A New Teacher from the Philippines

A new Filipino teacher came to our school last week as a member of the JET program. What I know about her is that she is from Pasig in Metro Manila, she graduated from the University of Santo Tomas, and she speaks only very basic Japanese now. She comes to our school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays to teach English for the third, fourth, and fifth graders. It is her first time to come to Japan, so she still seems nervous and sometimes confused with Japanese school life. Five Filipino teachers have been deployed in our city as English teachers since August, so she has friends from her country. I want to talk with her more to know more about the Philippines and the cultural differences between us.

Discriminated Areas

Prejudices remain in Japanese society such as LGBT and sexual minorities. Also, people tend to prejudice the residents who live in certain areas. It is based on professions of hundreds of years ago. Those residents worked as, for example, disposing of dead bodies, which was thought of as a job for low-status people. People still prejudice the people who lived in the area. There are about one thousand areas in Japan that still experience this treatment. Sadly, the Japanese tend to look down people based on their birthplace. Personally, I often talk with non-Japanese people around the world, so I don’t care about such things in our society.

Autumn

Although it is still hot during the daytime, it is very comfortable to go outside at night and early in the morning. The temperature could go up to thirty degrees or more during the day, but it could go down up to twenty degrees when the sun sets. If ever I am asked on what's the best season in a year, I would say that it's the beginning of autumn because it’s neither hot nor cold. Spring also has the same temperature as the autumn, but I like the advent of the cold seasons in September. I prefer winter over summer because I easily feel hot and sweat a lot during summer. And I like winter because I don't feel much cold. I enjoy the best season for me by visiting many places.

New Routine

My priority is to study programming because getting the skills can bring me a sideline and can make it possible for me to work as an engineer beginning next April. The contract of my current job will end in March 2020 so, I hope to work as an engineer after that. 
I need to work from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to get home by 5 p.m. I will use the rest of the day to make time in studying programming. I used to go to the gym after work, but this time I do it before going to work. 
The new term began in our school yesterday. Now is the chance to make a new routine for the rest of the school year.

Studying Programming

During my free time besides work, I spend most of my time for studying programming recently. Yesterday, I was sitting in front of my lap top for more than six hours and was studying programming in an online school. If I miss one mark, such as {  }, the whole segment doesn’t work. But when the program worked as I imagined, it was very satisfying. I want to get a sideline of creating websites in December, when the curriculum is over, and want to do programming as my main career beginning from April, 2020. There seems to be many hardships to overcome to complete the curriculum, but I will keep studying slowly but surely.

One-Day Trip to Tokyo

I had a one-day trip to Tokyo yesterday. I went there to take an exam to become a public school teacher in Tokyo for the school year 2020-2021. The thirty-minute oral exam was not so difficult. The results will be delivered in the middle of October. After taking the exam, I went to eat dinner at Shinbashi, which is two stations from Tokyo Station. The name of the restaurant was "Muscle Restaurant", which serves healthy meals full of nutrition. The food and the shake I ordered were very delicious. I was surprised to see there were several female customers enjoying the food. I thought the restaurant was mainly for men but women also came to the restaurant. I came to like the capital city more because I like to see health-conscious independent women.  I look forward to living in Tokyo in 2020.

Flamenco

Siroco is a famous and skillfill flamenco dancer from Kyoto. The 37-year-old dancer is supposed to perform at the Tokyo International Forum in November with his Spanish akin. Now he teaches flamenco in Osaka and Kyoto with his wife.
When he was younger, he stayed in Spain to learn the dancing skills. Since he didn't have much money, he lived in a cave and made a fire to cook. For about a dacade, he went back and forth between Japan and Spain.
I think he can be called as a ideal "teacher", because he himself as a leading dancer in the world and he has brilliant records in flamenco. The true teachers should be at the top position in the field and have notable records. Only those people can motivate their students to learn more and this is my ideal career to pursue.

