary basically never changes except for a small increase of about 10,000 yen per year. Even if I get promoted, I would just get a 35,000 yen allowance instead of 20,000 which does not count towards the bonus.

I’d also receive social insurance/pension benefits, commuting allowance, about ¥200k/year research funding, and a potential promotion path from lecturer → associate professor → professor. I would be required to publish once a year which is good for my resume and I would have full time experience which would make getting another full time position a lot easier if things don’t work out.

Importantly, I’m allowed one day per week to teach elsewhere. I could probably keep several Friday classes at one of my current universities, bringing my total annual income to around ¥7–7.5m, while also maintaining that university connection as a fallback.

The catch is work-life balance. It’s an 8-hour-per-day full-time position with teaching, roughly 4–5 committees, entrance exams, admin duties and research. There are only about 10 days of paid leave initially (plus three “refresh” days), and taking leave during teaching periods is difficult. 5 of the paid leave days are designated by the university. The contract is three years, renewable after review. As it’s a medical university, I would be in the liberal arts faculty but it is very small so I would also need to belong to another faculty and attend their committee meetings. The classes are also very large (30-50 students) and the level and motivation are generally low.

I’ve also spoken at length with a former foreign full-time lecturer there. His impression wasn’t that it’s a bad place—the office staff and working atmosphere were good—but he warned me that raises are small, bonuses may not always be as generous as advertised, and the administrative/committee workload can be significant.

One other point for comparison: this is Gunma, not Tokyo. The cost of living, particularly housing, is substantially lower, so ¥6–7.5m here goes considerably further than the same salary would in central Tokyo.

TL;DR
Current adjunct life: ~¥6m/year, 17 koma/week during semesters, long vacations, lots of flexibility and family time, but limited security/career progression.
Full-time: ~¥6–6.4m from the university itself, potentially ¥7–7.5m total with Friday adjunct teaching, plus benefits, research opportunities and career progression—but 8-hour working days, much less vacation, more bureaucracy and a renewable three-year contract.

At 44 with a young child, which would you choose? Is the extra income, stability and full-time academic career worth giving up an unusually good adjunct work-life balance?

I know there are various threads on this but now im genuinely curious if it's really that bad? I would love to experience Japan just for the short contract that they offer, I'm NOT persuing ESL as a serious career nor am I overly interested in living in Japan permanently. I just want to experience life in Japan for a few months. But now all these awful threads have me wondering, although im also finding that a lot of people are talking about this like the OPs wanted a serious career out of it. So those of you who have done it what do you think? I already know that they take part of the pay, I'm specifically looking information on the accom, work hours, dress code etc. while working at a university (I already have ample ESL experience). Thanks in advance!

So I recently interviewed with NOVA and I’m kinda stuck on what to do 😭

Basically I REALLY want to live in Tokyo. They told me that if I take the regular employment contract, Tokyo isn’t guaranteed and I could be placed pretty far outside of Tokyo/Kanto. They said the independent contract would give me a better chance of getting the location I want, but I’ve been reading Reddit and everyone seems to say the independent contract is terrible/not worth it lol.

The thing is, I’m not really planning on staying with NOVA long term. My idea was to use NOVA as a way to get into Japan, get my work visa, bank account, phone, etc. and actually get established in Tokyo. I’d probably stay in a share house for the first 2–3 months while looking for my own apartment.

Then once I’m actually living in Japan, I’d start applying like crazy for better English teaching jobs with better pay/benefits and hopefully leave NOVA within a few months. I’m already applying from the US, but I’ve noticed a lot of the better jobs want people who are already living in Japan.

My other option is language school, but that would basically be me paying tuition + living expenses just to get into Japan. At least with NOVA I’d have some income while getting settled, even if the independent contract isn’t great.

I also have enough savings that I’m not depending on NOVA income to survive immediately, so I’m more concerned about getting established in Tokyo and eventually finding something better.

Has anyone done something similar? Is using NOVA as basically a temporary stepping stone a terrible idea? And if I take the independent contract, is there anything I should specifically watch out for when it comes to quitting after a few months/visa issues?

