Teaching Abroad in Japan

Teaching English Abroad Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Abstract English is now considered as an international language since the era of globalization. It is of great importance that English be viewed as a window to see the world with different perception not as it been a one region language but as a mode of interaction and exchange of ideas. Asia, been to the areas where English did not emanate, is an area of interest to develop the English language due to their vast wealth of money and resources. Zeroing our interest in Japan, English is a key to connect with the Western modernized technological and scientific advances. This paper will address some issues concerning the situation of teaching English in Japan and how that relates to the outside world. Introduction Since the World War II, mushrooming of the global economy has made English to play a crucial role in the standard language of the globe. In a wider perspective, numerous students are learning English as the most vital foreign language to communicate with the world effectively. Many people in the universe unanimously regard English as the most imperative language for cross-bounder interaction. From the Japanese point of view, English is not a language to communicate only with British or Americans or any natives of English. However, is a common language to interact with Koreans, Chinese, Singaporeans, Thais and other Asians and other developing nations. English has recorded a remarkable history over the past four decades due to its global spread and penetrated through the multicultural and multinational communication. As English Language scale to greater heights, the language is limited to portray a diversion of disparity in cultures. It is a matter of fact that there is no particular language that can be exploited to its fullest by its native speakers; a room for improvement is always there for non-native speakers to utilize it in a more peculiar form of English usage, syntactically, pragmatically, lexically and phonetically. Japan is using the English language not only to know the west but at the same time to make the globe understand Japan into depth. Background information of ELT in Abroad The English language has no dominancy in the land of Japan. On the contrary, English was highly condemned to avoid Western influence ad contamination of Japanese culture. After New Japan was established, Russian became the only foreign language as the campaign against American imperialism was spearheaded. Those changes did not last for long as Japan saw the need of incorporating English as a common language so as to open up opportunities overseas for its citizens (Bay, 2002). English was viewed as a vehicle to alter an average Japanese citizen fate of being limited to their motherland and relate with the whole world. Japan now considers English as a tool for expanding her technology and scientific development to other countries while interacting at a more economic level. Japan has now grown economically, and that is evident by their registration to WTO (the World Trade Organization) and their bid for 2008 Olympic Games. An estimated number of people studying English in Japan are greater than that of native speakers in the world. The idea of teaching English abroad can be a convincing idea for a native speaker, but it is not as easy as it sounds. There are some basic facts that one needs to consider before starting off as an English teacher in a foreign country. First, is the fact that Japan is in huge demand for English teachers (Leitner, G, Azirah, & In 2016). In 2015, Japan needed roughly 100,000 Western English tutors. Many slots are available all over the country, and the demand keeps on rising with time. How long this requirement is going to last is tricky to tell, but it will be a constant demand for the coming years. Most importantly, the pay and conditions are scaling higher throughout Japan as the private sectors, government and parents are willing to pay extra money to see that their children's development in education is up to standard. Secondly, the industry has altered its performance, and there is the need of acquiring a TEFL or TESOL certificate. This was not necessary ten years ago as it is now. Such certification proves that on is competence and committed to performing in their abroad career. Third, racism is still an issue, but the condition is improving (Bland, & Lütge, 2013). Racism is not evident only in the USA, thousands of non-white applicant teachers miss their chances of teaching abroad each year. Things are changing with the uprising of the young generation who are open-minded and bridge the gap of racism. This, however, should not deter one from teaching abroad due to them having a different colour. Fourth, there is the need of one to have a university degree and a valid passport. Over the past years, the ESL industry has been disorganized on issues of credentials and turned out to be chaotic. However, the industry has recently become more regulated in their appointments. It was easier to teach without a degree in the past ten years, but now things have changed, and it is a requirement that one acquires a university degree to become a teacher. In other nations like South Korea, Japan, and Japan, they cannot offer a working visa unless one has a university degree. There is a need to provide a valid passport from South Africa, Canada, the UK, Australia, United States or New Zealand for one to be issued with a working visa. Fifth, Teaching English abroad is not just for recent university graduates. It is hard to kill old images and the notion that teaching abroad is only for fresh graduates from colleges, is far from the truth. The reality is that many individuals who teach abroad for the first time can be in their late 20's, early 30's or even 40's or 50's (Lee, & Moody, 2012). Some individuals take a break from their careers and choose to teach abroad as a way of breaking the monotony and venture into something new for some time. Some may even take decades while teaching abroad. Reasons for Teaching in Tokyo, Japan Japan is a strategically located nation that is rapidly growing econ...