• What would my schedule be?  How many hours a week do I teach?
• What types of classes do you offer?
• What is the usual class size?
• How long is the average commute?
• Do you provide teacher training/orientation?
• What is the suggested attire for class?
• How many hours am I expected to spend preparing for class each week and how is this compensated?
• What resources are available for teachers?
• What are the classrooms like?
• What forms of professional development are available?
• What type of private work space is available?
• Do I have to work weekends?
• I am qualified to teach a language other than English. Do you offer classes in other languages?
• I want to do more translation, interpretation or copy writing. Can that be my full time job?
• What do previous teachers have to say?

What would my schedule be?
    Of course we can't tell you exactly what classes you would have--that will depend on the timing. But we can promise you it would be very varied and challenging, and over your two years, you will have the opportunity to work with students of many different levels and also with different requirements.

    The schedule is not 9 to 5 nor all in one location. The majority of our classes are in the afternoon and evening. The latest class are in the community program at the school in the evenings, and run from 7:45 to 9:15 P.M. Teachers travel to and from corporate seminar sites. We try not schedule a late evening followed by an early morning.

    There is no set weekly requirement for hours that you must teach, but we target 20 hours a week. Teachers usually teach less. We are always trying to get more classes of course, but during slow periods it can get as low as 12 hours a week.   During busy periods it can get as high as 25 hours a week. Overtime is paid for each hour over 80 per month. During December for example, when there is a long holiday, it is conceivable that a teacher could work 25 hours a week and not get overtime pay. This seldom actually happens, however, because December is usually a slow month. Also there is about 10~15 hours of driving per week to and from classes (depending on which classes you get).

    For part-timers, you might register as a substitute teacher and be on call when we need you, or you might work with us for just one or two specific classes. Talk to us about your schedule and your availability and we'll see what we can do together.

    See our sample schedules here for more details.

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What types of classes do you offer?
    For English language students, we have four primary class types at Four Seasons:

    Company Classes are sponsored by corporations (including well-known international companies like Honda and Suzuki, as well as local businesses.) Some of these classes are offered as rewards to employees, like an "after-work" club, and others are required by the management for employees needing to improve English. The students are usually highly motivated.

    Private Classes are for just one or sometimes two individuals interested in intensive English study. Sometimes the class is subsidized by the student's company, but often they are paying their own way. In some cases, a private class might be for a particularly gifted child, or a "returnee"--a student who has spent several years overseas and does not want to lose their language skills after their return to Japan.

    Community Classes are subsidized in part by Four Seasons as part of our community outreach program. We offer several classes a week for housewives or children or other groups in the community who wish to find an affordable way to study a second language. These are often some of the most fun groups we have.

    Children's Classes are also part of Four Season's desire to serve our community. We know that Japanese public schools put tremendous pressure on their students and often teach only reading and writing. We want to give children a change to interact with native speakers in a fun environment with an emphasis on listening and speaking.

     For a full detailed listing of all our class types, and some of the specific seminars we offer, please go here.

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What is the usual class size?
    There are several different kinds of classes, so sizes can range from just one or two people to a group of 30 children. For adults and regular Four Seasons children's classes (again, for full time teachers, as opposed to those assigned full time to a public school), most classes have less then 10 people. See our sample schedules here.

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Do you provide teacher training/orientation?
    Yes we do, and it is compensated at a slightly reduced rate compared to the regular salary.  Training normally lasts two weeks.  As you become more experienced, you may also have the opportunity to be a teacher trainer yourself.


How long is the average commute?
    Tough one! It really does vary for every schedule and every day. We'd say it would range from 15 minutes to 45 minutes on average, but there are a few longer ones and quite a few shorter ones. And it depends if you are coming from the school or your apartment (which are about 15 minutes apart.)

    Hamamatsu, fortunately, does not have the traffic problem that Tokyo or other Japanese cities have. While it can be crowded now and then, particularly on weekends, you rarely, if ever, just sit in traffic.

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What is the suggested attire for class?
    The key word for attire is "professional". The dress code is relatively casual, but we expect that you will always be neat and be aware that you are representing our organization at our Japanese client corporations. You do not need to dress like you are going to work for a bank, but Japan is still a rather formal country when it comes to business attire.

