Mastering the Art of Looking Busy
Sigh, it is a slow time here at Yoshida High School, at least for some of us. It is actually almost the end of the Japanese school year -- we have two more days of class, then year-end exams begin. When I was teaching at home, this would have been the busiest time of the year, but here it is my slowest. First of all, the seniors get the entire month of February off in order to deal with university entrance business and to do driving school (driving age is 18 here). 9 of my 16 classes were seniors, so during February I teach a grand total of FIVE CLASSES PER WEEK! And they are nicely spread out, one class each day. Some teachers had all senior classes, so they don't teach at all this month.
And then the next few weeks are taken up by testing and entrance exams, and graduation and a whole mess of other stuff that I have hardly any involvement in, then the students have a two week break before the new school year starts. I won't go back to having a full class schedule until the second week of April.
What a dream right? A teaching job where I am not stressed out?!?! Imagine that! But here's the catch -- I still have to be at school from 8-4, Monday through Friday, regardless of how much I have to do. Today for example, I had one class in the morning and that's it. I probably could have finished everything I have to do by 11 am. But I can't go home until 4, even though I have nothing to do. Instead, I have to find things to do, and when that fails, I have to master the art of looking busy.
This is one of the biggest differences between being a teacher in the US and a teacher in Japan - the working hours. At most US schools, you teach your classes, and can leave anytime after 4. When the students are on break, teachers don't have to come either. Being a coach or an advisor is usually optional, and most teachers I know chose to take their grading home with them. So although teaching does keep you ridiculously busy, the possibility of leaving early, and having all those breaks is sort of a luxury.
But in Japan, teachers are required to stay until 5 on weekdays. ("So it's like a real job," said my high school principal friend, who has dealt with his fair share of teachers bolting the second that classes are over.) Yes, it is like a real job - teachers must be at school from 8-5, just like in any office job. But in reality most of them end up staying until 7 or 8. They are almost always here on Saturdays and often on Sundays as well.
AND here is the biggest difference - when the students are on break, the teachers in Japan still have to be at school. All of winter break, all of spring break, and all of summer break. Can you imagine if they tried to make teachers in the US do that?!?!
Although most of them have enough work to keep them busy the entire time they're at school (unlike me, because I only teach a half load of classes), it is pretty frequent that the teachers have nothing at all to do. Grading and planning are done, and all business is taken care of, but they still have to be here. Some just read, some chat with other teachers, some surf the internet. But it also leads to some pretty funny stuff --
First of all, there's the sleeping - it is perfectly acceptable to sleep at any time during the school day. Japanese are the masters of the short nap - they can fall asleep within seconds in any sitting position, doze peacefully for 10-15 minutes, then pop back awake at exactly the time they need to. You see this on the subways as well - it is like they have inner alarm clocks that tell them exactly when it's time to wake up, an art that many foreigners actually develop after living in Japan. I see teachers sleeping here all the time - at their desks, at the computers, in the lounge, wherever. Always sitting up as well - I have never seen anyone put their head down on their desk. The women will bow their head over some book as if they are reading, but the limp hands and distinct lack of movement are sure signs they are actually asleep. Sometimes there will even be light snoring, and occasionally someone will lose their balance and fall out of their chair.
And then there are the wanderers - we have a few teachers who just amble leisurely around the teachers room when they are bored, reading posts on the wall, whistling, talking to themselves. We have one teacher who we call Freddy Krueger because he wears a stripped shirt, and he spends a significant portion of his day just strolling and muttering to himself.
Taking a cigarette break is OK, but you have to at least go to the end of the school parking lot. Japan has not been hit with the anti-smoking thing yet, so it is ok for a student to see a teacher smoking. In fact, Freddy Krueger is sitting next to me now, and he reeks of smoke.
Another popular activity to pass the time is simply staring into space. As much as I enjoy this myself - I actually think is really healthy to just space and out and daydream - I have a hard time doing it at work, because my brain is wired with the idea of 'must be working while I am at work!' But it is totally ok to do it here. Most teachers will have a book open on their desk, and it was clear that they were attempting to do something before they started letting their mind wander, but sometimes you will see the person with absolutely nothing on their desk, just staring into space for extended periods of time. This is especially popular in the summer time, when the break is extra long.
