Tag - teachers

 
 

TEACHERS

Diane Hawley Nagatomo at her home office in Chiba. Born in the U.K., Diane has called Japan “home” for more than 40 years.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Sep 23, 2023
Diane Hawley Nagatomo: ‘The only way to improve writing is to write’
After retiring from her position as a professor in 2022, Diane Hawley Nagatomo has just released her first novel, “The Butterfly Cafe.”
Masanobu Ogura (center left), then-minister in charge of policies related to children, receives a petition from Hiroki Komazaki (center right), founder of nonprofit organization Florence, in Tokyo on Sept. 1.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Sep 18, 2023
Debate grows in Japan over proposed background checks for teachers
The Children and Families Agency is proposing to make screening for criminal convictions mandatory for people looking to work in schools or nurseries.
Masanobu Ogura (right), minister in charge of policies for children, speaks during a meeting of an experts' panel held Tuesday in Tokyo to discuss a planned system to require people seeking jobs related to children to submit certificates proving that they have no record of sex crimes.
JAPAN
Sep 6, 2023
Planned sex-offense barring system drafted for child-related jobs
The Children and Families Agency plans to submit a bill to establish the system during this autumn's extraordinary Diet session.
A South Korean teacher reacts as others chant slogans during a protest to demand better protection of their rights and to mourn a young teacher found dead in July in an apparent suicide, in Seoul on Monday. The signs read "Vote for an agreement on the protection of teachers' rights."
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 6, 2023
South Korean teachers want an end to parents’ harassment
Teachers say they often face pressure from parents who make excessive or impossible demands of them, including favoritism for their children.
An advisory panel for the education minister has proposed a plan to check classroom hours at all public elementary and junior high schools as part of working style reform for teachers.
JAPAN
Aug 28, 2023
Japan plans to monitor classroom hours to cut burden on teachers
Schools where annual lesson periods significantly exceed the standard under the guidelines should cut the excess from the next fiscal year.
Parents of children who were victims of sex crimes hold a news conference from behind partitions in Tokyo in July 2020.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 22, 2023
Japan to bar sex offenders from work in day nurseries and schools
A system certifying candidates as having no such convictions is being discussed by experts after cases involving sexual abuse by teachers and babysitters.
The government plans to make it mandatory for staff candidates at children's facilities, including those for children with disabilities, to submit a certificate of no sex crime record.
JAPAN
Aug 17, 2023
Japan considers mandatory sex crime record checks by schools
The government plans to include the requirements in a bill it expects to submit to parliament as early as this fall.
Education ministry officials say long working hours is one of the factors behind a rise in the number of teachers quitting their jobs.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 15, 2023
Record number of teachers quit for mental health reasons in 2021
Education ministry officials say long working hours is one of the factors behind the rise.
Junior high school students participate in a community-based club activity without any instructors in Kakegawa, Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Aug 15, 2023
Facing long hours, teacher pushes for data-driven reforms
Given the long working hours for Japan's schoolteachers, one educator from Gifu Prefecture is leading initiatives for teachers’ work-style reforms.
The image of schools as exploitive workplaces where labor regulations are habitually flouted is seen as the biggest factor putting off job applicants for teaching positions.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 14, 2023
Japan panel weighs raising overtime pay for teachers
The government is set to discuss an increase in overtime pay for teachers in a bid to compensate them for long working hours and attract new applicants.
A major bonus of the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme is the time it offers you to be able to plan for long-term goals. Writer Erik M. Jacobs was able to map out what he needed to pursue a career in U.S.-Japan relations, for example.
COMMUNITY / Issues / Learning Curve
Aug 8, 2023
Every situation is different on JET, but they're all similarly rewarding
As a new wave of JET Program participants arrives in the country, a program alumni shares tips on getting the most out of the experience.
The education ministry plans to take steps toward reducing teacher workload, such as by asking schools to cut classroom hours.
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2023
Japan eyes cutting back excess classroom hours
Some schools are also adding support staff for routine tasks or hiring private-sector employees to manage extracurricular activities.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2023
Education ministry alarmed by teachers' long working hours
In the education, science and technology white paper for fiscal 2022, which ended in March this year, the ministry stressed that reducing hours is an urgent task.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 4, 2023
Japan emphasizes students' comprehension of AI in new school guidelines
They also suggest that teachers may need to discard traditional exam and homework methods, such as writing reports, that can be easily done using AI technology.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 28, 2023
Talks begin on measures to bar sex offenders from working with children
Under a proposed system, applicants for jobs at schools and nurseries would be required to submit certificates showing that they have no record of past sex crimes.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 11, 2023
Tokyo teacher sent to prosecutors for murder was likely laden with debt
Kosuke Omoto, 36, allegedly fatally stabbed Masafumi Yamagishi, 63, at the latter's home in Tokyo's Edogawa Ward, apparently to steal valuables.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2023
77% of junior high school teachers exceeded overtime cap in fiscal 2022
In a sign of improvement, however, the data showed that fewer teachers are working 60 hours or more a week, which would put them at greater risk of death by overwork.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Mar 6, 2023
Round 2 at your teaching job: New confidence, new opportunities
We're coming up on a new school year. Aim to improve your language skills and travel the country more with your newfound confidence.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2023
Government to screen Japanese-language schools to ensure quality
New legislation will also require instructors at certified schools to obtain a new national qualification for teaching Japanese.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 8, 2023
Nagasaki prefecture will not appeal damages for sexually harassed U.S. teacher
The victim said she suffered mental anguish due to sexual harassment by a vice principal and an assistant language teacher in separate incidents in 2016 and 2018.

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'