    For men, we recommend light weight short-sleeve white shirts (dress shirts) and slacks for summer and for cooler weather, a nice jacket.  Colored or patterned shirts are fine, you don't always have to be in white. Neck ties are nice, but not required everyday, especially when it's hot.  A suit for the occasional wedding or formal event would also be useful.

    Women are not required to wear a suit and high heels. Slacks or a skirt and blouse are fine. Note, if you wear anything over an American size 7 or 7 1/2 shoe you will have difficulty finding shoes.

    What won't work?  Sorry, no body piercing, T-shirts, Jeans, shorts, flip-flops or tank-tops. (Of course, this all depends on the individual item, some designer T-shirts are elegant and some lip rings beautiful, but generally speaking inappropriate for the Japan context.)    Note: the Japanese culture has a traditional bias against tattoos and if you have a tattoo which will be easily seen even while dressed in a professional manner, please advise. It may need to be covered for some classes.

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How many hours am I expected to spend preparing for class each week and how is this compensated?
    We don't sit over your shoulder counting preparation hours.   Most teachers spend at least half the number of teaching hours in preparation work, but it varies. We do not count or directly compensate for preparation time.  We just want your lessons to be as good as you can make them and this takes time (for conscientious teachers).  Most schedules average about 20 teaching hours a week, and most teachers spend 10-15 hours a week preparing for those classes.

    The only other time requirement is "maintenance" of a class file.  This includes keeping records of lessons and writing up reports, evaluations and giving oral interviews. These duties are all minimal, and are done at the end of contracts (every six months or so).  As far as demands on time goes, traveling to and from classes is what teachers complain about most.

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What resources are available for teachers?
    We have an extensive library (over 700 volumes!) of reference texts, text books, and supplementary materials, plus computers, copy machines, cassette recorders, VCRs (NTSC, not PAL), and most everything teachers needed for a successful teaching/learning experience, even crayons and glue. (Ask around, some other organizations provide nothing in the way of support or materials, and teachers are left on their own to perform miracles.)

    The Four Seasons' library includes The Headway Series, Online, Fluency Squares, Person to Person, English Firsthand, Listen For It, ESL Operations, The Nonstop Discussion Workbook, The Mind's Eye, and Atlas.  Commercially prepared course books such as, The Headway Course and Basics In Business are used for the elementary and intermediate levels of both our General English and English In Business programs.

    For children's classes, we have adopted Take Off With Phonics or Let's Study Phonics for first through third graders, and the Oxford University Press Let's Go series for fourth through sixth and (the first two terms of) seventh graders. Most junior high school classes use English Firsthand Access and Success, while high school classes use Passport, Talk a Lot (three levels) and Marathon Mouth.

    Teachers are also encouraged to supplement texts with materials they develop themselves. In addition, teachers are expected to add to and update course files of supplementary materials.

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What are the classrooms like?
    Our classes are held both in the school building (see pictures) and in our client's offices and even in their homes. The classrooms will be as different as the students.

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What forms of professional development are available?
    You will be teaching students from many backgrounds at many levels of ability and with many different needs. Some will be businessmen needing English for their work internationally. Some will be students looking to supplement their regular public school or college education. Others will be housewives, interested in improving themselves and keeping involved. It will be a constant challenge to meet their varied needs and interests and levels.

    We encourage our teachers to become members of JALT (Japanese Association of Language Teachers) and TESOL (Teachers of English to Students of Other Languages). JALT is a national teachers' organization, with local chapters in many cities, including Hamamatsu. Many of our teachers have found JALT to be an excellent opportunity to get together with other language professionals in the area to share ideas or sometimes even acquire promotional materials.

    And of course Four Seasons strongly encourages the sharing ideas and experiences. Since our staff is international in both outlook and origin, we find we can always learn from each other. We have had teachers from over 20 countries at different points in time, each bringing us their own perspective to teaching and life.

    See comments from FS teachers to see what they gained from the experience.

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What type of private work space is available?
    We have a faculty room where most teachers prefer to work together on their material. If you need privacy, you are always welcomed to a classroom not in use. We do not offer private offices.