Probably the first reaction for Westerners is to think "how awful, if there is nothing to do, why can't they just go home?" And it's true that most Westerners would never want a job that forces them to stay even if all their work is completely done. But this is where cultural differences come in - the Japanese have a totally different mindset about their jobs. In Japan, a job is an obligation, not simply a means of making money. It is a source of honor and identity. It might even be fair to say that your job is higher priority than family - I know at least that Japanese teachers spend far more time at school than they spend with thier own children.
In the US, we are super protective of our "personal time," and we draw a clear line between work and personal life. A job that infringes too much on personal life is considered a bad thing. When we talk about people who are too closely tied to their jobs, we do it with a sense of sympathy for the person. The only acceptable reason for working so many hours is to make money, and even this is not desireable for many.
In Japan though, "personal time" takes a much lower priority. For many people, especially teachers, your job is your life, and that is not a bad thing for the Japanese. It seems weird to us, but it is simply the way it is, and people are alright with it. A person who devotes themselves completely to their job is respected for it, and at is more of an obligation than a sacrifice. But I know that with increasing influence of Western culture, that mindset is changing. I have read that a lot of workers are demanding shorter hours and more vacation, and that personal life is starting to be more important than loyalty to the company.
As for myself, I will take the American teaching hours any day. I like having the choice to bring my work home. I think the Japanese system makes sense for them though. But I really don't like having so much down time at work, like I do now. OK, granted, it is great to have ample time to prepare my classes, and still be able to write a blog in the middle of the school day, but I get pretty bored. If there is one thing I have learned about myself in Japan, it is this: I am far more satistifed with a job that keeps me busy. A lot of the other JETs don't get me on this - they love the easy job because it gives them time to persue their own stuff - and I have to say I love this as well. But this job is TOO undemanding! Give me more to do, or let me go home!!
That being said, it is noon now, and I actually do have *some* stuff I need to do today. You know that saying "Work expands to fit the time alloted?" Well, it is absolutely true!!
2 Comments:
474 Things To Do When You're Bored
- Wax the ceiling
- Rearrange political campaign signs
- Sharpen your teeth
- Play Houdini with one of your siblings
- Braid your dog's hair
- Clean and polish your belly button
- Water your dog...see if he grows
- Wash a tree
- Knight yourself
- Name your child Edsel
- Scare Stephen King
- Give your cat a mohawk
- Purr
- Mow your carpet
- Play Pat Boone records backwards
- Vacuum your lawn
- Sleep on a bed of nails
- DON'T toss and turn
- Boil ice cream
- Run around in squares
- Think of quadruple entendres
- Speak in acronyms
- Have your pillow X-rayed
- Drink straight shots...of water
- Calmly have a nervous breakdown
- Give your goldfish a perm
- Fly a brick
- Play tag...on West 35th Street
- Exorcise a ghost
- Exercise a ghost
- Be blue
- Be red
- But don't be orange
- Plant a shoe
- Sweat
- Give a Rorschach test to your gerbil
- Turn
- Write a letter to Plato
- Mail it
- Take your sofa for a walk
- Start
- Stop
- Dial 911 and breathe heavily
- Go to a funeral...tell jokes
- Play the piano...with mittens on
- Scheme
- Sit
- Stay
- Water your family room
- Cause a power failure
- Roll over
- Play dead
- Find a witch
- Burn her
- Donate your brother's body to science
- Ask why
- Wriggle
- Regress
- Sleepwalk without sleeping
- Try to join Hell's Angels by mail
- Wonder
- Be a square root
- Ask stupid questions
- Weld your car doors shut
- Spew
- Vacation at Three-Mile Island
- Surf Ohio
