And teachers...
Most of your time as an ALT will be spent in the Teacher's office. The
teachers
have all their desks in one office, so they have someplace to hide from the kids
between
classes. This is where the fun really starts. Its like one big coffee
break.
Really. The trick is just
persuading someone else to keep you company...
Try making a pot of tea or coffee. Its hard for
teachers to resist the aroma of caffeine.
This will become a familiar scene. Its how the
male
teachers spend a lot of their time. Actually, its how a lot of male Japanese
spend
their time. Women don't get to smoke in school. Some schools actually have a
rule about this, though the females will probably act as though they really enjoy
going all day
without a cigarette fix. Try asking them about this. They love
when
foreigners challenge the system.
Some schools are lucky enough to have couches in
their
break rooms. Its a nice comfortable variation for your bum, and if
you bring some
papers or a
book, it actually looks like your working.
This is me with the school dentist. hehe. NO,
not really.
Many of the teachers do get to wear these fancy lab coats all day, though. I bet
if you asked, you
could get one for yourself. You could pretend you're a real dentist,
instead of someone who just feels like they're pulling teeth. There may be
some
initiation right involved though. I'm kind of dressed up
here, since it was my last
day and I had to make a speech where everyone cried.
This
is the Vice-principal, whose desk is always at
the head of the office. I was lucky enough to have my desk right across from
his.
(The one with the flowers from my wonderful students on it.) My desk used to be
on the other
end of the room,
making it much easier to sneak in late without anyone
noticing. The board
behind the desks is where they post the daily schedule and any
announcements or changes.
Its written in Korean or something though, so you
probably won't be able to read it.
You may be operating under the assumption that
Japanese people
are anal and neat. Hahaha!! Most teachers have built themselves
a
paper fortress around
their desks, which also spills over to the floor and neighboring
shelves.
I recommend building your own. Its fun, and can keep you busy.
Plus,
if no one can actually see you when your at your desk, they won't be able
to see if your sleeping or reading those dirty manga....I mean..nature magazines....
Really though, teachers love to peak over at you and see
what your doing, or
ask you what your doing. Or maybe my teachers just ask out
of surprise
at
seeing me doing real work. This can be a little annoying though when
you're
writing lessons
or making games for your after school, under the table, private
tutoring
lessons. Not that I
would do that. But if you build your own impenetrable
wall of useless
files and books and
papers, you can operate under the illusion of privacy.
This is my friend Rumiko, she's an office
worker.
Sometimes we like to dress up. Hurrah! for social studies
teachers and funny props!