End of Summer Vacation

The summer vacation is almost over in Japan. Suicide rates among children gets higher during this period because of their unwillingness to go to school. Many NPOs and public facilities are cooperating to stop children’s from committing suicides. They made places for children who don’t want to go to school. They welcome students in this place in order not to make them feel guilty by not going to school. Children who don’t go to school may put too much pressure on themselves from the feeling of escaping. By making environments for children instead of school, the children can feel secured. With this, they won’t think about killing themselves anymore. I hope that there will be no more suicidal incident among children this year. Lastly, I also hope that at the beginning of this school term, no lives will taken away both child and adult just because of education.

Difficult Questions

I took an oral exam yesterday to become a teacher at a public school in Tokushima Prefecture. There were five panelists in the room and I answered the questions from them. The hardest part was role playing. One of the panelists acted as a female student and she said, “Because I don’t have my smartphone, I cannot get along with my close friends. How should I overcome this situation?” I had to say something to improve her situation. I was not able to say any good comment, so I probably failed the exam. It was not realistic to say, “ask your parents to buy you a smartphone” and “you don’t need to worry about the situation because communicating through SNS is not everything.” What a mean panel. I never want to see them again.

Russian at School

In Japan, there are high schools which have unique language curriculums which relate to the locations of the schools.
Fushiki High School in Toyama Prefecture provides Russian classes because Fushiki Port has been used by many Russian and Chinese ships because of location. The port faces the Sea of Japan and since it is located at the central part of Honshu Island, the city has flourished with trading. The language education began to foster people for trade with Russia. I had never heard that high school students learn Russian at school, so I realized that there are unique education styles that I just don’t know in Japan. I also want to work as a Japanese language lecture in a foreign country someday.

French in Japanese Schools

The English subject for entrance exams of universities will be revised dramatically in 2020. The would-be test-takers can choose one type of English exam among six such as TOEFL and IELTS. They can take those tests at most two times and can hire their better score when they take the entrance exam.
By the way, as society globalizes, more and more high schools offer unique language lessons besides English such as French. The language is less used for the entrance exam, but diligent students choose the subject as their first foreign language taking the risks of the need to take time to study English additionally. In my opinion, it is a delightful opportunity for students to choose the language they can study to keep their motivation.

Protests by Teachers

Thousands of teachers and their supporters in Hong Kong protested against the extradition bill on Saturday. It is illegal in Japan for teachers to create a group and join protest rallies against government policies. This is why I was surprised when I read the news article. One of the participants said they protested on behalf of their students welfare and future. The only thing I care about is the violence that might erupt, the clashes between the police and the protesters, the businesses, and their economy. That will truly affect the future of each family in Hong Kong. Japanese government issued an warning for people who will travel in HK to be very careful and to take precautionary measures to protect themselves. The protests by teachers showed how fragile the region has become.

Yasui Kono

Yasui Kono is the first woman in Japanese history who got a doctorate degree in 1927. Her major was Botany and studied at several universities such as Ochanomizu University in Tokyo, University of Chicago, and Harvard University. Women seldom studied at college during the Taisho and Showa eras because being a house wife was a stereotype for women. Furthermore, it was very difficult for women to get a scholarship to study abroad because people think that it was worthless to spend money on them because they would end up as house wives. Yasui Kono, however, never gave up her passion. After finally gaining a scholarship from the government, she finally went to the U.S. and, after coming back to Japan, she started to work as a professor at a Japanese university. And then she got a doctorate degree from the University of Tokyo in 1927. It is very encouraging that she came from Kagawa Prefecture, where I live now.

American Sitcoms

I really like watching American sitcoms such as “Sam and Cat” and “Victorious,” both of them are the works of Nickelodeon. The lines are really funny and their up-tempo stories never get me bored. Also, you can feel that the sitcoms are made with such dedication taking into details such as T-shirts which the characters wear and set designs for each scene. Characters in the sitcoms perform very well, so unlike poor Japanese actors and actresses, I forget that they are acting based on the scripts because they perform very naturally. I have started to research about America itself thinking about why sitcoms in America are so funny. I will look into its culture more so as to know the background of these comedies.

