Life After JET...
Victoria
Yoshimura, former ALT, 1992-1994, now "bo-mori", or spouse of the head
priest, at historic Jodo Shinshu temple in Kyushu.
“I came out on the JET Programme on July 21 1992, and if I
had known I would have that silly form from the airport stapled into my
passport for the rest of my life I would have written it a bit more neatly!
I have lived in Takachiho for all of my Japanese life; this
year is my 20th year. I was one year at Nishi Usuki Education Office, which doesn’t
exist anymore, and then two years at Takachiho Senior High School. My first job
was “one-shotting” at 11 Junior High and one Senior High School. The area I covered was huge mountainous
region. It was before they allowed you to drive to school so I use to spend
most of the day taking buses, trains and taxis, winding along country roads and
spending loads of money on transport, when I was perfectly capable of driving.
Foreigners were still a novelty then and I was the first foreigner many of the
children had ever met.
JET is a wonderful way to explore a foreign country with the
support of a well-established Programme AND a good salary. You are NOT alone,
and after so many years of the Programme I think that problems like the ones I
faced when I first came over are now few and far between. The networking
opportunity is invaluable. Also, the opportunity to learn a language while
earning an income is great.
However, in my second year I had a new school, and the day I
started at Takachiho SHS and my life CHANGED!!!
I was warmly welcomed, they had made business cards with my name and had
them on my desk, the students had written welcome notes and, perhaps the best
memory of all , was that guy sitting at the next desk was a really good-looking
guy... and he was the man who became my husband! He was a fill-in Kokugo
teacher for someone on maternity leave.
He had no responsibilities apart from his teaching so he had time to
show me where to put my shoes, how to use the copier, and so on. He couldn’t speak English, and I had one year
of Japanese, and we both had lots of time on our hands... and one thing lead to
another...
I spent two years at Takachiho SHS and loved it. I loved
teaching at the JHS in my first year too, but it was the "heads up their
own bums" attitude of the office in my first year which nearly killed me.
I love teaching, I love children, I love the vibrant atmosphere of
school......my son now goes to Takachiho SHS and it is great to hang out there
and remember my time there... the place where I met my husband.
Interestingly enough, my husband’s parents also met while
they were teaching at Takachiho SHS.
I am also working as an ALT now, now employed by the town
council (not the prefectural government).
I now have 20 years of teaching experience and I am teaching my original
students children.....some of my own children's classmates’ parents are my
"oshiego" (former students). Some of my best
friends now were my students in those first years in Japan on the JET
programme.
I wouldn’t be in this town; I wouldn’t have met my husband
without the JET programme. Sending young
people off to these communities is a great way to promote international
understanding… through international marriage! There must be thousands of
people who have married "natives", thanks to their JET Programme
experience.
Through JET I realised that I do really like teaching and
have some skills in that area.
I have given talks about Japan in my hometown in the UK. I have done
Skype conferencing with schools in the US, with students who had a study
section on Japan. I would love to do
more work in this area...
As I mentioned before, send all those young people to Japan
and they will never forget their experience.
Some get married, some continue to work in Japan, and they will tell
others about their Japanese experiences, exposing many people to the
"real" Japan is the best way of overcoming stereotypical images and
to enhance understanding.
If I had gone back to the UK after my time on the JET Programme
I think I would be more stressed out, angrier, and a whole lot fatter than I am
now!
Being in Japan forces you to be mellow and to choose your
battles carefully. You can’t run around demanding things and expecting
things... Japan teaches you to control your selfishness and your anger. When I go back to the UK for visits everyone
seems so angry and in a hurry and not caring about each other....of course
living in Japan has all its own problems BUT they get a lot of things RIGHT
with their attitude to public displays of anger and frustration.(i.e., put a
sock in it!)
Being surrounded by people who are smaller and slimmer than
me helps put a curb on my weight! I am
already bigger than everyone, even though I am only 163cms tall and a UK14, so
I try hard not to become too gargantuan! I am sure I would be a ten-ton-Tessie
if I lived in the UK where big is beautiful and women should embrace their
curves (and ignore their insulin levels and BMI)
Thanks to email and Facebook I keep track of many old friends;
I have two or three "close" friends from my own time on JET. I have made so many wonderful friends with
the ALTs who have come AFTER me in this town.....each year I get a year older,
they stay perpetually young, bright and bushy tailed, in their 20s. I welcome them into my home and my family and
the ALTs are in important part of my life even now. ALTs from this town have travelled back to
get married in our temple, I have travelled to their weddings in different
countries. I have welcomed ex-ALTS with
groups of students from their own countries....I have welcomed ALT friends and
relatives......I love being able to help and support ALTs and make their JET
experience as wonderful as possible.
 My original BOE bit the dust three or so years ago.....they
were infamous, so I was not sorry to see the back of that office. There were constant problems with the ALTs
after me too. I am now working at the town hall’s education board and I LOVE
it!! I feel part of the team, I feel that I play a valuable role.....but I am
now of an age that they will actually listen to me and respect my opinion. I think it is very difficult to be respected
and listened to, if you are a young girl in your 20s in Japan. Now I am 42, fluent in Japanese and my
husband also happens to be the Head of Education, (ahem...cough...cough) people
actually take your ideas on board. I am now in charge of several international
events in the town.
I left the UK from the university town, Southampton.....I
have never once been back....I was already three years out of my home town,
Peterborough, so, it is difficult for me to know where I have ties, links,
avenues for establishing relations. I
have close ties with my alma mater, The King's School, Peterborough, I always
try and visit, and I have taken my own children to my school. I think that JET could get the ALTs to promote their own towns in
their JET towns....send ALTs to towns which have sister-city relationships with
their hometowns... Actually, I think this
is a good idea, it would provide a template, or framework from which to branch
out.”
The JET (Japan
Exchange and Teaching) was established in 1987 with the purpose of
increasing mutual understanding between the people of Japan and the people of
other nations. It aims to promote international grass roots links in Japan's
local communities by helping to improve foreign language education and
developing international exchange at a community level.
JET participants are
selected from 38 countries to fill the post of ALT (Assistant Language
Teacher), SEA (Sports Exchange Advisor) or CIR (Coordinators for International
Relations). The ALT and SEA posts are usually based in local schools; the ALTs
provide language instruction (predominantly English) in schools; the SEAs
promote international exchange through sport whilst the CIRs are based in town
or city halls and work in the community on international exchange activities. For information on life as a JET, and for
applying please see HERE Photos
courtesy of TANAKA Juuyoh (middle "Takachiho") and Takasunrise0921
(bottom "Takachiho Gorge). Top photo Miyazaki Prefecture
coastline.
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