- Teach your pet rock to play dead
- Go bowling for small game
- Be a monk...for a day
- Wear a sweatband to your wedding
- Staple
- Run away
- Intimidate a piece of chalk
- Abuse the plumbing
- Bend a florescent light
- Bend a brick
- Annoy total strangers
- Let the best man win
- Believe in Santa Claus
- Throw marshmallows against the wall
- Hold an ice cube as long as possible
- Adopt strange mannerisms
- Blow up a balloon until it pops
- Sing soft and sweet and clear
- Sing loud and sour and gravely
- Open everything
- Balance a pencil on your nose
- Pour milk in your shoes
- Write graffiti under the rug
- Embarrass yourself
- Grind your teeth
- Chew ice
- Count your belly button
- Sit in a row
- Stack crumbs
- Gesture
- Save your toenail clippings
- Make a pass at your blender
- Punt
- Make up words that start with X
- Make oatmeal in the bathtub
- Search for the Lost Chord
- Chew on a sofa cushion
- Sing a duet
- Balance a pillow on your head
- Hold your breath
- Faint
- Stretch
- Flash your mailman
- Teach your TA English
- Learn to speak Farsi
- Swear in Russian
- Use an eraser until it goes away
- Disassemble your car
- Put it together inside out
- Record your walls
- Interview your feet
- Make a list of your favorite fungi
- Sell formaldehyde
- Repeat
- Ad lib
- Fade
- File your teeth - Whine
- Rake your carpet
- Re-elect Richard Nixon
- Critique "Three's Company"
- Listen to a painting
- Play with matches
- Buff your cat
- Race ferrets
- Paint your house...Day-Glow Orange
- Have a formal dinner at White Castle
- Read Homer in the original Greek
- Learn Greek
- Change your mind
- Change it back
- Watch the sun...see if it moves
- Build a pyramid
- Stand on your head
- Stand on someone else's head
- Spit shine your Nikes
- See how long you can stay awake
- See how long you can sleep
- Paint your teeth
- Wear a salad
- Speak with a forked tongue
- Paint stripes on a lake
- Ski Kansas
- Sleep in freefall
- Kill a Joule
- Test thin ice...with a pogo stick
- Apply for a unicorn hunting license
- Do a good job
- Crawl
- Invite the Mansons over for dinner
- Paint your windows
- Watch a watch until it stops
- Flash your goldfish
- Paint
- Flirt with an evergreen
- Smile
- Rotate your garden...daily
- Paint a smile
- Shoot a fire hydrant
- Apologize to it
- Pretend you're blind
- Annoy yourself
- Get mad at yourself
- Stop speaking to yourself
- Be a side effect
- Ride a bicycle...up Mt. McKinley
- Duck
- Redecorate...your garage
- Develop a complex
- Join the Army...be someone simple
- Try harder
- Hit the deck
- Put leg-warmers on your furniture
- Cut the deck
- Crumple
- Translate Shakespeare into English
- Skydive to church
- Cheer up a potato
- Do aerobic exercises...in your head
- Play cards with your swimming pool
- Pinstripe your driveway
- Play Kick the Fire Hydrant
- Harness chipmunk power
- Build a house with ice cubes
- Call London for a cab
- Mug a stop sign
- Change your name...daily
- Go for a walk in your attic
- Challenge your neighbor to a duel
- Build a house out of toothpicks
- Howl
- Wear a lampshade on your head
- Memorize the dictionary
- Stomp grapes in the bathtub
- Find a bug and chase it
- Make yourself a pair of wings
- Be immobile
- Dance 'til you drop
- Check under chairs for chewing gum
- Squish a loaf of bread
- Moo
- Bounce a potato
- Outmaneuver your shadow
- Climb the walls
- Appreciate everything
- Challenge yourself to a duel
- Make napalm
- Tattoo your dresser
- Watch a bowling ball
- Buy some diapers
- Eat everything
- Begin
- Pour milk in the sink
- Make cottage cheese
- Tie-dye your sheets
- Carpet your ceiling
- Hold your earlobes
- Fold your earlobes
- Flap
- Squawk
- Read tea leaves
- Analyze the Koran
- Be Buddha
- Award yourself a Nobel Peace Prize
- Plug in the cat
- Turn on everything
- Drop pebbles down the chimney
- Turn off your neighbor
- Kill a plant
- Buy a 1931 Almanac
- Memorize the weather section
- Think lewd thoughts about yourself
- Blow bubbles
- Send chills down your spine
- Peel grapes
- Make paper from the skins
- Bloat
- Catch them with your radiator