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Do I have to work weekends?
    Our schedule is set up so that teachers work 5 days a week, Monday to Friday. We currently pay overtime for the few Saturday classes we have.

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I am qualified to teach a language other than English. Do you offer classes in other languages?
    If you can teach it, we will be happy to offer it. We usually have clients asking for Spanish, French, German, Portuguese and Chinese, but we are pleased to offer other languages as well. If you are qualified to teach several languages, we can almost always find you clients in those other languages as well as English. Be sure to outline your other language skills in your application.

    Some residents of the Hamamatsu area are qualified to teach several languages, but not English. If this is the case, please contact us and we will be happy to see if we can arrange courses in your specific language areas, or register you for translation & interpretation work.

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I want to do more translation, interpretation or copy writing. Can that be my full time job?
    We almost always have some work in these areas, but we do not have any full time staff employed only for these job assignments. We share among those interested and qualified and also hire part-timers who specialize in these skills. We are pleased if you can bring experience or skill to these areas, but we are not hiring full time.

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What do previous teachers have to say?
    "During my two years at FS most of the teachers hired had master's degrees so the level of professionalism was quite high. Because we spent a good amount of time preparing lesson plans in a common room, we became quite a close-knit group, supporting each other socially and professionally. The exchange of ideas and the constant self and peer evaluation kept the teaching fresh and innovative and it was something I sorely missed when I moved on to a university position."
                            --Heidi Gordon, 1983-1985

    "Four Seasons has been a very enjoyable place to work. It's given me a lot of experience to meet many new and interesting people. I've also been able to travel more around the area and learn more about Japan, as well as Japanese language. I have a lot of opportunities to explore Hamamatsu and the surrounding areas and take Japanese classes because I do have some free time. At my previous school, I had no free time, teaching about 40 or more classes a week. The teachers at Four Seasons are well-trained and interesting, not just some college graduates with no interest in English.
    "Also, I think the library at Four Seasons is the best I've seen at any school. We have the opportunity to try or use any book we like, which gives us a lot of freedom to teach in our own style, rather than having to conform to a school's narrow rules that the (often uninformed and money grubbing) owner has set up."
                             --Ryan Solot, 1999-2001

     "Life in Hamamatsu is calm and safe, combining a thriving downtown area with a smallish town feel by Japanese standards.  Much of the crowdedness and bustle of major Japanese cities is missing there. I never lived any other place in Japan, but I met at least five ex-pats that had moved to Hamamatsu because of its great reputation.  The people are unfailingly polite and friendly and the city has enough foreign visitors and residents to mean that while you're still very much a novelty, staring in disbelief is rare. 
      "Working at Four Seasons gave me the chance to teach a variety of different types of classes, which kept me on my toes. I taught in-company business classes, community classes and Junior High.  Four Seasons is a small school with a big heart.  It's like being part of a family, so if you want to work for a massive organization where nobody knows who you are, you won't like it; many of the students have been studying there for over ten years, a testament to the comfortable atmosphere of the place. I loved my time in Japan and miss it very much.  Working there is more than just a job, it's a Japanese experience, so if that's what you want, and you're prepared to work hard, you'll enjoy it."
                             --Russell Turner, Head Teacher, 1999 - 2001

     "I taught at Four Season's for a little over two years.   Working at Four Season's was a rewarding experience.  The office staff is really helpful, the school has a wide variety of teaching materials, the teacher is given a free hand with class content and the other teachers provide friendship, advice and support.  The Four Season's students are enthusiastic, creative and motivated to learn. After a year and a half away from Japan, I still maintain friendships with many of my students."
                             --Jill Doctoroff, 1998-2000

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What would my schedule be?
    This would be up to the client who hired you. In the case of Corporate Liaisons, they normally follow the company's business hours, 9-6, or sometimes longer. Some companies except overtime or comp-time, and others will have some company functions on weekends. It is hard to specify since each corporation has its own culture. We would work to find a match so that both the Liaison and the company have realistic expectations of the working hours and duties.

    For public teachers, you are expected to follow the school's hours, usually 8-4:45, plus attend certain school events and faculty events.