Friday 2 March 2012

Working for Peppy Kids Club in Japan

This might be a bit premature since I've only been here a few months, but I've had a couple of emails from people asking me about Peppy Kids Club/iTTTi Japan, because there really isn't much information on the internet about the company. So, after I'd written a rather long email, I thought I might as well post the bulk of it on here too, to help anyone else who is looking. And I've done it in a Q&A style to make it more accessible. You're welcome :p

What kind of work is PKC? 
It's teaching children at private after school classes. Personally, I'd much rather be playing games, doing crafts and singing stupid songs with kids than teaching stuffy businessmen grammar, but it's totally a personal preference. Think before you apply about whether you're happy to work with kids everyday. My youngest class are 3 and my oldest are 17, but the average is about 8-11. You'll be teaching Tuesday to Friday evenings, and during the day on Saturdays (usually). There will be anything up to 13 kids in a class, but most commonly there's about 8 students. 

Where are you teaching?
With Peppy you're teaching at 3 or 4 separate locations, and you're (almost) always teaching independently. The classrooms are all just by themselves, taking up the space where a shop or apartment or something would usually be, rather than being in bigger schools. It's great because it means you have a lot of freedom, but I think it worries some people because you have complete responsibility for the kids. 

Is it true the commuting is a pain?
Because you're at 3 or 4 different schools, and because they're all in random locations, you'll probably have to commute quite a long way for some of your schools. I only have 3 schools, and one is a 20 min bike ride away, one is about 90 minutes by foot/train/bus and the last one is almost 3 hours away (that is because the train line leading there was destroyed by the tsunami last year, and I am only teaching there for one more month until I get a closer school about 2 hours away). The commuting is a pain but it's not the end of the world. It's outside rush hour, and the company pays. It sucks getting home at 10/11pm, but you do usually only have to go work at 3pm.

What are the working hours like?
Peppy has really quite short working hours. The MOST I work in one week is 15 teaching hours, and the least is 6. I also have one week where I don't teach at all, and instead I have "office days" where you're supposed to plan classes (but there's never enough to do so it'd really studying/computer game playing/reading/whatever time!). Even if you included the commuting time as work time, I never work anything like a full time job. Obviously, like anyone working, there's quite a lot of time spent at work, but it's really not that much compared to most jobs! 

What about days off?
As for days off/holiday, I was confused about this right up until halfway through training!! Most working weeks are Tuesday-Saturday, although depending on your schools it might be a little different. And then holiday-wise, you get a week off at the start of May for Golden Week, a week off in August for Obon, about 2 weeks over Christmas and New Year (this is when the 5 company holiday days are), as well as several 3/4day weekends, random days off, and 5 paid holiday days to be taken when you like. You can also take extra unpaid days off, as long as your supervisor agrees, and while I haven't tried to do this myself, the other people I've spoken to said it's usually pretty easy to do so long as you give enough notice. There's more time off than I thought there would be. 

Can you survive/save on the money you're given?
You can easily save money if you want to. We think we could save at least 60,000yen a each a month, and I still feel that we're making the most out of opportunities and not stressing about money to be able to save that much. Maybe in the months when we have holiday time and we go away we won't be able to save that much, but personally I'd rather make the most out of being in Asia (we're going to Taiwan for week in May :D). Some teachers seem to really struggle on their paychecks. I honestly have no idea how though. Lots and lots of alcohol, crazy trips and too much shopping I guess. But Japan isn't that much more expensive than England, so unless you're stupid you can definitely save money. Oh, but be prepared to be broke when you first arrive, whatever company you go with: the exchange rate is crap, it'll be a while until your first paycheck, and there's a lot of starting up expenses, like buying a phone, a bike, setting up utilities etc.

Is it easy to meet people?
As for meeting people...it 100% depends where you get placed. We've found it hard to meet people, but our circumstances are a bit complex since we're in the area that was affected by last year's tsunami. So a lot of foreigners left after that and there's still a lot fewer than before. But we have met people, it just might take a little while. It depends on so many factors, but there are plenty of people to be met! I think I need to get better at being brave enough to just accost random people in the street! One of the things about Peppy that isn't so good is that because you're working alone with children, there aren't many adults to be met through work. 

