JET Programme: Experiences
The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme application window is open from late September/early October to November every year. Please check the website for more details on this year's application period. Below you can read about former JET Elizabeth Wilder-san’s experiences as an ALT/CIR in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture.
Elizabeth Wilder
ALT, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, 2018 - 2021
As a child, I was drawn to Japanese language and culture and knew that I wanted to live there one day. I studied French and Japanese at the University of Leeds from 2014-2018, and had the opportunity to live in Japan in 2016 on my year abroad. I studied at Nanzan University in Nagoya, Aichi prefecture, and took classes in tea ceremony, ikebana flower arranging, hanga woodblock printing, and calligraphy. However, I felt my time in Japan was too short and that I had only just touched on the surface of what living there is like. On my year abroad, my friends told me about their dreams and some of them wanted to apply for the JET Programme. I had heard of it before from my teachers at university, and I knew then that it would become my goal. Since I already had a love of languages and teaching others, I knew that teaching Japanese children about life in the UK and other countries would be an amazing experience and open up a whole new world to them and myself!
In 2018, I started my journey on the JET Programme in Sendai, Miyagi prefecture. I was excited to be able to go to an area of Japan I had never visited before, but also slightly anxious about earthquakes after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami hit Miyagi prefecture and thousands of people lost their lives. The magnitude of this disaster was difficult for me to grasp, and it still is. Seeing the recovery efforts and the natural beauty that spreads all throughout Miyagi was truly moving during my time there and I will never forget the warmth with which they welcomed me. Whilst there were several large earthquakes whilst I was there – but not on the scale of the 2011 one – the people of Sendai were quick to act and make sure everyone was safe, which was a great comfort.
Miyagi’s beautiful landscape provided me with many special memories, and I will always cherish my experience there as an ALT. From the autumn leaves that covered the mountainsides in Naruko onsen hot spring village to the snow covered treetops at Eboshi ski resort, Miyagi has a lot to offer. Miyagi is perfect for trying out a number of different traditional activities, sports and martial arts. In my free time, I was able to try paddle boarding, snowboarding, skiing, kyudo, and tea ceremony. After school was finished, I enjoyed chatting and laughing with the students through club activities such as tennis, volleyball, kendo, baseball, and in particular the art club where we worked on creative projects and drew together. Creating a huge autumn tree out of colour paper with them after school is still to this day one of my best memories of my time as an ALT. When I left, they gave me some cute drawings I still have and cherish to this day.
As an ALT, I worked at several primary and junior high schools across Sendai city. My duties varied depending on the school, teacher and class, and I made a number of enjoyable activities for the students and acted as an assistant. Some of these included hilariously chaotic quiz games where the kids worked in teams and answered different English language and cultural questions! I laughed so much during my lessons with them and think back to those times fondly. Sometimes I was asked to prepare a lesson last minute or to lead a class (though this usually only happened at primary schools), and this could get quite stressful at times. Despite the sudden stress of these moments, I was able to improve my teaching style and create a good rapport with the teachers and students over time. Every year around January time, Sendai city would hold a conference where ALTs and JTEs come together to learn about team teaching and the different English language activities that can be used in the classroom. This was inevitably impacted by covid-19, with the conference in my last year being held virtually. However, this was a great time for us all to come together and share our English teaching experiences.
Covid-19 hit in my second year in Sendai, which meant that I was unfortunately unable to spend as much time with the students as I would have liked during my second and final year at my first school. Goodbye parties, graduating students’ farewell assemblies, and so many school events were cancelled. I could no longer attend Kyudo sessions at the local gym, and sadly did not get to do it again before I left Japan.
It was a difficult time, and I spent a lot of time at my desk! However, with new covid-19 measures in place, we were excited to welcome students back to school but also aware of the change in dynamic and atmosphere. It was a struggle, but over the course of the next year it got a little easier. It was hard being away from family and seeing the lockdowns across the world.
Things did get better though. I actually felt like it brought us all closer together, since I had more time to chat with staff and made time for evening video chats with friends and family. I was able to take up snowboarding during my final two years, an outdoor sport where I could enjoy the beautiful winter of Miyagi and Zao Onsen ski resort in neighbouring Yamagata prefecture. Students were excited to be back and we were excited to have them! I miss my life there and it was a wonderfully unique time of my life. Though it had its ups and downs, I fully believe my experience as an ALT there will be like nothing else I will experience in life, and I’d love to go back one day. I hope my students, staff and schools are all doing well!
