Jet Program 2009-2011, Yamamoto (Miyagi), Japan
Junior High School Assistant Language Teacher (ALT)
After graduating Connecticut College in 2009 with a B.A. in Japanese Language and Literature, I was hired by the JET Program to teach English in Miyagi Prefecture. In 2009, I started my tenure in Yamamoto as both an elementary and junior high school teacher, however in 2010 I became primarily a junior high school teacher (7th - 9th grade). My responsibilities included preparing students for English examinations and oral interviews for high school entrance exams, preparing students for speech contests, and generally assisting the Japanese teachers of English as a model English speaker and American culture expert. Working with the students at the 2 local schools helped me to find my passion as a teacher.
On March 11, 2011, my town was unfortunately shaken by a massive 6.5 scale earthquake and subsequently hit by the tsunami that devastated the entire east coast of northern Japan. My town was later affected by the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear reactor as it was only 60 km northwest of the site. Despite these disasters and heavy losses in the town, the schools reopened in April 2011 where I continued to teach until my contract ended in August of that year. It was a life changing experience that made me see delicate nature of life, and memories from time in town both prior to and post-disaster remain with me vividly even now.
After graduating Connecticut College in 2009 with a B.A. in Japanese Language and Literature, I was hired by the JET Program to teach English in Miyagi Prefecture. In 2009, I started my tenure in Yamamoto as both an elementary and junior high school teacher, however in 2010 I became primarily a junior high school teacher (7th - 9th grade). My responsibilities included preparing students for English examinations and oral interviews for high school entrance exams, preparing students for speech contests, and generally assisting the Japanese teachers of English as a model English speaker and American culture expert. Working with the students at the 2 local schools helped me to find my passion as a teacher.
On March 11, 2011, my town was unfortunately shaken by a massive 6.5 scale earthquake and subsequently hit by the tsunami that devastated the entire east coast of northern Japan. My town was later affected by the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear reactor as it was only 60 km northwest of the site. Despite these disasters and heavy losses in the town, the schools reopened in April 2011 where I continued to teach until my contract ended in August of that year. It was a life changing experience that made me see delicate nature of life, and memories from time in town both prior to and post-disaster remain with me vividly even now.
During my time in Yamamoto as a junior high school teacher, I also had a chance to teach a special class one time with a Japanese co-teacher, Moral Education Class. For more information, click below.
Adult English
In addition to my normal duties at the junior high school, I also taught an English class for adults in the town. The objectives of the class where quite different from those of the junior high school curriculum, and we tended to focus more on "conversational English" with the expectation that the students wanted to use their language for travel. It was a liberating and refreshing experience to be able to teach the way I wanted without entrance examinations to prepare students for.
In addition to my normal duties at the junior high school, I also taught an English class for adults in the town. The objectives of the class where quite different from those of the junior high school curriculum, and we tended to focus more on "conversational English" with the expectation that the students wanted to use their language for travel. It was a liberating and refreshing experience to be able to teach the way I wanted without entrance examinations to prepare students for.