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All About Teaching English in Japan Part Two: First Moves
I assume you have read part one of this series, “The Decision”, and have decided you want to come to Japan to teach English. Now you have to start to take action. What are your first moves?
Preparation
First, save money to bring with you, the more the better. Second, learn a little Japanese. You don’t actually need any Japanese to come to teach English but even a little Japanese can make your daily life much easier. Get a teaching qualification. Again this is not neccessary but it can make your life easier. There are many short TEFL courses available around the world. The gold standard is the CELTA. Do a little volunteer teaching. It helps to have been in front of students at least a few times before you land in Japan. Participate in a language exchange with local international students or volunteer to teach immigrants at a community center. Research. If you have time, research things you want to do and where you might want to live. You may have some choice where to go but that doesn’t help if you don’t have any knowledge of Japan. Wind up life in your home country. You are going to have to tie up loose ends before you leave so start now rather than be in a rush just before you go or worse yet, leave unfinished business behind.
