Eikaiwas differ drastically in size and scope, from large company owned businesses to smaller mom and pop schools. Class sizes can also range from one on one to dozens of students, you may be teaching young children or elderly couples; everyone will have a different reason for wanting to learn English, so you will have to alter your teaching style accordingly.

The biggest perk to working at an Eikaiwa is that the students have taken it upon themselves to enroll and therefore they take learning English far more seriously. If you want to teach and see your students become more fleunt an Eikaiwa is a great environment to nurture their curiosity.

There are plenty of Eikaiwa jobs in the GaijinPot Job System, upload your resume to start your career

Although there is a plethora of Eikaiwas, you could split them into two broad groups; those that have you working out of one specific location and those that send you to a variety of offices, schools and perhaps even residences. Although not strictly true, if you are sent to multiple destinations, you will more than likely be given assignments with a short contract, averaging around 9 weeks, but perhaps lasting far longer.

The majority of these contracts would be for companies hoping to improve the English skills of their staff, and your short program will likely end in each student giving a very short and simple speech to showcase what they have learnt.

For these assignments you obviously have to take all of the materials needed for the lesson with you, although CD players are almost always provided. If you are based in one location, you will obviously have all your materials to hand, but keeping the room organized will be your responsibility, so be sure to keep everything neat and tidy.

At most Eikaiwas you will be teaching approximately 5 or 6 hours teaching per day. You can expect two days off per week, although your working week may not include the standard weekends, as a large number of English Conversation Schools give their teachers Sundays and Mondays off. You may also get a week’s vacation during the Obon period (August) a week for New Year’s celebrations and another couple of days in the Spring as well.

Working at an English conversation school is also a great opportunity for you to flex your teaching skills, as some students will truly appreciate your creativity in the classroom, whilst others will want to know the finer points of the English language and may ask questions less dedicated teachers would struggle to answer.

If you are up for the challenge then get started by filling out your resume in the GaijinPot Job System.