Thanks for the good advice everyone.

[ashmie]

Thanks for all the great advice everyone. Feeling a lot more positive about it all again.

[Seb]

I used to question myself that a lot and I found the reason by switching to a job that I actually like.

When I worked as a teacher sure I got better paid by the hour but the amount of work I could put up with before going crazy was a lot less than now. Now I work for a gym and 50 hours a week but since this job is connected to what I really like personally and can find myself in, I don't have a problem with it. In the end, I actually get paid better now at the end of the month with a lower hourly wage than before.

[ashmie]

Perhaps elementary is the way forward then.

[me_in_japan]

I went on a visit to a high school where they had an ALT on monday just there, and bugger me but was it an eye opener. Horrible, horrible way to teach. Horrible, horrible way to learn. JLT saying "please read number 8" and ALT parroting lines and students repeating, then JLT says "please read number 9" and ALT parrots the lines and students repeat, and JLT says "please read number 10" and ALT parrots the lines and students repeat, and JLT says "please read number 11" and ALT parrots the lines and students repeat, and JLT says...

well, you get the picture. In fact, if this seems familiar to you in any way, my advice would be:

run. run screaming to the elementary school system and do not look back. I did a wee bit of work in a kindergarden for 6 months a few years back, and even that gave better job satisfaction than being an ALT in a junior/high school.

oh, and if the school I work at ever has a vacancy, I'll let you know. I know I bitch about the hours n whatnot, but daaaaaamn the job is a gazillion times better than that parroty crap.

for what its worth, going to bed earlier really does make a big difference. I find when Im feeling really crappy about stuff, a few early nights allows me to look at the situation and see it much more objectively. Sometimes there is a genuine problem that needs to be addressed, but 90% of the time youre just down because your body is knacked. Im sure its all about endorphins or beta blockers or somesuch...

[Primarch]

Like Seb, I am lucky to have a job that I enjoy, but even then there are bad days here and there. Teaching is one of those jobs where you get out what you put into it. If you're happy and genki then generally the students will be too and you get a nice atmosphere. If you're sleepy and depressed then the atmosphere will be bad. Of course, this is true for the students too, so yeah, they can bring you down sometimes.

Getting a good nights sleep and eating right is good for you no matter what job you're in. Also, spending your free time having fun can be important too. Those days when I come home, fill in paperwork, cook dinner and wash dishes then go to bed lead me to be in a bad mood the next day. When I come home, glue some models together, dab some paint on a couple of figures etc, I can go to work feeling good.

At the end of the day, a job is only a job and if its a bad job, you should change it. If elementary school is what does it for you, then do everything you can (short of murder/kidnapping) to change to an all elementary school system. In the meantime, do what I do when I have a bad class. Count how many new models/books/paints etc you can buy with every passing minute.

[Admiral-Badruck]

Jr High seems to be the worst time for a child to learn language... I would never work as a teacher in the age group.. too hard to keep them engaged... Work with younger children and you will be happier. IMHO

[me_in_japan]

ach, no. JH kids are great and I enjoy teaching em. Its just a question of the teaching method. Most JLTs dont have any training whatsoever about how to use an ALT, and a lot of them (by no means all) actually have low confidence in their own English ability. Thus, when you stick an ALT in a class with a JLT who doesnt know what to do with em and is nervous about talking to em, you get a dull, formulaic lesson where no-one can improvise. What needs to happen is for JLTs to actually get taught how to make use of an ALT/team teaching environment while theyre studying for their teacher's licence in uni.

At the school I work at I teach classes of JHS first and second years every day, and by and large they seem to get a lot out of it. They certainly manage to pass their term tests and whatnot, so I must be doing something right. And, crucially, I really enjoy teaching the classes. I have never had a problem with the teaching part of my job, for any age group. Its great to see a new first year go from knowing zero english to being able to banter with you in the corridor within the space of a year (ok, not especially complex banter, but banter nonetheless...)

I think a major part of job satisfaction is building your own lessons. I dunno what the situation is like at the JHS you work at, but it might be worth putting yourself forwards a bit and seeing if you can do more in the lesson. ALT work varies. Ive seen the "walking tape recorder" scenario personally, but the school my wife did her teacher training at had an ALT who prepped and taught his own lessons. The JLT was there (as required by law) but all he did was help pass out worksheets n stuff. The ALT was the one doing the teaching. Either situation is possible - its just a question of the individual JLT you work with and your relationship with them. As I say, I dont know the set-up at the JHS youre at, but it might be worth your while to ask (assuming you want to, of course.)