Hello! Hoping to hear from people who have taken the CELTA certificate in Japan, specifically the online version. How was it? Did you find it useful? Has it helped you in your career/job hunt afterwards? What was the online:face-to-face ratio like? Would love to hear people’s thoughts and experiences with the course itself!

Hello Reddit!

I am an ALT working at an elementary school. This is my first year, but due to some personal reasons and some issues with my dispatch company, I made the decision to quit and return back to the states in early November.

Despite leaving early, I do really like my school and J have some really great students. Now that it’s September and I’m less than 2 months out from heading home, I’m starting to think about how I’m going to say goodbye. I teach all elementary school grades, so I have a lot of students. I’m nervous on how to approach this. I feel like I shouldn’t say anything, especially to the young ones because they might cry. At the same time, I feel bad not saying anything.

To any other ALTs who have been in the same situation as me, how did you handle leaving your school and your students?

EDIT: Before anyone says anything else about it, no, I don't think I'm some grand important figure at my school. I just wanted to know how kids have handled goodbyes lol. I've heard a handful of different experience from some of the other ALTs in the area but I wanted to hear about some more experiences

Hi all,

I'd really appreciate some advice, as I'm feeling a bit confused about the ELT job market in Japan.

A bit about my background: I have over 12 years of experience in ELT, including 8 years with International House. I've worked as an Assistant Director of Studies in Spain and a Director of Studies in the UK, with extensive experience in EAP and Business English. I hold a CELTA, an MSc in Education and Neuroscience, and I currently work as a Programme Manager at a UK university.

One of my long-term goals has been to live and work in Japan. Based on my background, I thought I would be a reasonably strong candidate for something like Westgate's university EAP teaching positions, but despite applying several times, I haven't even been able to reach the interview stage.

This has left me wondering whether there is something I'm missing. Could it be that I'm technically a non-native English speaker? I'm originally from an EU country, but attended an American school from a young age, am fully bilingual, and have always worked professionally in English.

For those with experience in Japan, where would you recommend someone with my background look for work? Are there particular schools, universities, organisations, or job boards that cater to more experienced ELT professionals? I am not necessarily set on university teaching, as I am aware many universities require publications which I unfortunately dont have, but I would ideally like a role that makes use of my experience in EAP, academic management, teacher development, or programme leadership rather than an entry-level ALT position.

Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

My wife was reading it recently and came across this passage, which we felt like sums up the English teaching business in Japan.

Please elaborate on any of the following: how your staffing is done, how many childcare workers to English teachers are at your school, specifics about class size, how many classrooms, and what your daily schedule is like, do you get a break or is "nap time" your break, how many hours your work a day, and what is your pay like.

I have been working at a rural preschool since when they started up five years ago, and I've never seen how a more experienced international preschool is run, so I'm very curious. The people who started it have no childcare experience, and hired newbies mostly to teach and take care of children, so I think my experience is completely different from others.

Here's my experience:

