CoMic95TheSavior: biracial

Some of my earliest memories are those of me begging my parents to let me go to school with my older siblings. When I finally started going to school I fell in love with it and I quickly decided from the start of kindergarten that I wanted to become a teacher. Now almost 20 years later that dream has finally come true. I would have never imagined that my passion for educating others would lead me to teaching in another country. The very thought of teaching in Japan would have been comical at best but now it has gone from being a new dream to a new reality.
I love living in Japan and more importantly I love my job as an educator. I also understand that being a teacher requires you to have passion, understanding, and an overall love for children and people in general. Unfortunately despite the low salary that most teachers are paid around the world this doesn't deter bad people from signing up for this profession.
It goes without saying that this post is obviously meant to highlight the cons of international schools in Japan. Of course there are positives and good things about enrolling your child in these schools such as exposing your children to people from around the world that look and speak differently from them but these are things that most people already know about. Instead I want to talk about the dark side of teaching English in Japan.

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Understanding Why Bad Teachers Exist in Japan

Unlike countries such as my home country most of the foreign language teachers are not bilingual, don't have relevant degrees in education, and have practically no teaching experience. These foreigners are only working this job out of convenience as it is the fastest and easiest way to get employed and to make decent money as a non-Japanese citizen. While teaching is a skill that can be learned, passion cannot. It has to come from the heart.
It's no secret that teachers around the world are underpaid but in Japan they're arguably paid even less. Most of the English teacher in Japan come from countries that have higher wages and feel under compensated for their work even if they aren't "well educated" they're still teachers and some of them are really great ones. Naturally when people feel as though they are unappreciated they tend to slack off and not put in a lot of work or effort into their job.
As a result this sadly this creates a bad environment for students and often times results in abuse and negligence towards the students.

My Background & Perspective

I am an American female with a bachelor's degree in education. I am a full-time teacher at an international school and a college student living and working in Japan. I have been living in Japan for a couple of years and I have worked in almost every major city at a variety of schools. Despite my short amount of time teaching as a professional and being in Japan I have seen, read, and heard of some pretty crazy things in the the world of education. Some of my expectations are cultural differences such as my want or "requirement" for well educated staff. Despite my occupation I don't think that I could ever imagine putting my kids in a private international school in Japan because of the lack of structure and security that these schools have in combination with how unprofessional they tend to be.

Why I Won't Put My Kids in a Japanese International School

Please understand that the problem is a combination of unprofessional and unqualified teachers BOTH Japanese and foreign staff alike. This is Japan so even at international schools the majority of the staff is usually Japanese so it is NOT just random white men doing bad things to kids here. However I do personally feel a lot less trusting and uncomfortable leaving my children in the hands of a foreign man who has no qualifications, a sketchy or questionable background, and that was raised "differently" from a Japanese man. Japanese men and women most certainly DO and have abused children and I see it everyday on the news, and even at work whether its neglecting them, being verbally abusive, or giving punishments that don't fit the "crime" so to speak.

1.) The Tuition is Too Expensive

While some schools are affordable most of them can cost anywhere from $800-$2,000 USD depending on the school and it's location. Unless you or your Japanese spouse is rich then this is way too much to pay for just 1 month per a child. On top of that not all of the staff consist of native English speakers and 90% of the staff who are native English speakers aren't American which is the preferred English accent and writing style around the world. This is confusing for children as they're being exposed to different writing and speaking styles. I don't see a point in paying top dollar for random teachers that are also unqualified.

2.) The Teachers Aren't Well Educated

It isn't worth paying hundreds or thousands of dollars a month for your children to attend a school
where the staff has no credentials and are inexperienced with teaching. Of course having credentials don't ensure or guarantee that someone would make a good teacher, but it most certainly does help tremendously. Again if you're paying $800+ dollars a month you'd probably want the teacher to at least actually have a relevant degree and some sort of formal training beyond just a passion for anime and a self-proclaimed admittance to having "yellow fever".
The foreign teachers in Japan is usually helpless without step by step guides and countless outlines. They're either too lazy and ignorant to create a lesson plan or they think that they know what they're doing and end up creating a lesson plan that is way too advanced and lacks structure (doesn't build off of the previous year/semester). Most of the teachers here are living out a fantasy whether it be an obsession for Japanese women or pop culture and have no interest in teaching nor do they have interest in getting a 4 year education and it shows...