- Get run over by a train of thought
- Make up famous sayings
- Bite your pinkie - Get your dog braces
- Shave a shrub
- Have a proton fight
- Watch a car rust
- Quiver
- Rotate your carpet
- Learn to type...with your toes
- Set up your Christmas tree in April
- Be someone special
- Buy the Brooklyn Bridge
- Mail it to a friend
- Go back to square one
- Factor your social security number
- Take the fifth
- Memorize a series of random numbers
- Read the 1962 Des Moines white pages
- Join the Foreign Legion
- Learn Sanskrit
- Exist...existentially, of course
- Print counterfeit Confederate money
- Kick a cabbage
- Take a picture
- Put it back
- Sandpaper a mushroom
- Play solitaire...for cash
- Abuse your patio furniture
- Run for Pope
- Count to a million...fast
- Make a schematic drawing...of a rock
- Commit seppuku...with a paper knife
- Revert
- Think shallow thoughts
- Starch your shoes
- Polish your Calvin's
- Contemplate a cockroach
- Get a dog to chase your car
- Let him catch it
- Investigate the Czar
- Form a political party
- Climb a sidewalk
- Have a political party
- Get diagonal...with a good friend
- Ride a loaf of bread
- Sharpen a carrot
- Interrogate a gerbil
- Go bow hunting for Toyotas
- Kidnap Cabbage Patch Kids
- Jump back
- Play to lose
- Scalp a street light
- Have your car painted...plaid
- Read a tomato
- Sharpen your sleeping skills
- Watch a game show...take notes
- Put out a fire
- If you can't find a fire, make one
- Interview a cloud
- Play tiddlywinks...go for blood
- Play basketball...in a minefield
- Don't talk to things
- Draw Lewis structures on your ceiling
- Have your cat bronzed
- Have your gerbil gilded
- Write books about writing books
- Create random equations
- Mispell words
- Tell your feet a joke
- Throw a tomato into a fan
- Sing the ABC song backwards
- Pretend you're a dog
- Dial-a-prayer and argue with it
- Grease the doorknobs
- String up a room
- Stack furniture
- Relive fond memories
- Tie your shoelaces together
- Gargle
- Count your teeth with your tongue
- Decay
- Find your half-life
- Design a better toilet seat
- Shred a newspaper
- Have a headache
- Scratch
- Sniff
- Hatch an egg
- Play air guitar
- Act profound
- Spill
- Spell
- Stare
- Truncate
- Slouch
- Develop hearing problems
- Put your feet behind your head
- Tie bows in everything
- Hold your hand
- Watch the minute hand move
- Grow your fingernails
- Pretend you're a telephone
- Ring
- Radiate
- Skip
- Play hopscotch...with real scotch
- Clock the velocity of your REMs
- Put your shoes on the opposite feet
- Cross your toes
- Roll your tongue
- Crystallize
- Baby oil the floor
- Hide
- Attack innocent bunnies
- Declare war
- Destroy a tree
- Hide the scrabble bag
- Seduce your stick shift
- Wink
- Memorize the periodic table
- Mummify
- Pretend you're a roadie
- Buy a Ginsu knife
- Collect electrons
- Correct typos that aren't there
- Polish your neck...use Pledge
- Recopy the Bible substituting your name for God
- Loosen the lug nuts on your dad's new car
- Drop your cat off the roof to see if it lands on all four feet
- Count the bags under Walter Mondale's eyes
- Unscrew all the lightbulbs and rearrange the furniture
- Found the Jim Jones School of Bartending
- Listen for non-satanic messages (i.e. "Drink milk")
- Dress like Motley Crue...surprise your grandmother
- Dial-a-Prayer and tell them they're wrong
- Go into a bar and ask for a Molotov Cocktail
- Learn everything there is to know about the Holy Roman Empire
- Make a drive-in window at your local bank where there wasn't one before
- Walk on water...but don't get caught
- Confess to a crime...that didn't happen
- Be in the wrong place at the right time
- Plot the overthrow of your local School Board
- Request covert assistance from the CIA
- Discover the source of the Mississippi
- Search for buried treasure...in Nebraska
- Hot wax the bottom of your brother's dress shoes
- Preach the philosophy of Marx...Groucho, that is
- Drink as much prune juice as you can
- Write a book about your previous life
- Serve ping-pong balls...as hors d'oeuvres
- Jump up and down...on your alarm clock