[Konrad]

I've been doing this ALT thing for way to long, so here is my hard earned (wisdom?), observations at least on the whole crazy scene that is the life of the ALT. I'll try and be inspiring.

First on Japanese schools, JHS in particular- The primary job of the school is not to teach the kids anything. It's to train them to work hard, work together, and be patient. What ever facts and skills they may pick up along the way are of secondary importance. I'm not saying this is right or wrong, it's just the way things are done. Hard work and patience are virtues anywhere in any country.
To put a cynical slant on it, on a bad day, I'd tell you the primary job of school is to sort and label people. Get the next generation of laborers/technicians/administrators into the proper high school/university for further indoctrination.
But today is not a bad day.
Ashmie mentioned he teaches 1st and 2nd grade JHS students. I'm willing to bet he does not see the 3rds because "They are too busy preparing for exams." That was the situation I had a High School many, many years ago. I'd come once a week, but no lessons with the 3rd years. I had another I called my "day-off school". Once a week, but I could guarantee that half my lessons would be canceled, because they had to prepare for tests. That would go up to like 90% if it were two weeks before test time. Preparing them for their high school entrance exams is ultimately the driving force behind how they do things.
Secondly, and more specific to ashmie- At one day a week, you don't have a lot of time to build relationships with your teachers or students. Team teaching is like manzai. It takes time to get your rythmn. Without that relationship, the JTE will only be able to use you a CD player.
When I get stuck with a teacher who only wants a human CD player, (thankfully it is happening less and less) I'll (try) and talk them into letting me do a 5-minute warm-up activity at the start of class. Play shiritori with the vocabulary words they are studying or some sort of quick Q&A game with material from the text book. It's quick, fun, and is not a waste of time, as it reviews the "real" lesson. Once the JTE sees that I am not a total twit who will derail their entire lesson, I can weasle more satisfying and creative activities into the program. I've found that once the ice has been broken, they are more than willing to let me run the show. Like you wrote, they have not been trained to use ALTs. Or if they were, it was just one more damn meeting/seminar/thing they had to do on top of all the other bs they are responsible for. The inititive for a new "act", (remember manzai) has to come from you.
But again it takes a bit of time to build that trust with your co-workers, time you might not get at once a week.
Also, ES might just be your bag. I have occasional ES visits, which are fun. They make a nice change of pace, but I don't think I'd want to do it everyday. I have my own small children and only so much genki to get around. JHS students are a tough audience sometimes, it's a difficult age for kids anywhere. But for every snotty little jerk that I want to throw out the window, there is a cool little guy/gal who makes me laugh. Maybe two.

[ashmie]

All really good advice. I'll try to stick to working elementary level. I have 5 different schools, around 700 students a week, so it's a different school each day. As to building trust and getting them to let me do stuff I've done that and it does work. The fact that I've outgrown the human tape recorder act is the main. As Konrad said most teachers prefer an alt to be a human tape player as it's easier for them to run their regular learning by rote style lessons.
Working in elementary we are trusted a lot more with lessons plans and ideas. In fact I'm doing all of it at the moment so I guess I should look on the jhs day as a breather.
MIJ you asked about work and I suggested alt work but you clearly state that you feel better off in what your doing so that's good too.
I think Konrad made the most true comment which was it is what it is with the education system.
Actually my case is I don't get to meet 1st grade and I'm mainly teaching 2nd and 3rd at JHS and they do allow me to do activities and sometimes take the lesson as cover so I shouldn't complain at all really. It's a good deal, it only feels like a shame when I think, ah damn I could really do a lot more here but they want me as an assistant today not a main teacher. Sometimes you can do more if it's accepted sometimes you have to just go with the flow.

Thanks for the headsup MIJ about future work. I did find this comment a little strong though. I guess that high school experience must have had alarm bells ringing.

oh, and if the school I work at ever has a vacancy, I'll let you know. I know I bitch about the hours n whatnot, but daaaaaamn the job is a gazillion times better than that parroty crap.