Living in Japan Support
Living in Japan can be a rich and rewarding experience but one that comes with its own unique challenges, especially for non-native Japanese. At Office Global Support we provide support for any issues or concerns that arise in your daily life. A positive experience and good work-life balance is our priority.
Housing
We help teachers, who need to move for our contracts, find affordable housing. Whether it be an apartment or house, we are here to assist between the teacher and rental agents.
Daily Life
In addition to housing and relocation support, we also provide help and advice with daily necessities such as organizing electricity, water, gas and the internet at your homes. For example, if you have a problem at your home, we can help you find a repair person and translate for you and the repair company.
We also help teachers with obtaining cell phones, navigating cell phone contracts and registering a bank account. We can also provide assistance in finding a car, completing the registration paperwork, and finding insurance.
Visa Applications
If you are new to Japan, we are responsible for sponsoring your work visa. The paperwork and interactions with immigration officials can seem daunting, but we are happy to assist with the paperwork, and interpret for you. We also help with visa renewals and status changes, trying to make the process as stress free as possible.
Municipal Administration and Documents
Just like Japanese citizens, foreign instructors working in Japan must submit legal documents to their local city hall or town hall. These documents may include change of address, health insurance, and residence taxes. We will be happy to assist with paperwork, and interpret as needed.
Working in Japan Support
School Support
Our company will go with you on or before your first day to introduce you to the principal and staff at your school. After getting settled at your school, we will continue to be a liaison between you and the school if any concerns arise.
Usually single school instructors, along with their Japanese counterparts, plan and arrange the lesson schedule. However for instructors placed in multiple schools, we will coordinate with the schools and teachers to make sure your schedule is always updated with any changes or cancellations.
When working in a new environment and culture, occasionally there are chances for miscommunication and differences in expectations. If there is a situation with a teacher having problems at a school, we will act as a mediator between the school and ALT. Sometimes it is as simple as something "getting lost in translation" or a difference in values compared to your own. No matter what the situation, we listen to both sides of the story and help to find common ground and a compromise.
Training and Observation
Once placed in your school, we offer continued professional development (CPD) through training workshops, meetings, regular class observations and follow-up feedback.
The training workshops are held to explain changes to the schools' curriculum, school division rules, and administrative processes in more detail. For newer ALTs, we also provide a workshops and team teaching with an experienced instructor on how to be an effective and successful ALT.
Generally the school provides you with all the necessary teaching resources such as textbooks, a laptop to use at the school and teaching materials. However, if there are extra materials you think you need to improve your lessons, feel free to let us know. If it will increase your effectiveness at the school, we will consider providing the extra materials.
Being the only foreign instructor can seem isolating at times so we try to hold frequent workshops and social events for all of our teachers to meet and share ideas and experiences in a more casual setting.
On a regular basis during the school year, we will visit to observe your lessons. We will consult with your Japanese coworkers to see if there is any further help that we can provide for you. We will also provide you with professional feedback to develop and improve your skills.