question for all you english teachers

[ex_saraswath377]

I'm writing a story about a JET and one of her students. As I was a ryugakusei myself, I don't know that much about non-college schools - and especially high schools, where this takes place. The scenes in school are really short compared to the other scenes since the student skips all the time, but I have you ask you eigo no sensei

Comments

[kevinsensei]

check out bigdaikon.com

[ex_saraswath377]

I did; all I could find in the forums was lots of questions about visas and rumors about people who had dropped out. thx though

[keishigomu]

I also want to go to Kuzuha by train. (Haha, sorry, but I know that's specifically what you mean! ^ ^) Not as big on soba as udon and ramen... but... i really miss udon and ramen being everywhere... > < And yeah, everything bothers me here too, since my return.

[ex_saraswath377]

I'm sick of not having enough time to eat or make real food, and Miami dining hall food costing an arm and a leg if I don't want to have another sandwich variant.

And, um, Kuzuha, yeah. Certain store employees had started to know me. I miss Hep Five too, if only because I'd people-watch.

[claydust]

If no one responds, try searching for JET blogs (i think there's a link on Big Daikon) and you can probably find most of what you're looking for.

I miss riding the train too.... and I still live in Japan. (just a 30 minute walk from the nearest train station)

When I came back from my study abroad, returning to a small, liberal arts residential college campus was really hard. We used to drive to 45 minutes to Oxford, OH 3-4 times a week for thai food and coffee as a way to escape.

[ex_saraswath377]

you can probably find most of what you're looking for.

I can ask little_details too, I just figured people here might know more and I don't have that much time to go poking around in blogs (it's fun, I wish I did, but I don't).

You used to go to Miami to escape? Apologies. (I can't take it here anymore!!) Although now we don't have thai food anymore, and my friend at Earlham - sorry, did a little profile-stalking - told me a while ago there's a good coffee shop in Richmond.

[claydust]

I only mentioned Oxford, because I'd done some profile surfing as well. When I was at Earlham there was only Java Jazz, right off campus (and it's closed now), but I'd spend all morning and afternoon there (when there weren't really any other customers to irritate me).

We went to Oxford because it wasn't Earlham. And you could still smoke in the coffee house there.

It's hard to go back after a year away, because things just don't fit the way they used to.

And back to your original post-- i don't know any ALTs who eat with their h.s. students, those of us in junior h.s. are more or less forced to. I'm not at a h.s. so I really can't answer the rest of your questions.

[dv8nation]

1. It depends on where I'm at. If I'm at the junior high, then it'll be weeks between classes spent sitting at my desk. If I'm at an elementary school then it's 2 classes each time at one, four at the other

[ex_saraswath377]

thank you so much :) As long as one person's experienced something as an ALT, it can be theoretically possible - my audience isn't going to know the difference (most know nothing about anime cons and that's under their noses, as opposed to something across the ocean), but I'd rather be safe.

[aalfonso]

1. My school's schedule was about 6 lessons long, and I usually taught anywhere from 2 to 4 classes depending on the time of the month.
2. I used to eat lunch with the kids, every day. I was asked if I wanted to eat with the teachers or the kids but I wanted to be with the kids instead. I think most of the teachers ate with the kids as well, except for the vice principal and principal.
3. Yeah, I had another teacher with me, and both of the teachers I worked with had very good command of English.
4. About an hour for every test that we had.

[heather_sensei]

1. What's a typical schedule for you? I go to school, maybe teach a class or two, sit at my desk a long while, occupy my time with the internet, and go home.

2. Where do/did you eat lunch? Each of my schools has a different lunch plan for getting food, but I always eat in the teacher's room, more often than not, at my desk.

3. Do you have/had a Japanese instructor help you teach and does he/she ever piss you off? My JTE's overall are great, but occasionaly things do happen, like forgetting to remind students to bring scissors to school so that I can do the activity I had planned.

4. How much time do/did you spend grading outside of class? The daily stuff takes little time, if any. Tests take a bit more, but the work is spead out between the teachers, so everyone just has a section to do.