Tamura, Japan is a small city located in the Fukushima prefecture a couple hours north of Tokyo. It has an estimated population of almost 36,000 people.

An ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) works in the public school system and could be placed in a junior high or elementary school. Some ALTs are placed at multiple schools while others have a single school placement. They are paired with a JTE (Japanese Teacher of English) and assist the JTE in the classroom. Depending on the JTE, they may sometimes be able to help with lesson planning and grading. Each day is different and an ALT could go to six classes one day to no classes the next. Flexibility is key!

Wakakusa teachers work at the English school and are responsible for planning and teaching classes that are assigned to them. They also have the opportunity to teach at different elementary schools in the area a couple times a week. Each month is different dependent on what classes are scheduled, but a majority of the teaching occurs in the after school hours from 4-8 pm.

Yes. After the March 11, 2011 disaster, Fukushima has come a long way in lowering radiation levels. There are many locations around town (especially schools) where radiation detectors are visible to see the level of radiation.

The high levels of precautions are taken to ensure that

Yes. Many English teachers come that have no background in Japanese or Japanese culture.

Our main job is to teach English to the students and it is preferred if that teaching is done in English.

It is helpful to have an understanding of the Japanese writing systems (Hiragana, Katakana, and even Kanji), because they will help you read students names, sing hymns in the Japanese church and read what items are in the store.

The Japanese have a very healthy and balanced diet. If you are an ALT, you will have an opportunity to get school lunches and try many different Japanese foods.

Common foods you will see are miso soup, fish of all varieties (typically cooked with miso), bean sprouts, differing types of seaweed (found in both soups and salads),

You will be joining a team of 12 Americans.

We all come from different backgrounds and have different personalities, but what joins us together is our love for Jesus and our desire to do ministry.

We each have different giftings which means the ministry we do looks different. Some may do ministry through awesome lesson planning while others may do ministry through building relationships with Japanese co-workers or acquaintances.

Our team meets once a week but many team members choose to meet up outside of those designated meeting times.

Some things you can look forward to are an anime night, sushi outings, game nights,

Yes. Japan has one of the lowest crime rates in the world. Our team is currently made up of 7 woman and we all live alone.

It is safe to walk alone at night or go for early morning runs by yourself.

The Japanese are a very honest and conscientious people which means if you accidently leave your phone in the bathroom at the train station, someone will turn it into the lost and found instead of stealing it.

Japan is a cold culture and the pandemic has seemed to create a bigger chasm between the Japanese and foreigners.

In Tamura, we like to call it the “ministry of presence.” Many of us can’t speak the language, so we are first being ambassadors of Christ by being good English teachers and then using our gifts to love the people of Japan.

It is beautiful to see the body of Christ using their gifting to bless the team and the Japanese people. Some of our team members do ministry through amazing lesson planning, some speak Japanese well and are able to go on a deeper level with their co-workers, while some use sports and clubs to do ministry.

It can be frustrating at times, but there is so much joy in understanding how God has gifted you to do ministry and translate that into a Japanese context.

Love anime? have an anime night and invite Japanese friends.

Love food? Make food for your co-workers and maybe spark up a conversation.

Love K-Pop? So many students are into the k-pop scene and it is a great way to start a conversation even if you don’t speak Japanese. Just bust out a BTS or TWICE dance and you will have found your new best friend.