Are you pleased you work for PKC?/Are they a good company to work for?
Whilst we've had plenty of minor issues with Peppy, they are pretty good and helping you sort out problems/translate for you etc. They're not very forthcoming with help until you directly ask them about it, but then we've found them mostly pretty good. The work is pretty easy and the hours are fairly light. I don't feel like they are trying to screw us over. 
BUT, having said that, if I have other options, I don't think I'll work for them for more than a year. Working in the evenings isn't ideal, and I'm not a massive fan of their curriculum. Our apartment locations completely sucks which is their fault, and they weren't great at being honest with us and treating us like adults when we first came. 
BUT, I do think they're a good, easy and relatively stress-free way to come to Japan. A good starter company, I think.


I hope that information is helpful to anyone who is thinking of working for Peppy. If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask them in the comments and I'll do my best to answer. And if there's anyone who disagrees with me, then feel free to write that too. And if anyone from Peppy reads this, I hope I don't get fired! 

62 comments:

  1. Hi Susie,

    Thank you for writing this post!
    Do you know if Peppy hires english teachers outside of USA, europe and canada? I'm from Singapore, but english is one of my first language.

    Looking forward to your reply!

    regards,
    Jun

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome :)
      There were 2 Filipino (I think that's the right spelling!) and 2 Nigerian teachers that trained with me. So I guess they do hire from other countries as long as English is your first language, but you'd have to interview in one of Japan/Australia/England/America/Canada. So that might be a problem.

      Delete
  2. Hi Susie,

    This post was great. Thanks so much. I've recently applied to PKC and have an interview coming up. Do you have any interview tips you'd be willing to share?

    Thanks again.

    Xandi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't stress about the interview too much, it was pretty straightforward. Questions I remember included why you want to go to Japan/where in Japan you want to go and why/how you'd deal with bad behaviour or a child running away or crying or complaints of bullying/Why you want to work for PKC/What experience you have teaching or working with children. Fairly standard interview stuff really.
      Then there was a short English test, about 10 grammar questions and a short essay on something like why you want to work for PKC or what you hope to get out of your time in Japan.
      And then there was the short demo lesson, which was a bit pointless, just have a game or short activity to do, and bring in visual props if you can.

      がんばって!Good Luck!

      Delete
    2. And just out of interest, what 'would' you do if a child ran out of the room/started crying?

      Delete
  3. thanks for your words of wisdom. your blog is fantastic by the way. it's getting me really excited to (hopefully!) get to japan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Good luck with getting to Japan! We found it hard work getting here but it's worth it!

      Delete
  4. Hi there! Thank you for making this post. :) One question I have is about the kids. Are they typically well behaved? I have some experience working with kids, but not a lot, so I do worry about my ability to corral a bunch of wild childs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Rosie :)

      The kids really, really vary from school to school. I have a total mix. Generally the younger kids are harder to control because they're used to be spoilt by Mum at home and they have no understanding of what's expected of them in a school setting. Usually the older kids are better, but not always!

      Behaviour in general though isn't too bad. Very few kids are actually horrible, just too chatty/lazy/tired/not interested. Plus there isn't really any sort of sanction/reward system so there's little incentive to act well. But, the good thing about Peppy is that you only see each class once a month (so you don't have to deal with the nightmare classes too often) and there's nobody else there to see/hear if your classes occasionally turn into a circus!

      I wouldn't let worries about the kids behaviour put you off. It's not always perfect, but in my opinion it's nowhere close to a reason not to do the job!

      Delete
  5. Hi Susie!

    I've been skimming through your blog and a lot of your information has been helpful for hopeful ALT's/eikawa teachers.

    I had a phone interview with PKC (Vancouver office) yesterday and they asked me to come by for a face-to-face interview. How did you find yours? The only information I was given was the fact that there will be flashcards provided and I will then have to make a lesson plan out of it.

    Also, how did you find the way they dealt with your placement request? The recruiter I spoke with on the phone said that my requested placement is probably available (because I did not request Kanto or Kansai), but how did you find your experience with it? Does PKC allow you to relocate if, unfortunately, you did not like where you were placed?

    Sorry for the burst of questions. It seems like you'd be the best person to ask these questions to :P

    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Peter!

      Thanks for dropping by :) Fire away with questions, I bombarded people before I came (and still do haha), so I guess it's fair to impart the small bits of wisdom I have!

      I answered a question above with a little information about the interview. I think ours must have been a little different because we just had a face to face interview, rather than a phone one first. I guess it's because England is a little smaller than America and Canada!

