A Day in the Life

Floyd Kermode

ESL Teacher

July 2005

Q. First of all, can you give us a brief description of your main area of employment and how you got into this field?
I teach ESL in universities, conversation schools and at a business conversation school. I got into this field by doing a Cambridge/RSA certificate in Australia with the aim of living somewhere in Asia and teaching there.

After I came to Japan, I worked for conversation schools (eikaiwa) and did an MA by correspondence. I got into university teaching via a friend at a university (all my university work has come from knowing someone, although I know it's possible to get it by answering an ad in the paper).

Q. What kind of people do you work with?
I work with English teachers from Australia, Canada, the UK and the U.S, as well as with Japanese English teachers. Some of the people I work with are intensely focussed on their academic work and view teaching as a way of supporting it, others are more focussed on teaching. In the eikaiwas there are more people who are in the job as a way of making money and staying in Japan, which isn't to say that they do a bad job.

Q. What would you say are the main requirements to succeed in this field?
A capacity for caring about the students, an ability to improvise, and confidence.

Q. Do you see yourself staying in this field or perhaps making a move in the future?
I think I'll always be in teaching in one way or another, as it's a passion with me, something I really enjoy doing. I'd like to move back to Australia sometime in the future, principally because I'd like to bring my young son up there (he's five).

I'd like to move into high school English teaching or possibly adult training in future. I used to work as an adult trainer at a trade union in Australia, teaching Negotation Skills and that kind of thing. If I didn't contintue with English, that's my other favourite job, so I might parlay that experience into running short courses for companies.

Q. Describe a typical working day.
My day starts early. I get up at about 5am. I have a coffee, do a little email and some study (I'm doing a distance course to qualify for High School teaching) as well as a little writing. After an hour or so, I prepare for my classes. I check my notes for the last class, which usually include some kind of instruction for the next class. These notes, jotted in the final minutes of the class, range from 'do more work on adverbs', 'projects not finished yet' to instructions for the tone of the class, such as "don't do too much". I map out a brief plan for each class and make a note of what I'll need to copy or bring along. I pack my books and get to work. I usually work at two places in a day, so my rucksack is pretty heavy.

At work, I have a green tea, sign on (so I'm officially there) and do my photocopying. If I'm using a machine (video, cd player or so on), I get into the classroom early and make sure it's working. My uni classes are fifteen students at one place, fifty at another, so there's a big difference there - the smaller classes are a lot chattier and more personal. The larger classes require more organisation as far as group work and timing goes.

I have lunch in front of the computer - checking emails and catching up with newspapers. I used to use the cafe at the university, but the queueing drove me mad, so now I get something in a convenience store before work.

After my first job finishes I have a longish train trip to the next job. If I have time, I go to the gym. My evening classes are either business or eikaiwa, which require a lot less energy than the university classes! I just have to check my notes, which are on a form provided by the school, see where I'm up to in the textbook the school dictates and decide whether to include anything else for variety. With the uni classes, what we study is almost completely up to me, although one place stipulates a textbook I must use at least for homework.

I often get home late, after 9.00 pm. If I'm lucky, I get home in time to give my son his bath, one of my treats.

The object of this interview series is to capture a typical day in the life of people working in various English teaching-related fields. This includes teachers of students at all levels, school owners, publishers and so on. It is hoped that this will give interesting and useful insight into the various aspects of ELT for those who may be thinking of getting into teaching or making a career move within the field.

If you think others would be interested in your job situation, please .

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