Tag: education

Working as an ALT

A couple of days before the students would return to school after the end of their summer break–and I would start working as an ALT—I purchased a really cheap notepad at Second Street. It’s a chain thrift-store spread across Japan that really puts American thriftstores like Goodwill and the Salvation Army to a level below in terms of cleanliness, organization, and the wide arrange of items they sell. I have brought that notepad to all three schools whenever I work. It’s purpose was to take notes usually at the end of the work day. After teaching anywhere between four to six classes on average, and being in a totally new cultural and working environment, I had lots to say. The typical 5×5 inches really made me selective with what to jot down. Each page or each note was for that day so I tried to write with intention. Here are some examples:

9/3/25

• six classes
• students asked so many questions
• day goes by faster

9/29/25

• 3rd floor
• no breaks in between first and fourth class

I find the notes on September 11th the most interesting, however. And that is what this blog entry will be focused on.

9/11/25

• calm presence, be consistent
• hold the space
• I’m excited for Saturday

What did I mean by calm presence and be consistent and hold the space? The date when this note was written indicates that I had been an ALT for less than two weeks, so clearly, I had thought about this for a while.

What is a Boddhisattva?

I couldn’t find a smooth transition from the previous topic into this so I thought I’d write this as it is. In Buddhism, there is a concept of a Boddhisattva. To put it simply, it is a being who has achieved enlightenment, therefore, they have escaped the cyle of life, death, and rebirth (samsara in Sanskrit). But rather than choosing to leave the cycle, they selflessly choose to stay in the cycle for the sole purpose of helping ALL sentient beings in alleviating suffering and working towards the remarkable goal of all beings, one day, achieve enlightenment. This motivation is companioned by immense amount of compassion (Boddhichitta) that serves as the driving vehicle. Now what does all of this have to do with what I wrote about being an ALT and the notepad idea?

The Connection

Having been raised as a Buddhist in the Vajrayana tradition, the concept of a Boddhisattva has always been a fascinating and ever so recently now that I have been teaching English through a TEFL framework for the past couple of years. As a teacher, in any capacity, whether as a part-time tutor to a tenured and distinguished professor, we hold insurmountable responsibility as educators. The students, our beneficiaries, are what gives purpose to the teachers. Without students, there would be no teachers. Just as a Boddhisattva would think, ALL sentient beings are their students. From a grasshopper to a bull to a human being. Just as a teacher might use a textbook or a chalkboard to get their thoughts across the students, a Boddhisattva uses universal compassion and the desire to free all beings from suffering. Now in no way or form, am I implying that I am a Boddhisattva. Hardly ever. I have my fair share of probelms to deal with. People who I think, historically, that were Boddhisattvas or cultivated Bodhichitta are people like Mandela, the Dalai Lama, and Jesus Christ. Of course, I can never put my name in the same realm of the people I just mentioned, but what I can do is take small cups of compassion and apply it with a specific group of people or do it when it truly matters, and in this case, in the classrooms of Japanese schools as an ALT.

In the Classroom

Upon entering the different classrooms, I always take three quiet but deep breaths. It centers me and allows me to channel my energy to the students and the teacher in a calm but selective manner. To me, students are the number one priority. Without students, the JET Program would not exist and so I would never ever be here presently. Whether there are five students in the classroom or upwards of 40, I don’t look at them as a whole but rather through the lens of ‘These are my students, each of them are unique and hold a story that I can learn from’.

During the Tokyo orientation back in August, I learned that upwards of 1,500 JETs come to Japan, majority being ALTs. I know that there are ALTs who are deeply extroverted. They will bring immense amount of energy in the classroom from dancing, singing, orchestrating games, to remembering each of the student’s names like their lives depend on it. And to the other side of that coin, I know there are ALTs who have a quiet and reserved energy. I am on that side of the coin. With the lack of high energy or spontaneity, I take into consideration of the students at an individual level. Through consistency of my self presented in the classrooms and a quiet but supportive and compassionate display of myself, teachers and students can slowly develop trust and recognition that this ALT, though reserved and perhaps a bit quiet at times, is who they say they are. I think trust is the start of a solid professional relationship with the teachers and students, and consistency plus an act of compassion and creating a supportive environment curates these ideals.

The Journey Onwards…

This blog entry served quite differently. It is written in a more reflective tone and ties in my background of Buddhism as well as shedding light into my character and personality. There was a stint of not writing enough, but one thing I can certainly guarantee is to write more than just the pedagological aspects of being an ALT and will delve more into the social relations as an ALT in the next coming months.