One of the biggest differences between teaching through the JET program, and teaching through a privately contracted eikaiwa (English conversation school) or otherwise privately contracted teaching position is that team teaching is an absolute must. Team teaching is where two or more instructors teach a class together. In my case, this is the English teacher (who is Japanese) at the middle schools, the homeroom teachers at the elementary schools, and the special education teachers. Each teacher can choose how they want to lead the class and how they want to utilize me. Some JETs are used as human tape recorders where they only repeat things in English for a native pronunciation, while others are the lead teachers in their classes, to everything in between. In my case, I have a happy medium, but I don’t have much say in what happens in class in every situation since each teacher I work with is different and has their own approaches to English class.
By far, the most frustrating situation that I have to deal with is the special education teacher at my middle school. I’m not sure if he dislikes me, or if he dislikes English, but he often cancels class the day of. He’ll just tell me “oh, we’re not doing English today. We’re doing something else” and then I’ll be dismissed essentially. I don’t dislike the extra time to do prep for other classes/schools, but I don’t like the idea that those kids are never getting any English class or practice in. It’s an important subject in the schooling system, as all subjects are, and without it, high school will be a challenge for them. In Japan, high school isn’t compulsory, so I’m wondering if these kids just don’t plan on going to high school and that’s why English is brushed aside so frequently.
That aside, one of the most interesting aspects of team teaching are teaching roles. Even though one teacher may be designated as the main teacher and the other as an assistant (in middle school, the ALT is generally the assistant while in elementary school they may be the main teacher), there are times where the roles may suddenly reverse in the class depending on what is necessary for the activity or subject at hand. In my case, I have wonderful middle school JTEs, and the homeroom teachers at the elementary schools prefer to be the main teacher so long as we are following the text book. In my experience thus far, I become the main teacher as soon as we finish the text book material. So far, that just means reviewing the material we’ve learned and preparing the kids in any way possible for their first year of middle school when English becomes a fulltime subject. Elementary school classes revolve around learning the material and reviewing the material through games. It’s the best way to encourage the kids to learn the material because, if they don’t, they can’t win the game!
Another thing that can happen in a class is that an activity may tank, or may take less time than originally planned. Reasons for activities failing range from the difficulty being too high or too low for the students in the class, the rules being confusing and difficult to follow, or the activity being less interesting than anticipated, among other issues. In the case that this happens, it may be necessary to adjust an activity on the spot or to create a new activity. This can be hard for ALTs and for JTEs, but it’s important to support your teaching partner in this case. In my experience, I’ve had to change my JTEs activity on the spot when the students were confused, bored, or otherwise uninterested in the activity. In those cases, quick thinking and an arsenal of backup activities are almost necessary. Without it, you could have a lull in the class which is one of the most nerve-wracking things in my personal opinion. Having students stare at you in anticipation is just not ideal. So far I’ve avoided that as much as possible!
But, the most important thing in team teaching is communication! It’s best to try and meet with your teaching partner every once in a while to discuss what you will do for the next lesson, or how the previous lesson went. Many teachers are quite busy and therefore prefer to briefly discuss things in the few minutes before or after class. In those cases, concise and prepared feedback is of the utmost importance. While you may want more time to discuss things with them, that may just not be possible and it’s important to work with each other in these aspects and cases as well. I’ve learned a lot about productive team work and am grateful for the teachers that I have the privilege of working with.
Until next time!! xx
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