3.) The Staff Haven't Been Screened Properly

I would say that it's an accident waiting to happen but unfortunately "accidents" have already occurred. Yes I couldn't believe it either but there are NO background checks or drug tests in Japan. While of course there are exceptions to every rule it simply isn't standard practice here especially not for foreigners. That cute blonde foreigner could be a murderer, drug dealer, or a rapist in their home country as well as in Japan and you'd never know. While I do believe that people can and do change and learn from their mistakes and can heal with time, prayer, and guidance I wouldn't want my kids to be (test dummies) around someone like this especially not unsupervised and in situations where they are alone without cameras, witnesses or Japanese staff. Anything can happen anywhere. Every criminal has to start somewhere. Having a bad past or a good one doesn't make someone incapable of turning into a pedophile or a killer. I believed that these checks and tests should be mandatory. It is extremely dangerous to have grown men working with and caring for children in an environment that isn't being supervised, but rather they (the grown foreign man/woman) are expected to be the supervisor despite having NOT undergone a through interview OR background check and being uneducated.
It's scary seeing just how trusting both the hiring managers and parents are here in Japan. This is not a problem exclusive to foreign men as there are stories of Japanese teachers and parents abusing and raping their own children, but in my opinion I do believe that this is a bigger problem outside of Japan. Being alone with little boys and girls and not being required to past a drug test and background check is a pretty big deal to me and as a parent that cares about their children it should be to you as well.

4.) Abuse & Neglect is Covered Up

Foreign teachers are often times left alone with students and because most of the foreigner living in Japan are men it is the equivalent of hiring a foreign man in America to babysit your children. These teachers have Not undergone any sort of background check so you could easily have a pedophile, child abuser, rapist, or murderer taking care of and teaching your babies English.
The parents usually never get to see or meet the teachers and if they do it's just for a very short orientation. Some schools have weird rules such as students being required to get undressed from the waist down in order to use the bathroom and requiring that teachers enter the stall with students. It's no secret the the overwhelming majority of abuse that takes place is inflicted on children by men. The last thing that any good parent should want is for a strange man with an unknown pass and that is not a professional taking their child to the bathroom alone. Also for someone who is sick just being able to see the genitalia of 1-5 year olds is more than enough for some people. There are no cameras and no rules have been established so for all you know there can be pornographic images and videos of your children on a teachers phone or online and no one would ever know.
Staff at international schools tend to be very stressed out and irritable thus yelling at students for no reason and for small mistakes are rather common as well as punishing children by taking away their food or not replacing food when it's been dropped (accidentally). Of course the parents are never told about these rules and the teachers will lie and say that your child ate all of their food (you're required to write notes and check off these things at some schools) despite half of their lunch being out in the trash can.
When questionable things take place at work most of the staff feel as though they aren't being paid enough to step in and get to the bottom of things and culturally Japanese people don't like to cause a scene or "disturb the peace". They will do anything to avoid having to talk about their feelings or problems so they'd much rather pretend as though they don't see anything wrong or bad.

5.) There's No Protection for The Students

When students do report problems whether it is sexual abuse or a small injury that took place at the playground the staff (both Japanese and foreign) belittles the situation and acts as though it isn't a big deal, they'll attempt to persuade or hush the students into not speaking up about it, or they will convince the student that there was just a misunderstanding. There are usually no cameras or security at schools besides a guard and a camera at the entrance and possibly keypad entry.
Teachers have the freedom to do whatever they want whenever they want to and the neither the staff nor the students are trained on what to say, do or who to tell should something go wrong.
The staff is very insensitive and seem rather annoyed when problems or concerns are brought up by anyone. I have personally comforted students who have fallen and hurt themselves during recess and my coworkers (even the Japanese staff) acted as though I was doing too much and simply ignored their cries slapped a bandaid on and said "Oh you'll be okay!". I understand that you're not required to do this but as a woman who doesn't have her own children but plans to someday I always hold, hug, comfort, and give a bandaid if a small child injures themselves. The playgrounds in Japan are pure concrete so when kids do injury themselves it's usually a very deep and bloody scraped knee or elbow. I'd be angry if I were a parent and saw that my kids teacher did show any empathy for my kid and acted annoyed at them for being in pain. Kids make mistakes and they're weaker both physically and mentally (they're sensitive) so while of course it isn't necessary to do all of this for an older child I think it is necessary for a 3 or 4 year old. The scary thing is that the Japanese staff that acted annoyed by me "overreacting" to this they are mothers themselves! I can't imagine what they treat their own kids like.
The bigger problem is that even the school owners and principal don't care because they're greedy and just want money. This is why they don't care about the qualifications of the staff because they don't expect them to learn anything they just want cute and fun teachers to make the parents happy and thus attract more students to help bring in more yen. International Schools are just a business. They don't care about your kids education or their wellbeing.

