"Black ship benefits" (kurofune koka) accrue to teachers when the AE- Tea (only one cup keeps you up the entire night) awakens you from your peaceful slumber and causes acute anxiety. You begin to wonder whether you should have been using more classroom English and to worry whether the students will respond well to the team-taught class. In a dither, you hasten to make preparations but when the preparations take too much time or the paperwork becomes too much of a bother, you begin to resist and eventually fall into the "expel the foreigner" camp. On the other side, however, is the "open up Japan" camp, which seeks to usher in a new era and thus gives wholehearted approval to the appropriateness of the ALT system. Most teachers, myself included, are probably somewhere in between these two extremes, fumbling along in a trial-and-error mode as we struggle to respond to this new system.
These teachers feel acutely that the JET Program has exacerbated tensions already present between those JTLs wedded to grammar translation and the study of literature in translation and those who see merit in cultivating the ability to communicate orally. If they weigh in too heavily on the side of conversation-oriented language activities, they run the risk of disappointing parents, the homeroom teacher, and the principal. If they opt to teach only in the traditional manner, they may incur the wrath of the ALT.
In their attempts to cope, several different strategies were discernible. Some JTLs attempted to script the entire visit, thereby making the teamtaught classes as predictable as possible. On one-shot visits this meant marking the ALT's shoe box at the entranceway, arranging for the ALT's box lunch well in advance, and typing out a detailed lesson plan. One ALT described this type of JTL as "Mr. Serious" (Majime-Sensei): "He's very thorough, he types everything, it's like a movie script. You're to say, 'Hello everybody! Good morning!' Then the students must ask, 'How are you?' and you have to answer, 'Fine, thank you, and you?' If you say something different, he gets mad at you because you deviated from the script. Then he has you follow the traditional textbook pattern to a T. He doesn't want you wavering from it." JTLs in this category tended to be especially concerned about classroom management and often interpreted virtually everything the ALT said in English on the spot.
Another coping strategy was to view the ALT's visit in very narrow and instrumental terms. For example, he or she could be useful as a walking dictionary for solving complex grammatical problems that occurred on the entrance exams or as a practice partner for JTLs who wanted to improve their spoken or written English. In other instances the ALT could be used by JTLs to show off their competence in English. This could be taken to extremes, as one female ALT made clear: "One reason the other teachers never come over to my desk is because if they do Mr. Yano jumps right in and says, 'Why don't you try to make yourself understood in English?' until finally they slink away. One teacher told me he treats me like a pet, and no one wants to come near me." Sometimes the ALT served as a model of "typical" foreign behavior; in fact, a handful of JTLs told me they preferred ALTs who were stereotypically "American" (Americappoi) or "foreign" and thus more interesting for them and their students. Presumably, such ALTs also provided a clear standard against which these Japanese would define themselves. ALTs often resented such instrumental attitudes, particularly if they were working hard to learn Japanese and to fit into Japanese schools. One complained: "I've heard teachers say, 'We don't need that ALT because he can speak Japanese. We don't need anybody like that.' It just boils down to language. They don't even consider the idea that you might have a different way of looking at things or that you can just discuss things and have different viewpoints. It's completely alien. From their point of view, if you are not learning English from this person, then the ALT has no utility."
When I asked ALTs about the kind of JTL with whom they would most prefer to work, the enthusiasts won in a landslide. The characteristics they stressed as particularly desirable were a willingness to experiment with new pedagogical approaches and a willingness to make mistakes when speaking English.
DIVERSITY AMONG ALTS
ALTs are an extremely varied group, and their responses to the close-knit culture of Japanese schools differ considerably. Working in a system that speaks of a need for conversational English yet maintains a rigid examination structure, that advertises "internationalization" yet sometimes practices it only at arm's length, the JET participants sought strenuously to generate belief systems that made sense of their efforts. Such belief systems, which legitimize responses to a difficult situation, correspond to what Anthony Giddens has called "practical consciousness."" Much like the white teachers in Michelle Fine's study of a predominantly black urban high school in New York City, however, they often developed their belief systems defensively." In addition, these defenses tended to calcify quickly and to shape the ALTs' further perceptions, preventing them from considering any evidence that might contradict their beliefs.
The Aloof
Nine of the sixty-five ALTs whom I interviewed expressed no real interest in learning Japanese language or culture. They were perfectly content to remain outside the reach of the "consensus model of social relations" that operates in Japanese schools and boards of education. Most of them saw their primary role in Japan as modeling foreign behavior and thus they generally ignored Japanese cultural expectations. "If they want someone to act Japanese, it's a bit of a waste of time hiring me!" commented one British ALT. Content to be tourists, these ALTs also have few qualms about exploiting their foreign status to the hilt. "I dress casually all the time, even when I meet Japanese teachers," advised another ALT at the Tokyo orientation. "The rules will bend around you, so take advantage of this. Don't believe you have to conform one hundred percent." One Ministry of Education official recounted, with obvious mirth, how an ALT once visited him in the ministry building (located in the prestigious Kasumigaseki area of Tokyo) wearing a baseball cap, a T-shirt, and shorts!