Exam in Tokushima

I am going to take an exam to become a public school teacher in Tokushima Prefecture this afternoon. Fortunately, I passed the first step of the exam, so I will take the final exam today and next Thursday. The final exam includes essay, mock lesson, and interview. Today’s exam was supposed to be held yesterday, but it was suspended because of the typhoon. As far as I know, there aren’t any severe damages from the typhoon in this prefecture. It takes time and money to get to the prefecture, so I hope to pass the exam and to be able to secure my future.

Studying Programming

I have been studying programming in an online school, I started ten days ago. I don't have any background in programming but as I go on with my online course, I am able to know what HTML and CSS gradually. What's good in an online school? Well, you can ask any questions to the mentors any time and they will reply within a few minutes. There are several assignments and activities included in the online curriculum. The assignments are not so easy, I always ask for help on how to type codes from the mentors. My goal is to get good in programming that I can also get a sideline job with it. My current job contract ends in March, 2020. Since I've been studying programming, I want it to become my main job. And get a programming job as soon as my contract ends.

Protests in Hong Kong

Last Friday, Hong Kongers gathered at Hong Kong International Airport to demonstrate against an extradition bill and to demand greater democracy. The demonstrators gave out fliers to the tourists which said “Please forgive us for the ‘unexpected’ Hong Kong.” If I had the tourist who visited the airport, I would feel sorry for the citizens. 
It is said that U.S. is interfering the demonstration by meeting with pro-democracy activists. The issue is not only for the region but for the two biggest counties in the world. I admire the demonstrators’ unity fighting against the influence from the big mother country. I never think that Japanese do something like this for our lives.

Guide Book

I read a travel guide book of Kagawa Prefecture where I live now. This prefecture is the smallest one in Japan. You can move from the westernmost city to easternmost city within one hour by car. The capital city is Takamatsu which has 400 thousand population. Marugame City, the second populated city, has 100 thousand people and it is famous for a Japanese garden and a castle. I have visited these popular destinations already, but there are still many places which I haven't been to such as a museum and a classic hotel. I want to visit those places and to know more about this city.

My Favorite Place

Utazu is a small town in Kagawa Prefecture. Its northern part faces Seto Inland Sea. You can also enjoy beautiful sunset every evening. There are shopping mall, train station, gym, amusement park, grocery stores with just a few minutes of driving. So far, this town is one of my favorite places in Japan. I’m studying programming to make more money and to afford living in Utazu. Since it is a small town, there aren’t many jobs that are fit for my skills. Therefore, I need to be a freelance programmer to make enough money and to afford renting a nice apartment. I hope to make all these possible by 2020.

Reunion

I went to Ehime Prefecture for a day-trip to meet my American friend. He is going to work as an ALT in Ehime starting from the end of August. We met for the first time at Ehime University. When I was a student, he came as one of the members of a group from a partner college in America. 
With his other American friend, three of us went bowling, had a bath at a hot spring, chilled out at a café, visited a castle, and attended a festival at the foot of the castle. I really enjoyed hanging out with them, but I was sometimes frustrated at myself when I couldn’t understand what they were saying. I want to meet them again soon.

Photoshop

The functions of Photoshop are very complicated. I have started to study web designing in an online school four days ago. Yesterday, I was doing an assignment with Photoshop. I did my assignment, but the processes are not found in the website I used. There must be another way to do it efficiently and effectively. I'm planning to ask a help from my mentor this coming 13th to correct my assignment. The process of the software is really difficult and it really requires enough time and effort to master it. Moreover, in getting a new job by next year, it also requires the same that's why I will continue to study in an online school.

Long Days Off

I am going to have days off from today until the 18th. During the one week break, I am going to meet my friend from America in my hometown. He came to Japan this week and he is supposed to work at an elementary school in my hometown as an English teacher. This Saturday, I am going back to Ehime to meet him. Aside from that, I am going to study programming, too. I want to complete the three month course as fast as I can and to have a sideline as an engineer.  In order not to waste my precious days off, I will sleep early without staying up late and take morning hanaso lessons.