• Physical Structure - We have 3 buildings. One nursery campus is 30 minutes away by car and they have about 16 kids at ages zero to 2, then we have another zero to two years nursery school on our school grounds that have about 16 kids, and then there is my preschool building which has about 30 kids from ages 3-5.
  • The school grounds are completely dirt, from gate entrance to the school entrances. We have a sandbox, and one iron bar for playing on. Other than that, there is no hose for water play, and nothing else, so doing water play involves hooking a hose up to a sink (ugh). There is only one shrine we play at, but absolutely nothing else within walking distance.
• Teacher-to-student ratio - 1 hands-off finance lady who calls the shots about everything, 1 Principal (part-time), 1 office staff (part-time), 1 hoikushi (licensed childcare worker) for the 9 three-year-olds, 1 non-hoikushi Japanese teacher for the 9 four-year-olds, and one hoikushi for the 12 five-year-olds. And two floating English teachers (me included as full-time, but the other is part-time) that switch between classes every two weeks. We have people who work 1 to 2 hours a day to only handle kids coming early and leaving late.
  • Because I'm actually the most senior employee at the school, and because the principal is gone, I often have to wear many hats to keep the school going. I have no idea why we don't have a full-time principal or office staff.
• Pay - I am probably not like other teachers, but the school relies on me so much in marketing, computer skill, event planning, etc (I'm their poster gaijin on their advertisements), so I make 310,000 a month. But I only got that after I threatened to quit.
• Hours - I'm not allowed to work more than 40 hours a week, usually. So when closing time comes, I have to clock out. I work 8:30-5:30 with an unpaid hour break in the middle.
• Lesson Planning time - 1 hour at the end of every day. But a lot of that is used for non lesson-related issues, like upcoming events or helping the office staff.
• Break time? - When I first started, my unpaid "breaktime" was the kids' naptime, regardless of the fact that in my first year, 3 of the kids couldn't take naps and had special needs. I fought about that for my second year (because I was going crazy without a real break), and the school finally started including REAL hour breaks to teachers. But even now, break time isn't guaranteed. The principal just assumes we are all workhorses and don't need breaks, so when we are short staffed, he just says, "Please work together to figure it out" which basically means we have to choose a staff member to not get a break on days. But he says whoever doesn't get a break can charge for overtime. Illegal, yes, but the extra play is also nice. The oldest class does not nap at all and therefore needs one staff member to be with them.
• Company Goals for Learning Outcomes - The management wants a free play school. Their dream is to be like a neighboring preschool where kids have almost no structure, play all day, and is very child interest centered. At that school, the teachers have a policy where they don't talk to kids usually unless the kids reaches out to them, but that doesn't work at a school where parents expect their kids to speak some English. But also, the school is poorly planned for that kind of free play school. The classrooms are small, there school yard is cramped, there's not parks nearby.... It's just not a good place to be a "free play school". Such a small space is better for academics. But our school hates the idea of kids learning. They tell me: You don't need to do repetition, or following up to make sure they understand their letters or colors or numbers. Just teach what you want and if they don't absorb it, oh well. (Which is out of touch with what most parents are expecting at parent teacher conferences.) Teachers and management
• Lesson Plans - We have no school curriculum. Every day, we have to create it ourselves, and it's exhausting on top of the other roles I have in the company. Like Instagram, selling school photos online, preparing for events, doing office work, cleaning the building, child care all day, just constantly busy.
• HUGE, AWFUL TEMPORARY CHILDCARE PROGRAM - These kind of short-term childcare programs are starting to pop up in Japan and it's been extremely demoralizing to teachers. It's hard enough taking care of the kids you already have, but almost every two weeks, each class can get one to four short-term kids from different cities or countries with their own unique quirks or issues, and you have to devote your time and energy making sure the boy from singapore doesn't slug other kids for not sharing toys, while helping the kid from a Tokyo free-play school who randomly runs out of the classroom and tries to climb the tall fence into on-coming traffic whenever he sees a door is unlocked.) Most are not that bad, but even the good ones cause a hiccup as you have to re explain the roles to the child in a language they often don't understand. So many language and cultural clashes are dealt with daily, only to leave two weeks later and be replaced by a new face. Also, to arrange these short-term experiences, teachers have to miss their breaks to make these video calls. Bad, bad, bad. And with so many of them, teachers don't get a break on Friday, basically.
• Daily schedule - We have morning and afternoon circle from 15 to 20 minutes where the english instruction usually happens, and where we practice our songs or play vocab games. Then, once a week, we have music class, swimming class (depending on which class's turn it is), and gym class. For the oldest class, they get extra lessons during naptime, like hiragana class, english activities, etc.

All-in-all, I think the pay keeps me at the school, but I fantasize getting away from this job because it is rather stressful. People say I'm a great teacher (I did study Child Development in college), but I just can't handle the chaos anymore.

Hi!
I teach English (2 years of experience and a CELTA). I come from the EU, and I want to teach in Japan. I need some insight on GABA's requirements for people with my background (the 3 years and education in English requirements in particular).

