Japanese do not like confrontation and this is something I experience on a daily basis when I go to school. Whether its about discipline or saying what you really mean, the Japanese are certainly really good about keeping up polite appearances, even if how they feel inside is the EXACT opposite.
As a teacher back home, I would certainly feel comfortable telling my students to "Pay attention" or "stop talking"...but here the teachers seem to simply ignore these things and it drives me a little crazy!! I mean, shouldn't students listen to teachers and learn rather than draw on each other and talk to their neighbors? Now, don't get me wrong...the bad kids only make up about 2% of my students, but they certainly know how to drive one a little mad.
As for more important educational issues, I am intrigued and interested in how teachers approach lesson plans, greet each other in the morning, and dress so casually its almost funny. Teachers here wear track suits and sports clothes for school and I almost feel overdressed in my polo and black jeans...I really couldn't resist but to chuckle at my JTE's attire the other day...I almost felt like the entire staff was prepping for a marathon, rather than an English lesson.
Prepping for lessons with my JTEs (Japanese Teachers of English) is really fun...it's a constant "what?" and "I don't get it...let me look this up on my translator..." experience...but after awhile, we all seem to be talking the same language. I really like in the elementary how we inciorporate fun games at the end of each lesson to really hone in on the skills we are teaching the kids...
The other day, I played "Fruit Basket" game and the kids absolutely LOVE this game...they learn the names of the fruit and then we play a sort of musical chairs type game as I call out the names of the fruit and then they run around like chickens with their heads cut off until the last kid is standing because he was too slow to get to a chair...it's HILARIOUS!!!
I am really excited about teaching in Japan and commuting by bike instead of driving 45 minutes one way to get to San Ramon...it's a whole different way of teaching here...I am the assistant rather than "Numero uno" and that certainly takes some adjustment...I want to lead and instead, I need to follow and do as I'm told. Often I feel like a tape recorder because I'm told to "Read this" and "Say this"...but I know it's valuable for students to hear native speakers because the JTEs cannot create that authentic experience for their students.
More on this later...
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