Dark Side of Relationship

President Trump addressed about mass shootings referring these measures to stop future gun crimes: directing the Department of Justice to work more closely with local, state and federal agencies; curbing the playing of violent video games; reforming mental health laws; passing laws on guns. After the two massacres in Texas and Ohio, other shootings have already occurred in New York, Chicago, and so on. The situation of the country is bad both inside and outside such as trade conflicts with China and tensions between Iran and North Korea. Japan also has a problem with South Korea on trade. I think, these days, each country prioritizes their own profit ant our relationships are getting worse.


https://www.axios.com/donald-trump-speech-mass-shootings-el-paso-dayton-4b1e04af-60a7-4557-bf3a-9a871b9c2ccd.html

Permanent Hair Removal Treatment

Hair removal is getting popular among both women and men. I have also taken the treatment for my beard. It is very hassle to shave my beard every morning so I want to remove my beard permanently. However, it would take a long period of time to remove my facial hair. Yesterday, I went to the hospital to take the fifth session of the treatment. It was recommended to me to have at least six sessions but I think, I would undergo into more sessions as per my beard to completely be removed. The laser treatment is very painful. Whenever, I undergo each session, I guess that the ten minutes of that pain is the hardship that I need to reach my goal. I am going to the hospital again by next month. I hope that my beard will completely be removed soon.

Keep Learning

I started to study programming on an online school. If possible, I want to get a job about programming as a sideline aside from working at school. The job is in demand not only in Japan but also oversees. My life-long dream, living abroad, can make it true by enhancing the skill and by being hired at some company in a foreign country. At this moment, the only job I can do in foreign countries is teaching Japanese which is worthwhile but is not paid well. To be honest, I don’t have any motivation to working at school, so, after work, I will keep enhancing my programming skill for my bright future.

Studying Programming

I started to study programming on an online school yesterday. We read instructions about programming from the basics and we are supposed to submit an assignment after each section. Our mentors answer any questions real time and also we can talk with our mentors twice a week for 25 minutes each to report our progress and to get some advice. After taking the three-month course, I may be able to get a job for my sideline aside from working at school. To be honest, working at my elementary school doesn’t seem to lead to the further development of my career. By studying programming, I want to get a well-paid job in a few months.

Online School

I applied for an online school to learn programming. It costs me 3,300 dollars for the three months course. The fee is very expensive, but I am sure that it is worth paying for my future career. I am going to pay the 20,000 yen in 18 installments. After taking the course, I plan to be an engineer as my sideline job. But before I do, I need to get a clearance from our school principal to have a sideline job. It is prohibited in Japan for government employees to have a sideline job. I hope that I get a permission, to get a job, and make additional income through programming.

Online School

I recently thought that as long as I work at school, it would be difficult to raise enough money for my future family. Now I don’t have a girlfriend and I am not sure if I want one. However, in either case, I cannot have a good relationship with my limited salary. To make extra money, I am thinking about studying programming on an online school. After completing the course, the company who runs the website will offer a programming job and I can work for the company. This afternoon, I will try the free lessons.

FX

I tried Foreign Exchange yesterday for the first time. I registered at a website started the trade with 30,000 yen. I don’t have knowledge for FX, but there is a useful function on the website. You can follow a trader who is successful in trade and the website have deals automatically just like the trader does. Therefore I don’t need to do anything. All I have to do is just wait for a good result. However, not all trades will end in a good result so there is a risk of losing my money. I am looking forward to seeing how my money increases or decreases.

Future Job

I feel that as long as I work as a teacher, I will never be rich. The reason why I think so is that my senior colleagues don’t look rich. They seem to save money by controlling their desire for fun. I don’t want to be like them, so I don’t have any motivation to continue to work at school next school year. Instead of the job, I will study programming through an online school. Programming is in demand and offers a high salary. If possible, I will work as an engineer in 2020 somewhere in highly urban cities such as Tokyo or Osaka.