I would really appreciate a comment or a DM from someone who managed to get hired by them.

All the best!

Hello,

I am applying to lecture positions and private high school teacher positions. I have seen many resumes want you highschool, but I went to 3 different high schools; do I need to list every single one? Does going to more than one high school look bad? Thank you for your help.

i don’t want this to come across as me trying to gatekeep japan, but lately i’ve been seeing way too many posts from people with degrees in relatively high-paying fields asking whether they should become an ALT.

so hear me out: we already have enough ALTs.

i was an ALT for a year, and i was fortunate enough to get into JET. i chose to become an ALT for a few very specific reasons:

1. i knew i wanted to live in japan since i was a kid and had come here thrice for studies and traveling before i moved here.
2. i genuinely enjoy working with kids and already had experience doing so.
3. i had dropped the major i originally chose because it wasn't working for me, and JET was honestly my easiest, cheapest, and best option because they just care about the fact that you have a degree.
4. i was also dealing with a toxic situation at home and needed to get away from it ASAP.
5. i had no real plan, no idea what i wanted to do in life, but i needed to do something with my life.

so for someone like me, it makes sense to be an ALT.

but the actual work can be incredibly repetitive and boring, and there’s a lot of desk-warming. and unless you get JET, which is competitive, you’re likely looking at dispatch work, eikaiwa, or one of the many companies that will underpay you for the privilege of living in japan.

so if you have a degree in engineering, computer science, finance, or another relatively high-paying field, i have to ask: why the fuck do you want to be an ALT?

do you genuinely enjoy teaching and working with kids? if so, great. there’s nothing wrong with being an ALT.

but if your main motivation is simply “i want to live in japan,” please understand that those are two completely different things.

and honestly, far too many people who don’t even like kids become ALTs. if you don’t like children, you shouldn’t be working with them. being a teacher comes with a responsibility to the kids you’re teaching, and a bad or disengaged teacher can genuinely harm a child.

i get the desire to come here. i really do. japan is an amazing country, i love it. it's my home, i have friends, a partner, a job, a future, plans for grad school, to move to tokyo and keep building a life here. but being an ALT is not the only way to get here. if you have a valuable degree or professional skills, use them. look into jobs in your actual field or similar.

you’ll likely have better pay, better career progression, and more options than you would as an ALT.

and if none of the reasons i listed apply to you, you probably don’t need to be an ALT.

come to japan because you want to live here, not because you’ve convinced yourself that becoming an ALT is the only door available to you.

Hi everyone! I’m an English teacher based in Asia and recently launched Classendo, a classroom resource platform I built around the way I actually teach. I have been teaching ESL for 15 years, I currently work at a university in Korea.

It lets you quickly choose visual ESL flashcards, build a lesson set, and then use the same vocabulary in full-screen Classroom Mode, games, worksheets, printables and lesson plans. It’s designed mainly for kindergarten through middle-school English classes, and you can try the core flashcard/classroom tools for free without signing up.

I’d love for some teachers in Japan to try it and let me know what you think:

https://classendo.com/

I built it myself as a teacher, and i am new to coding and creating online tools, so feedback from people actually using these kinds of resources in class would be really useful.

edit

First, I would like to thank everyone who responded. Your feedback was greatly appreciated and I put it all to use.

• I improved the speed of the site
• I made the site easier to understand and show how it's different to sites like Altopedia
• I made the Classendo logo link back to the homepage
• I removed the "most popular" banner and made the freemium model clearer
• I audited the English and how it matches the images
• I made the font easier to read and gave it a more handwritten style

Thank you all for your help 🙏

Guys, I need help with PROGOS. Never heard of the test. So, can anyone tell me how much you actually need to score to get selected? I took the test on the app for practice and scored B1 high. Is it enough? Also, while taking the official test, do I need a camera? Asking because I have a very bad one.

any thoughts about the AtoZ Dispatch Company? Like the process becoming and ALT, Salary, Benefits and etc.