- Make a quilt out of used cocktail napkins
- Sterilize your stereo...with Jack Daniels
- Carve you and your girlfriend's initials...in a marshmallow
- Drive the speed limit...in your garage
- Sing the national anthem...during your calculus final
- Wear a three-piece suit...in a sauna
- Pay off the national debt...with a bad check
- Go to a cemetary and verbally abuse dead people
- Give yourself a hernia...for Christmas
- Defend your neighborhood from roving Mongol hordes
- Recite romantic poetry...to your toaster
- See if you really can build a nuclear device in your own basement
- Go to McDonald's and pretend you can't speak English
- Write to your congressmen, senators, President, etc. to tell them what a good
- job they're doing...On April 1st
- Find the heat capacity of your chemistry professor
- Take apart all your major kitchen appliances...mix and match them
- Turn your TV picture tube upside down
- Phone in a death threat on President Kennedy
- Put lighted EXIT signs on all your closets
- Carry a tune...drop it, see if it breaks
- Be planar...but don't tell your parents
- Play hockey with your little cousin...as the puck
- Make a deal with the devil...but keep your fingers crossed
- Put instant concrete in your big brother's waterbed
- Give a lecture on the historical significance of cream cheese
- Debate politics with a fern
- See how small you can scrunch your face - Sell firewood door to door...in Atlantis
- Found the TLO (Toledo Liberation Organization)
- Play nuclear chicken with a small third world nation
- Raise professional certified racing turnips
- Give your grandmother a raise and another day of paid vacation
- Lead an aerobics class...for patients of the I.C.U.
- Go to a drive-in movie in a tank
- Go to a non-drive-in movie in a tank and drive in anyway
- Send President Reagan an alarm clock...wind it up first
- Found a cockroach stable and stud ranch
- Send your goldfish to obedience school
- Free the oppressed toasters of America
- Weave a tablecloth out of copper tubing
- Give your cat a suntan...in the microwave
- Park your car...with a friend
- Park your car...with a group of friends
- Frame your first statement of bankruptcy
- Place it on the wall of your office
- Solve the population problem (x^2 + y^2 = population...solve for x)
- Contribute to the population problem
- Wear a T-shirt that says "I'll walk on you to see The Who" and a peace sign
- Practice the Aztec method of heart removal on your professor
- Find out who made the super glue commercials and give them your Ginsu knife
- Get Ronco and K-tel to merge...they sell the same stuff anyway
- Sneak into a nuclear physics lab and stay the night
- Play with anything that looks interesting
- Drop piston engines on two people and see who squishes first
- See if your goldfish can live in Coors rather than water
- Try to ignite water...the Mississippi might work
- Draw Venn diagrams...screw them up
- State fallacies as fact (like, "peanuts grow on bushes")
- Visit the Architecture building...loudly criticize its design
- Make a schematic drawing...of a rock
- Wallpaper your laundry room...with pages from books you don't like
- See if diamonds really do cut glass...on everything in your neighbor's house
- Tenderize your tongue...chew on it for a while
- See how long you can stare at a fluorescent light...try green
- Bronze your sister's turtle
- See how long it takes for her to notice
- See what she does when she notices
- Bronze your sister- If you lose, stop watering it and try again.
- Increase your territorial holdings by force
- Find out how many ways there really are to skin a cat
- Boldly go where no man has gone before
- Be a threat to the American way of life
- Do research into the cause of World War III
- Be a threat to the Northwestern Tibetan way of life
- Re-establish the Roman Empire...in Pittsburgh
Love Cousin David
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Wow, that is so interesting! I'm with you...I couldn't stand a job where I wasn't busy all the time.
Friday, February 29, 2008
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