JET Programme Series: Where there’s a will, there’s a way - Alan Chan
2024/2/22
I had lived abroad before, I confidently said to myself and to others with full bravado . I know what to expect and I know what to do and so it goes… It’s been almost 6 months into my residency in Tokushima and I’m doing better than I ever was. I came with a wide eyed gaze, full of optimism and curiosity. Any hiccup that popped up was swiftly dealt with by my Board of Education (BOE) and countless, generous suggestions from my fellow senpai ALTS.
One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given for living abroad is to say YES! To every invitation. Making friends and creating connections takes time and so upon arriving at my BOE in the hot, sweltering, sticky Tokushima summer, I did my best to make friends. I built my social network and every weekend I had something to do or somewhere to go. Additionally, I ran at night to explore the city as well as to build a mental map of my surroundings in my head. This is so I can know the best route to commute to my schools and in the land of earthquakes and tsunamis, know where to go in an emergency.
The island of Shikoku is quite rural from the rest of Japan but I like it. I like the peace and quiet. Oftentimes, my Japanese Teacher of English (JTE) and I would go road tripping to various parts of the Prefecture (Province or State for reference) and explore. Since we are both avid, amateur swimmers, we would go to the community swimming pool and decompress. I also had the pleasure of meeting up with other Trinbagonians in my Prefecture thanks to Larissa. Thanks to her I was able to have a bit of home whether it be her Independence Day Party or Christmas Eve Dinner for which I’m grateful. Small gatherings like this take away the feelings of isolation and loneliness in the brutal, bleak, dreadful and dry Winter Season. Current mood: waiting for Summer.
On the other hand, it’s quite surreal to be called “Alan Sensei”. I teach in two Elementary Schools and one Junior High School and I can’t complain. I never thought teaching would be a viable career option but now it is. I do enjoy teaching even though before, I had no formal training in teaching or classroom management. Thus, I get better everyday. I would participate in every school activity as much as I can such as Sports Festival or Daily Cleaning or Distributing Lunch. This is how I build rapport with my other co-workers. Ever since I got Doraemon UNO cards for Christmas, I would play UNO with the students during lunch time. They would speak in Japanese and I would speak in English, cultural exchange. Additionally, I would join the students in various sporting activities after school such as badminton and cross country.
Moreover, my biggest regret is not being more rigorous and proactive with learning Japanese before I came but now I am! I ditched Duolingo and I bought a textbook online for self-study. Every week, during desk warming when I have no lessons, I would do Hiragana exercises in my textbook or I would write down phrases in a little notebook to have with me whenever I needed to revise on the go. Now I’m proud to say I have learnt all 46 Hiragana Characters. Learning a new language when your brain has already developed is hard but I have the discipline and tenacity to make learning consistent. Where there’s a will, there’s a way so to those who are planning to join the JET Programme, learn Japanese ASAP.
Furthermore, I have also learnt something called “The Japanese Way.” After getting drenched and wringing my shirt in the washroom, I have learnt the Japanese way of cycling to work in the rain. Covered from head to toe, plastic raincoat and plastic pants from the Daiso, I would go to work because the rain is not an excuse to be late. I have also learnt to warm up in the winter, sleeping with a heated blanket and a portable heater. There’s no central heating in the schools, so I would layer up as if I was outside. Lastly, another thing is I would carry my indoor shoes with me from school to school. It’s a hassle and an inconvenience but such is life.
Japan has taught me so much and it will definitely continue to do so. It has exposed me to a new culture, forced me to adapt to new ways of living, changed my diet, added new skills, elevated my problem solving and as Blaxx does sing, I FEEL LIKE HULK!
JET Series: Where there's a will, there's a way (Japanese Embassy's Facebook)
JET Programme Series Archives
One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given for living abroad is to say YES! To every invitation. Making friends and creating connections takes time and so upon arriving at my BOE in the hot, sweltering, sticky Tokushima summer, I did my best to make friends. I built my social network and every weekend I had something to do or somewhere to go. Additionally, I ran at night to explore the city as well as to build a mental map of my surroundings in my head. This is so I can know the best route to commute to my schools and in the land of earthquakes and tsunamis, know where to go in an emergency.
The island of Shikoku is quite rural from the rest of Japan but I like it. I like the peace and quiet. Oftentimes, my Japanese Teacher of English (JTE) and I would go road tripping to various parts of the Prefecture (Province or State for reference) and explore. Since we are both avid, amateur swimmers, we would go to the community swimming pool and decompress. I also had the pleasure of meeting up with other Trinbagonians in my Prefecture thanks to Larissa. Thanks to her I was able to have a bit of home whether it be her Independence Day Party or Christmas Eve Dinner for which I’m grateful. Small gatherings like this take away the feelings of isolation and loneliness in the brutal, bleak, dreadful and dry Winter Season. Current mood: waiting for Summer.
On the other hand, it’s quite surreal to be called “Alan Sensei”. I teach in two Elementary Schools and one Junior High School and I can’t complain. I never thought teaching would be a viable career option but now it is. I do enjoy teaching even though before, I had no formal training in teaching or classroom management. Thus, I get better everyday. I would participate in every school activity as much as I can such as Sports Festival or Daily Cleaning or Distributing Lunch. This is how I build rapport with my other co-workers. Ever since I got Doraemon UNO cards for Christmas, I would play UNO with the students during lunch time. They would speak in Japanese and I would speak in English, cultural exchange. Additionally, I would join the students in various sporting activities after school such as badminton and cross country.
Moreover, my biggest regret is not being more rigorous and proactive with learning Japanese before I came but now I am! I ditched Duolingo and I bought a textbook online for self-study. Every week, during desk warming when I have no lessons, I would do Hiragana exercises in my textbook or I would write down phrases in a little notebook to have with me whenever I needed to revise on the go. Now I’m proud to say I have learnt all 46 Hiragana Characters. Learning a new language when your brain has already developed is hard but I have the discipline and tenacity to make learning consistent. Where there’s a will, there’s a way so to those who are planning to join the JET Programme, learn Japanese ASAP.
Furthermore, I have also learnt something called “The Japanese Way.” After getting drenched and wringing my shirt in the washroom, I have learnt the Japanese way of cycling to work in the rain. Covered from head to toe, plastic raincoat and plastic pants from the Daiso, I would go to work because the rain is not an excuse to be late. I have also learnt to warm up in the winter, sleeping with a heated blanket and a portable heater. There’s no central heating in the schools, so I would layer up as if I was outside. Lastly, another thing is I would carry my indoor shoes with me from school to school. It’s a hassle and an inconvenience but such is life.
Japan has taught me so much and it will definitely continue to do so. It has exposed me to a new culture, forced me to adapt to new ways of living, changed my diet, added new skills, elevated my problem solving and as Blaxx does sing, I FEEL LIKE HULK!
JET Series: Where there's a will, there's a way (Japanese Embassy's Facebook)
JET Programme Series Archives