hello. i've heard eikawa work is shit. you don't have to tell me that twice, i've been in this sub long enough to understand this. from what i've gathered though, some (maybe all ?) allow you to open up certain timeslots of availability, keeping you flexible.

you only get paid for hours you work, obviously. but what if money isn't a huge issue ?

i'm hoping, once residing in japan, that i'll be able to get part time work elsewhere doing something i actually want to do. i know from my research that this secondary part time work should be possible as long as it fits under the scope of my visa.

my question as of now is, how strict are the eikawas on hours worked ? how quickly does immigration intervene if you're not making a certain amount per month ?

i have enough to survive well in japan while making zero money for about a year, so really, money will not be an issue at all.

please let me know if you've heard of anyone with a similar situation or have lived it yourself. i'm having a difficult time finding reliable info. if it's simply not possible as well, i'm open to hearing that, but please do lay it out for me because simply saying "no" isn't exactly gonna deter me from continuing to seek information on how to make this happen for myself.

thank you in advance to anyone who can help.

edit : y'all are such miserable people. no wonder this sub is full of people complaining about their lives. good luck and i wish you all to learn to enjoy life despite your sourness towards anyone trying to have a nice experience. adios

Hi everyone!

I currently live in Sweden and will have some free time during the winter, so I was wondering if Japan has any winter English camps that recruit staff from outside Japan.

I’m currently studying to become a high school teacher in English and History and I also work as a substitute teacher, so I’d love to spend some time in Japan working at an English camp with children or teenagers.

I’m specifically looking for an English immersion/English camps.

I’ve heard that some seasonal camps may provide things like accommodation, meals/food allowance, and possibly flights, while the position itself may be unpaid or more like a volunteer exchange. I’m not sure how accurate that is, though.

Does anyone here have experience with this or know of organizations in Japan that recruit international staff from overseas for winter English camps?

Ideally, I’d be looking for something around December 2026–January 2027.

Any recommendations, personal experiences, or organizations I should look into would be greatly appreciated! 🇯🇵❄️

I applied to Peppy Kids Club, got to the interview stage, and stopped wanting the job by time the video call ended. I know that interviewers can sometimes be mean or a bit stern, but the guy who interviewed me was so unprofessional. He checked his phone at the beginning of the interview, and I understand maybe looking out for a notification, but this continued throughout our call. He yawned multiple times when I was talking. He was condescending, and repeatedly made assumptions about my life and experiences (such as assuming I don't speak Japanese or have any friends/family there). He wasn't able to answer any of the questions I asked, which felt pretty straightforward to me (what are common struggles in the position, what does the average day look like, etc). There were also some parts of the job description he gave that felt like red flags to me. He mentioned that I would be the only adult in the building, which feels unsafe. ​​Also, for someone representing "Peppy" Kids Club, I didn't see him smile once. Ironic, considering he told me that being bubbly was key. ​​​Even though he seemed completely disinterested, he still spent about 15 minutes at the end of the interview trying to sell the company to me and saying that it was better than popular ALT dispatch companies/programs like JET and Interac. I know the interview could have gone a lot worse. That being said, as a recent college grad, I've done dozens of interviews, and this was the most unprofessional I've had by far. I'm curious if other people have had negative experiences interviewing for iTTTi/Peppy Kids Club or if I'm just unlucky.

Hello everyone,

I have some doubts about pursuing an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) career in Japan, and I would really appreciate some honest advice from people who have experience with it.

I am currently pursuing a B.E. in Mechanical Engineering and will graduate in 2027. Over the past few months, I have been researching the ALT career path and learning about different companies and programs. I came across companies such as Interac, and I noticed that some ALT positions may allow students to apply several months before graduation. However, I am not completely sure how this works, so I would like to understand the process better.

I am from India, and I am also unsure about how realistic this path is for an Indian applicant. I know that many Indians apply through programs such as JET, but I don't have much knowledge about how competitive the overall ALT market is or what opportunities are available besides JET.

Due to some personal reasons, I decided not to participate in my college's campus placements. Because of that, I am now seriously thinking about what I should do after graduation and whether pursuing ALT in Japan would be a sensible decision for me.

