What is the best way to teach English in Japan?
Of the four areas of English; 1. Hearing, 2. Speaking, 3. Reading and 4. Writing, an English teacher
should focus on the hearing and speaking areas almost exclusively. (Japanese have had enough experience with copying and translating
english words and sentences.)
* I try not to bring any written material to class. Written English only slows down the conversations.
How can I get the students interested in speaking English?
1. I ask them for THEIR topics. And, 2. I ask them questions about each topic.
(At first, you need to ask a lot of questions so that they can get used to the questioning process. Conversation
is Questioning and Answering. Without questions, there is no conversation.)
What should I have as a backup if things grow stale?
1. Bring along a lot of PICTURES of current events, topics of your own interest, and topics of what you
think your students might be interested in. (I try to keep the topics on the lighter side. When things grow stagnated, I just
move on to the next picture.)
What is the most important thing when it comes to teaching English in Japan?
1. I think it is important to enjoy yourself. If you are truly having fun, THEY will have fun.
And, that makes for better learning.
Note: I know that Japanese need to increase their reading and comprehension speeds. But, unless you can
get them interested in reading English, they just won't read. (not even your textbook... I don't use a textbook.)
As for writing, I encourage them to write every day. I even give some students a notebook. I
promise not to read their notebooks, but I mention that I would like to glance through it in order to check if they have been
writing EVERY DAY. It's probably a good idea to ask them to write about their life. I also mention that they should
not edit their notebooks. (That's when they will throw away their notebooks.) But, by simply writing every day, they
will greatly improve their writing skills.