The Drill Instructor (Homo sapiens scary). Note: Difficult to spot outside of classroom; best observed while teaching. Distinctive call: "My students are so timid." This and the following caricatures are by Darin Price.
The Cynics
A second group of ALTs (fifteen out of the sixty-five) made halfhearted attempts to learn Japanese language and culture but quickly became frustrated and disillusioned. Seeing little evidence at the local levels of Japanese commitment to reform, they tended to withdraw and establish a private counterculture. The perceived inadequacies in the Japanese school system and the JET Program led them to disengage emotionally from the job of teaching; their work obligations became a set of hoops through which they jumped in a perfunctory manner. A British woman, twenty-three, lamented: "I have one school where they just prepare for exams and they don't want to deal with me. I read books, write letters, prepare for my private classes, and do all kinds of things. It's easy work. Silly, but easy. I can easily take it for a year. If they want to pay me 30 man [$2,500] a month to come and do this, sure, I'll do it. But let's not have any illusions about changing the system. If they really want to do something, they should give JTLs a year's leave to study English, and guarantee their pay." These ALTs channeled their energy into other activities, such as tourism or making money through private classes on the side.
Mr. Gaijin (Homo sapiens extreme). Distinctive call: "These Japanese are so -ing rude. All they do is stare."
JTLs were quick to criticize what they perceived as an overly "salaryman-like" approach to the job. They might have used as evidence the exclamation of one ALT: "Stay till five o'clock? Are you kidding? Why stay around just so the kids can stare at us? If there's something special-like the other day the teacher asked me to help the kids who were preparing for the English Recitation Contest-I'll stay, but otherwise I usually go home or back to the office. I'm not gonna hang around just so they can gawk at me." Such attitudes, of course, only fueled the resentment of JTLs, most of whom regularly stay at school until 6:oo P.m. or later. Other cynics lashed out at the system whenever given the chance. Two ALTs in one p
refecture decided to switch schools for an entire day to make the point that they were being used as human tape recorders and thus were simply interchangeable parts.
The Prowler (Homo sapiens lusty). Distinctive call: "Japanese women really turn me on."
Conspiracy theories thrive whenever social strains and stresses arise, and this group of ALTs wasted no time second-guessing Japanese intentions:
In October of my first year I was so unhappy as an ALT that I started looking for another job. I wanted to teach English but I wasn't getting a chance to at my school. In classes I had no real role; when I was asked to do something it was trivial, reading word lists, holding posters for the Japanese teacher. No one was interested in how I thought English should be taught. I was so discouraged I preferred sitting in the staff room to going to class. Occasionally, I had to go. A teacher asked me to help him teach first-year students how to tell time. He gave me a cardboard watch, told me to set the hands and then ask the students what time was showing. This trivial use of my talents seemed the embodiment of everything I hated about my job. I held up the watch and asked "What is this?" I said it sarcastically and meant my job, the school, the town I was living in, the whole ALT experience. Several arms went up and I picked a girl sitting near the front. She stood, and smiling a smile as big as Asia said, "It's a crock, Mr. Hicks." I couldn't have agreed more.14
The Tourist (Homo sapiens burdensome). Distinctive call: "Hi! We met at Tokyo orientation, and I was just in the area, and I wonder ..."
For the cynics, the gap between the public rhetoric of "internationalization" and the realities of public schooling was so huge that the JET Program could only be explained as a concession to foreign pressure. They became convinced that JET participants were invited to Japan strictly as "window dressing."
The Partier (Homo sapiens collegian). Distinctive call: "Thish country iza great playsh."
The Missionaries and the Sensitive Change Agents
The largest group of ALTs (twenty-two of the sixty-five) also perceived inflexibility in the dominant method of teaching English; but unlike the cynics, who tended to withdraw and establish a private culture, these ALTS embraced the larger task of transforming Japanese education and society. This group's belief system was summed up by an American ALT, age twentyfour: "We don't know what the hell we're here for. I haven't got a clue. Clearly, we're not here to teach English. So it must be to help them progress their culture. Recently, there have been two things that might keep Japan from entering the international community-its lack of defense and its own culture. We can't do anything about the first, but we can show them how to think critically. That's what it comes down to. There's no critical thinking. Just follow the pack, the way it's supposed to be done." They often tried to transform English classes into a forum to foster global education and awareness. Another ALT put it this way: "The JET Program can be seen as revolutionary as ALTs attempt to rid the classroom of the stultifying atmosphere in which time is often wasted gathering consensus answers to rudimentary questions. The radical ideas of free speech and individual thought being encouraged in place of a non-critical, passive response to knowledge passed down from on high is a significant change."15
The Activist (Homo sapiens trendy). Distinctive call: "My school is now a smokefree and paper-free zone that observes the sanctity of Mother Earth. I teach a little English, too."