      Our demo lesson was fine, the recruiter's secretary was the child and we just had to teach her a 5 min demo as if she was a 3-5 year old. I'd advise you to have a few game ideas up your sleeve, and that'll probably be all you need really. Bear in mind our interview space was tiny, so the games might have to be fairly contained ones!

      We were a little complicated on placement requests. I came with my boyfriend so we asked to be placed as close together as possible, in the south, ideally near Fukuoka or Hiroshima. However, we then had an email a while later saying that due to people leaving after the earthquake/tsunami they had a lot of placements available in Sendai, and if we agreed to go there we could be placed really close. So we agreed and have two apartments in the same building!

      They seem to try to do the best they can with placements, but obviously it totally depends on what people are leaving the month you join. Unfortunately, Peppy doesn't allow you to relocate until after you've completed a year's contract, so it's fingers crossed you like where you get!

      Hope that's helpful :)

      Delete
  6. Wow, thanks for the awesome information!

    Do you know how many others there are teaching for PKC there in Sendai or Miyagi with you and your boyfriend?

    Being around Miyagi would actually be my place of choice for a placement even though it's still recovering from last year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome :)

      There's about 10 of us in this area, but unfortunately most people are pretty settled, I can't see anyone leaving that soon, but you never know! I have no idea about people in surrounding areas though, but I say there's a good chance you'd be placed somewhere vaguely near here if you want to be.

      Good luck with the interview :D

      Delete
  7. Yeah, Japan is quite small after all! Travel 5 hours and you've probably covered quite a bit of Japan already, unlike Canada! Haha.

    Thanks, Susie! You've been a great help.

    Cheers

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha yeah, but those 5 hours of travel will cost you! Transport options are quick and super expensive, or slow but fairly cheap! But I guess compared to Canada, everywhere is close!

      You're welcome, good luck with your interview and placement, and let me know if you're heading up this way!

      Delete
  8. Hey Susie,

    I was wondering if you know where the possible placements are? Thanks so much for the info!!

    Cheers, Steph

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Steph,

      Placements are literally everywhere. All over the country, and it could be in a big city or a small town. The only place they're not is in central Tokyo. I think there's a higher concentration around the Nagoya area, but you could be anywhere. You can request preferences when you are interviewed, but Peppy don't guarantee them. It's pretty easy to make the most of wherever you are though :)

      Delete
  9. Hi Susie,

    I had my interview a couple of days ago and I heard back from them today. I got accepted! Now, I am in a bit of a dilemma here because I also had an interview for Interac, an ALT dispatch company, a few weeks ago. My recruiter told me that my results were quite favourable but I have not heard back from them yet. I will have to reply back to PKC in a few days for the offer.

    I just have a few more questions if you don't mind to help me out with my decision...

    How often do you get those weeks off for "planning days?"

    Also, you mentioned that you were not pleased with the way PKC treated you as non-adults and how they were not being honest when you guys first came. Would you be able to provide a bit more detail?

    Again, thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello!

      Congratulations!

      Obviously you know best what sort of work you'd like, Interac is pretty different to Peppy. Personally, I'd rather work for interac I think, but it depends on what you prefer. You could always say yes to Peppy then "change your mind" if you hear back positively from Interac :)

      How many Office Days you get depends entirely on your schools. Some people get barely any (possibly if any), but everyone I know has a good few days a month. I have almost as many as I do teaching days, which gets fairly boring but is really easy!

      As to the start, I think that it was just a case of having to ask direct questions to get the answers. There were problems finding our apartment, and with transport to one of our schools and a few other bits and bobs and Peppy didn't really keep us in the loop, and tried to sugar coat everything. But I think we we're fairly unusual with the problems we had to start with, and it just means you need to ask persistently.

      Good luck with decision making!

      Delete
  10. Hi Susie,

    I have been accepted by Interac as well but the start date they are offering is not until April 2013. Either that, or they provided me with a choice to start as an alternate during Dec-February.

    I decided to go with Peppy because they offer an earlier start date. At first, the plan was September but now they changed to October 1st as they are cancelling the September intake.

    How many people were at training with you when you went?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There were about 25 of us in total, but we were an unusually large group, I think most are more like 15.

      I hope you enjoy your time with Peppy :)

      Delete
  11. Interesting to see your PKC perspective...I've been here with PKC for 14 months in the Kyoto Area...but I'd like to add for those reading this that her experience is FAR from the norm...if there even is one...

