Japan News: Tokyo to increase number of JETs significantly in 2014 in anticipation of Olympics
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Great JET news from The Japan News (i.e., Yomiuri Shimbun)! Apparently Tokyo Governor Inose also announced that Tokyo will increase the number of its hiring JET participants from 5 to 100 in 2014, and to 200 from 2015. Also, from conversations I’ve had, it sounds like representatives of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government developed a very positive impression of JET based on various interactions they had with JETAANY during visits to NYC.
Tokyo English teachers to study abroad for Olympics
November 7, 2013
The Yomiuri Shimbun
The Tokyo metropolitan government will send about 200 young English teachers from middle and high schools to English-speaking countries every year for three months to brush up their English teaching abilities in anticipation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, sources said Thursday.
The program, designed to beef up the English ability of teachers as well as their teaching abilities, will start in the next academic year in April. Many foreign visitors are expected to come to Tokyo during the Olympics and Paralympics in 2020, according to the sources.
The number of assistant language teachers (ALTs) at metropolitan-run high schools will also be increased.
The metropolitan government plans to appropriate about ¥1 billion in next fiscal year’s budget. Through improvement in instruction capacities at schools, it plans to improve students’ language abilities, the sources explained.
Currently there are about 3,000 English teachers at public middle schools and high schools in Tokyo. Of them, about 200 teachers in their third year of employment will be sent to overseas universities and other educational institutions in English-speaking countries every year. They will attend English lessons and learn English teaching methods during the three-month period.
The metropolitan government also plans to increase the number of ALTs at metropolitan high schools, about 200 at present, to 300 in the next academic year and 400 in the academic year of 2015.
The Tokyo government plans to utilize the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program, an international exchange program coordinated by the central government for local governments to invite young foreign nationals to teach English as assistants.
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