6.) You Kids Won't Really Learn English

Most schools have a fake curriculum that's simply put in place to please the parents but the books are almost never used or they're simply there as an outline for backup incase an inexperienced or lazy but cute teacher is hired so that they have something to look at for advice. Parents think that their kid is learning because they've been taught basic commands, sight words, learned how to read books based on memory, and can sing a few English songs.
The work is way too advanced for students to understand and the school day is mostly recess, snack, nap time, and endless games in English. This is great for a parent to teach their kids at home in America but not for a Japanese person who wants to have a bilingual child in the future. Without a set curriculum that is age appropriate and that builds off of the previous semester or school year their child will never learn English.
There is too much of a focus on crating an "English environment" and not enough focus on actual learning. When schools do actually try to have the students learning they seem to rush everything to make the parents happy and skip over preschool-2nd grade and just right into 3rd-6th grade work. Journal activities, rhythm counting, chemistry, and 2nd grade math are all common lessons taught to 3-6 year olds at international schools.
There is a huge focus on using simple sentences rather than grammatically correct ones. It is very common for both the Japanese and foreign staff to teach kids improper (Japanglish) and weird English just because it is easier to remember.

7.) It Isolates Biracial Japanese Students

While biracial kids aren't usually treated badly by their peers in preschool or kindergarten (depedning on their appearance of course) mixed children in Japan (coined as Haafu) are already going to have to face discrimination and various social problems throughout their life especially if they are not seen as attractive. Going to a school that is predominantly in English will inevitably cause them to have an accent when speaking Japanese and it usually somewhat hinders their Japanese speaking ability. Most Japanese people already have a lot of (sometimes) innocent but ignorant beliefs about mixed kids such as the belief that they can't speak Japanese or that they don't understand Japanese culture. I think that it is best that mixed children at least grow up going to the same school, wearing the same clothes, and speaking the same language as "normal" Japanese children to avoid bullying in the future. The quality of education is significantly lesser at most international schools due to their hiring process so to me there are no pros besides the ease of being able to communicate with the teachers when picking up your children from school or daycare which in my opinion is selfish and lazy. As a foreign parent with mixed kids you should be studying Japanese and trying to become fluent. You are living in Japan after all!
While I do think that English is VERY important for every Japanese child to learn as it is needed for college, business, and work in Japan, I don't see a point in paying thousands of dollars for this when you as a parents can teach your child through homeschooling and learning materials during the weekend and evenings. Private English lessons for 1 hour are a better alternative for mixed kids here as it is more concentrated and better structured in most circumstances.
My point is that putting biracial children into international schools isn't really protecting them from being bullied rather it is weakening their Japanese ability, straightening their English, and feeding into the stereotype that they're not Japanese enough to go to a normal school and must rely on English. It's easy not to care as a parent and to give the whole chin up speech to your babies, but accents are hard to unlearn and kids only go through elementary school school once. I wouldn't want to send my kids to a dysfunctional school, with unqualified teachers, and purposefully set them up for being bullied and teased. While they can't help the way that they look as a parent I have the ability to help them develop good Japanese skills and cultural knowledge. I noticed that most of the adults that I have met who are half-Japanese had thick accents despite speaking Japanese at a native level and they even had a tendency to do "gaijin like" things unconsciously. I don't want my kids to be like this and will try my best to prevent that from happening.

Additional Articles About Child Abuse in Japan

To keep buy posts balanced and to support my claims I wanted to add some additional materials from The Japan Times which is an English online newspaper (they sell some paper at select convenience stores too). Once again I know that bad things happen everywhere, but I wanted to bring attention to a huge problem that no one seems to talk about here. IN America when these things happen it makes headlines and people get arrested and lose their license. In Japan teachers just go on leave or switch to a different school. Parents are given back their children and the police and Japan's version of CPS does practically nothing to help children unless they have video footage and can see physical scars from the abuse.

Japanese Father Rapes & Kills His Daughter Who Sought Out Help From Her School

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/04/08/national/crime-legal/nagoya-judge-clears-father-sexual-assault-saying-court-cant-prove-daughter-incapable-resisting/#.XO-gEC2B3aY

Foreign Teacher Abuses Children (Caught on Camera)

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/05/15/national/canadian-day-care-worker-kitakyushu-reported-abusing-children-video-shows-man-slapping-2-year-old/#.XO-hLi2B3aY

Japanese Teacher Secretly Records Pornographic Child Videos at a Public School

https://japantoday.com/category/crime/teacher-arrested-for-taking-photos-of-girls-in-toilet

As always somethings are out of our control. We cannot stop every bad thing from happening to our kids or ourselves. We cannot predict the future, but what we can do is try our best as parents and as teachers to provide a good and safe environment for our students. Overall in my opinion there are very few pros to enrolling your children in a typical international school.

Thank you so much for reading! Have you ever worked at an international school in Japan? What was your experience like? Have you ever experience any stranger or bad things? Did you suspect or see any cases of child abuse or neglect? Do you disagree with my take on international schools in Japan? Please leave a comment and share your opinion.

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