In some cases, ALTs actually instituted special "international understanding classes" (kokusai rikai no jikan) apart from the regular English curriculum; but for others, who encountered cooperative or cowed JTLs, the regular team-taught class provided their opportunity for experimentation. One Canadian ALT in a Tottori-ken high school, for instance, did a series of global education classes designed to point out gross economic inequities around the world. They included a simulation on the cacao trade to show how multinationals and foreign banks create poverty among smallscale farmers in Africa, as well as two classes on human rights. She explained, "I have the students fill in a questionnaire about human rights in Japan. I point out that Japan is the only non-communist country to have ministry-authorized textbooks and I also show them my fingerprints on my Alien Registration Card (yes, according to this card I come from outer space ... )."" The highlight of this class occurred when, in the middle of winter, she posted signs on the two doors of the classroom. Her door, which was near the kerosene heater in the back of the class, said, "Whites Only: No Japanese Allowed," while students entered through a door leading to the colder part of the classroom. That such classes were even permitted testifies to the extraordinary degree of discretion allowed to individual teachers and schools in spite of Ministry of Education guidelines. However, I did hear of several cases in which ALTs were told in no uncertain terms by the principal that classes with an overt political message were inappropriate.
The Overachiever (Homo sapiens excessive). Distinctive call: "Culture shock? Who has time for culture shock?"
To be sure, within this broad group ALTs displayed different levels of cultural sensitivity. At one extreme were those who embraced reform with a self-righteous zeal that was off-putting to all but the most radical JTLs; at the other extreme were "sensitive change agents," who worked within the structural limitations of their position. They were often able to find gratification and meaning in cultivating relationships with a select group of students and teachers, particularly those who were enthusiastic about foreign language learning and who seemed open to learning about the world. This latter approach was one that CLAIR and the Ministry of Education actively supported, and it is no surprise that in 1995 the winning essay of the Third Annual JET Programme Essay Competition took up this topic. In "More Than a Language Teacher," Jeffrey Strain found the lasting significance of the JET Program in ALTs' interactions with students outside the language classroom. He suggested a number of possible activities: joining after-school clubs, participating in other classes and in field excursions, creating other responsibilities at school, writing a monthly newsletter, working where students have access to one, and even wandering around the school asking questions. "Classroom time is now only a small fraction of the time I spend with the students, where in the past it had constituted the majority," he noted. "I currently try to spend a minimum of 5o percent of my time at school in contact with students outside the classroom." 17
The Careerists
Among the ALTs, as among the JTLs, were some who saw the JET Program in narrowly instrumental terms. For them, it was primarily a vehicle for making connections and learning enough about Japanese society to further their own careers. Eleven of my sample fell into this category. While a few seemed preoccupied with finding a Japanese spouse as the first crucial step to his or her "international career," the majority were simply interested in acquiring enough linguistic and cultural competence to make them attractive candidates for jobs in the business sector. These ALTs quickly invested in business cards and were constantly on the lookout for resume-building experiences and good personal contacts. In the early years of the JET Program, when the bubble economy was still growing, the program drew many career-minded college graduates. Some did in fact use their JET experience as a stepping-stone to Japan-related careers in journalism, tourism, government service, and so forth; in rare cases, an ALT would jump ship in April if he or she found a suitable private-sector job. As more and more JET alumni flooded the job market, however, it became clear that the JET experience itself was not guaranteed miraculously to open doors. In the 199os, as Japan has become mired in a recession, fewer participants single-mindedly depend on the JET experience to set them on their careers.
The Yuppie (Homo sapiens money). Distinctive call: "I think that the JET Pro- gram(me) is the ideal stepping-stone for an upwardly mobile career."
The Nipponophiles
Finally, the smallest number of ALTs interviewed (eight) approached the JET Program primarily as a learning experience and saw their time in Japanese schools as a golden opportunity to discover an alternative cultural w
orldview and to expand personal horizons. They took seriously the challenge of learning Japanese language and absorbing the culture, and they tended to be highly critical of the judgmental reactions of their peers. One article in the JET Journal captured the flavor of this approach:
Vocal critics of Japan's seemingly slow internationalization process should maybe conduct a self-cross-examination. Is Kokusaika [internationalization] not a two-way street? I sometimes wonder if all JET participants are as internationalized as they pretend to be. Most of us feel internationalized because we are anglophones, presently living outside our home country dealing with people who lack fluency in English and who have limited experience in overseas travelling. We see the Japanese as the object of our presence in their own country.... However, how many of us can look at ourselves and sincerely assert that we are as internationalized as we want the Japanese to be?
Many of us came to Japan without the faintest knowledge of this country, its customs, language, etc. Many of us only know the basics about our own country, and our knowledge about the outside world is just as scanty as that of the average Japanese. For many of us, landing a job in Japan and being the focus of so much attention instantly inflated our egos which in turn prevents us from remembering that we have been invited as guests-consultants-by this country. Voicing aggressively our opinions, frustrations, discontents and disapproval will only contribute to alienation rather than promote internationalization.18
The Nipponophile (Homo sapiens wanna-be). Distinctive call: "I really feel at home here. The Japanese lifestyle is the best in the world."
Importing Diversity: Inside Japan's JET Program Page 27
