“And the strangest things seem suddenly routine.”
– Hedwig, Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)
One thing I found really interesting before I arrived – and something that wasn’t really covered in training – was the average daily routine of an ALT.
Being in Japan is of course wonderful and at first everything is exciting and new – but not everyday involves eating at crazy cafes, visiting shrines and shopping for otaku goods.
What about the actual day-to-day life of living and working here?
Of course this varies for everyone.
One of my fellow ALTs has at least five classes every day, sometimes six. Another has one day every week where she has no classes at all.
But for me personally: I always have four classes a day at my elementary school, and around 3-4 at my junior high school.
✩ Some key phrases: ✩
♡ ALT – Assistant Language Teacher. My role in the school as a native English speaker to assist with and teach English lessons.
♡ JTE – Japanese teachers of English. English teachers at junior high/high schools with a high level of English, who also teach classes when I’m not there. They mostly focus on grammar, vocabulary, reading and writing when teaching by themselves, and speaking and listening activities with the ALT. For liability reasons, a JTE must stay in the class with the ALT at all times.
♡ Homeroom teacher – A Japanese teacher in elementary school who is responsible for one class and teaches every subject. (Similar to primary school teachers in the UK). They tend to have a low level of English and expect me to lead the class and prepare all activities. They tend to not have English classes until I’m available, however this is changing with new government guidelines. For liability reasons, a homeroom teacher must stay in the class with the ALT at all times.
♡ T1 – The teacher who leads the class.
♡ T2 – The teacher who assists the class. Changes in government guidelines mean this should always be the ALT’s role, however this tends not to be the case.
♡ Tantou – A Japanese teacher who is responsible for me at the school. They have a high level of English and so they prepare my schedule and lessons and work closely with my company. They tend to prefer leading the class.
(I have a Tantou at my elementary school and another at my junior high school. They are both very sweet and approachable. If I have any ideas for activities outside the classroom, they are my first point of contact and usually very enthusiastic.)
So again, this is just an example:
✩ Elementary School: ✩
♥ 06:00 Wake up. (I’m terrible and skip breakfast in lieu of an extra half an hour in bed), drink a cup of tea, get ready. (Bag is packed from the night before)
♥ 06:55 Stop at konbini for coffee, walk to the bus stop and catch the bus to school.
♥ 07:45 Arrive at school, go to my desk in the teacher’s lounge, chat to my Tantou if she’s around, unpack my bag, plug in my laptop, drink my coffee.
♥ 08:10 Shift begins. Go over my lesson plans and materials. I teach the entire grade over one day, so technically I only have to plan one class then repeat it three times!
♥ 08:25-09:10 First period. I tend to have this free so just continue reviewing the upcoming lessons for the day.
♥ 09:20-10:0 Second period – teaching time.
♥ 10:25-11:10 Third period – teaching time.
♥ 11:20-12:05 Fourth period – teaching time.
♥ 12:10-12:45 Lunchtime. Collect my lunch from the teacher’s lounge and take it to a classroom to eat with the students and homeroom teacher.
♥ 12:50-13:40 Recess.
♥ 13:40-14:25 Fifth period – teaching time.
♥ 14:35-15:10 Sixth period. 99% of the time I have this free. I tend to use this time making materials and lesson plans for my junior high school.
♥ 15:10-15:50 Students leave for the day or have after-school club. The staffroom atmosphere gets more relaxed.
♥ 15:50-16:10 Tantou comes to chat. She’s young and really friendly (we frequently hang out outside work now!) so we break open some snacks and plan the next day’s lessons. She checks I have all the materials, adjust the lessons if needed and I go over what I’d like the homeroom teachers to contribute.
(NOTE: She’ll then go over this with them at a staff meeting after I go home. When all is done, she’ll send the lesson plans to my company to approve and translate, who will then forward it back to me.)
♥ 16:10 End of shift. I say お先に 失礼します (“Excuse me for leaving before you”) to the teachers, bow at the door and leave.
♥ 16:20 Catch the bus home.
♥ 16:45 Stop at grocery store, drugstore, Daiso etc. if necessary.
♥ 17:30 Home and relax for the evening.
♥ 22:30 Bedtime.
✩ Junior High School: ✩
My routine begins and ends the same as my elementary school.
♥ 06:00 Wake up. (Again, I’m terrible and skip breakfast in lieu of an extra half an hour in bed), drink tea, get ready. (Bag is packed from the night before)
♥ 06:55 Stop at konbini for coffee, walk to the bus stop and catch the bus to school.
♥ 07:45 Arrive at school, go to my desk in the teacher’s lounge, briefly chat to my JTE deskmate, unpack my bag, turn on my school laptop, drink my coffee.
♥ 08:10 Shift begins. The students go to their homerooms where they listen to any announcements, changes to their schedules etc. I go over my lesson plans and materials. I have a class straight away, and it’s second grade where my JTE likes me to lead so I must be prepared.
♥ 08:35-09:25 First period teaching second grade.
♥ 09:35-10:25 Second period with the second graders, teaching the same lesson as at first period.
♥ 10:35-11:25 Free period.
♥ 11:35-12:25 Fourth period with third graders. This JTE also likes me to lead, so must be prepared and organised.
♥ 12:25-13:15 Lunchtime. I eat in the teachers’ lounge.
♥ 13:20-14:10 Fifth period with first graders and my Tanto JTE who likes to lead the class. However usually I will have helped create warmers, activities and/or worksheets, so I make sure these are ready. Otherwise, I make sure I’m present in the lesson and assisting when asked.
♥ 14:20-15:10 Sixth period, 99% of the time I have this free. I tend to plan materials and lessons for my elementary school during this time.
♥ 15:10-16:10 Students leave for the day or have after-school club. I use this time to visit the school clubs, work on materials or my English board. I try to catch my JTEs to go over lessons, but usually they are very busy and it’s difficult to make time but we try our best. Again, the teacher’s lounge is a lot more relaxed – the vice-principal and head teacher at this school are particularly funny and nice, and have everyone laughing.
♥16:10 End of shift. Say お先に 失礼します (“Excuse me for leaving before you”) to the teachers, bow at the door and leave.
♥ 16:20 Catch the bus home.
♥ 16:45 Stop at grocery store, drugstore, Daiso etc. if necessary.
♥ 17:30 Home and relax for the evening.
♥ 22:30 Bedtime.
And that’s pretty much it for a weekday.
Sometimes I’ll meet a friend after work but we do tend to get together at weekends.
You’ll also notice I don’t really plan any lessons or materials at home.
Down time at home relaxing is especially important to me with a chronic illness, so I make sure to use my free time at the schools wisely.
Of course this won’t always be possible, but it’s something I really do recommend whenever you can.
Personally, I’m a lot more tired after a day at my elementary school as I have more classes (which I always lead) plus your energy has to be up to eleven every single class to keep the kids engaged.
At my junior high school I have more chance of free periods, and although you are of course still expected to be a nice genki gaijin, you don’t need to bounce off the walls quite so much.
If you are an aspiring ALT and have any more questions, please just leave them below!
– Carla
The Geordie Gaijin 