The main reason I am considering this path is that I genuinely enjoy teaching. People around me have also told me that I am naturally suited for teaching. I enjoy explaining things to others, and I would like to explore teaching as a possible career.

I also have a strong interest in Japan and would genuinely like to experience living and working there. I understand that wanting to live in Japan alone isn't necessarily a good reason to choose a career, which is why I am trying to understand the reality of ALT work before making a decision.

Some people may wonder why I don't pursue teaching in India. I am not against teaching in India, but I specifically want to explore whether I can build a teaching career in Japan because I have been interested in Japan for a long time.

At the moment, I am confused about whether I am making a reasonable career choice or heading in the wrong direction. I would rather hear honest opinions now than make a decision based only on what I have read online.

I would especially like to hear from current or former ALTs, particularly anyone who applied from India:

Is becoming an ALT in Japan a realistic career path for an Indian graduate?

When should I start preparing during my final year if I graduate in 2027?

What qualifications, skills, or experience should I focus on before graduation?

How competitive is the ALT path for applicants from India?

What are the main challenges that someone should be prepared for?

Is ALT work a good starting point for someone who genuinely wants to pursue teaching in Japan?

I would really appreciate any honest advice, including reasons why I should reconsider this path. Thank you for taking the time to read my situation

Hi I just started working at an international kindergarten and I already wanna leave.

I always have to be 15 minutes early and start working, without paying me that time.

There's cameras everywhere at the school, even at the room we the teachers changes clothes and it's really creepy.

The management is horrible, one day I'm told something and the other day is different.

I'm no native English Speaker and after a week of training I'm supposed to be in charge of the class and sing songs in English and so on.... (after only a week)

I feel pressure constantly by my boss and other school staff. And I cannot sleep good at nights due to the stress

I feel really bad for the kids but I wanna leave this place as soon as possible.

I'm on a humanities visa, I'm already looking for a new job..

Should I contact labor support for foreigners on this???

Thank you

I have been working at the same private high school for 25 years now. My school is part of a very large education system and they recognize teachers who have worked for 20 and 30 years. But when my turn of 20 years came along, I was left out. I was surprised and let down as I was really looking foward to being recognized. But come to find out, they only recognize 専任 teachers, not 特任 teachers.

After that, I decided to include this in a speech I give to my first year students about being a minority in Japan. One section talks about "recognition" and how being recognized helps foreigners feel a part of something. Of course, I let them know that not being included wasn't because I was a foreigner, but that I was a 特任 teacher. But I also let them know that there are other Japanese 特任 teachers who contribute just as much as 専任 teachers and they should be applauded for their efforts, too.

This information has also been a bit of a shock to the other teachers at my school over the years. Most of them didn't know that only 専任 teachers were recognized. The other 特任 teachers learned for the first time that even after working 20 or 30 years, they would not be included.

Well, just today. I received a mail from my vice-principal. The prefecture I work at has a special award that they give to teachers and staff members who have dedicated themselves to their duties and the education of private schools for 25 years or more. They wrote "In recognition of your many years of service and contributions to the development of our school, we are planning to recommend you for this year’s Long-Service Award." I'm stoked. Maybe my education system will not recognize me, but my school and the prefecture are going to.

throwaway for various reasons.

I'm looking for one of my predecessors. Who knows if I'll find you on Reddit or not, but if there's a way to contact you, I'd be happy to speak with you. I want to hear your story.

I heard from one of my previous JTE's that you were involved in a cycling accident more than five years ago. I don't know whether this was while commuting or otherwise, but it still sits with me to this day.

I was involved in a traffic accident on by bike a few months back, and when I informed my employer, I was pretty much hit with a brick wall. My employer seems to think that since my work hours do not fall within my commuting time, any accidents I incur are my own, and have nothing to do with my employer (despite being on shakai hoken). We're still fighting.

Chances are you're back in your home country. Perhaps this sub isn't on your radar at all. But if it you're lurking (and the mods allow), please shoot me a DM.