    For example you said you work 6-15 teaching hours in one week...which is insane to me. I know for certain no NT in my area (perhaps it's just MUCH bigger and busier) works that little. I'd say 10-12 is my MINIMUM teaching hours per week with maybe low 20's as my MAXIMUM. There are other radical variants between your story and mine so I think it's safe to say the bulk of your experience will depend on placement.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Peter, thanks for you input :)

      I get the impression that there isn't a Peppy 'norm', everyone seems to work completely different hours, even within this area. I'd say 10-15 hours is the average around here, but there are a lot of office days for people here too which makes a big difference.

      I can't say for sure what everyone's experiences have been like, only mine and my friends (both in this area and friends from training across the country) and they seem to be fairly similar. If you'd like to add anything about other differences to help people make informed decisions about Peppy, then please feel free :)

      Delete
  12. My experience has been much more like Peter Palmer's than Susie's. I think situations can vary enormously depending on the area and even the schools. I've been with Peppy for a couple of years and I've been lucky with my PS and JTs. However, the company does a lot of dodgy stuff and I have friends in other areas who have a terrible time with their supervisors and managers.

    The work hours is a major issue for me. I teach between 15-20 lessons a week. The company expects me to write that on my timesheet as if that was my total work hours. However, to do an adequate job, I need to prepare for lessons, take care of students between classes, clean, go to meetings, do promotions, prepare for meetings. I could easily call an average work day double what the company insists I call it and that makes me well and truly eligible for health insurance. I could save some decent money if I weren't shovelling so much of my pay into kokumin hoken.

    A couple of the guys I know, along with some of their JTs, are looking to get us set up with a union and the more I look into them, the more I like the idea of it. I'm going to join up next Monday when I get paid. It will be more than worth it for the shakai hoken alone if we can get it.

    Check out the link behind my name. It's Peppy's own page at the union. Use the form to tell them what's bothering you. I really want them to focus on the insurance issue. Newbies to Japan really underestimate what a big deal it is until the bills start rolling in. And if you have a major medical issue and NO shakai hoken, life gets miserable fast.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Tommy,

      I agree that the hours on your timesheet aren't as much as you really work, especially in regards to the gaps between classes. Students always come really early to my lessons. I'm lucky enough to have office days to plan my classes in, but since we're given a basic outline of the lesson and we teach the same class over and over through the month, the amount of prep work isn't that much really. And maybe my area is different, but I don't have to do promotional work outside class and meetings etc are included on my timesheet anyway. Even if I include all my extra work, I'm still not at a full time week, even in the week I teach 18 classes (and in fact even if you count the 90 minute commute each way as work I only just hit a 40hr working week).

      If I really worked full time then I'd be cross I didn't get employers insurance. As it is, I don't mind at all.

      For the information of new-comers, be aware that health insurance is pretty much a non issue in your first year. It's based on previous income in Japan, so you'll only be paying about ¥2000 a month. In your 2nd year it does apparently jump up a lot, but still only to about ¥10,000 a month I think. Even if you add that to all the other taxes you pay, that's still a lower % than I'd being paying in tax in the UK. I find it still leaves enough to save a good amount of money.

      Delete
    2. PS - Tommy, FYI, the link behind your name doesn't work.

      Delete
    3. Yes. I realized after I posted that Blogger doesn't like URLs with special characters. I hope the link works here; http://www.generalunion.org/branch?b=54

      It sounds like you have a pretty sweet deal where you are. My 3 schools share 17 days and 51 classes between them. So I have a few office days but I'd rather do without them. The idea in our area is that office days aren't meant to take the load off the rest of your month's workload as not everybody has them. If you have planning to do for lessons then it needs to be done in your own time. Rather, office days are for projects that benefit the area and sales. After we do our office day call in, we go to a classroom or office, fax our PS with our plan for the day's work and send a completion report at the end of the 5.5 hour day.

      It usually needs to be a poster or a work sheet or a lesson plan with activities and materials for a trial lesson during the times we run those. Something along those lines and something that can be used by everybody especially for the purposes of sales promotion or taikai prevention.

      Seeing as I don't use that time to plan my lessons, I don't know how I could roll up to a classroom 30 minutes early, write lesson reports, prepare activities and take care of the early birds. Not to the standard I'd be happy with at any rate. I don't begrudge the sales aspect and in truth, I'd be rather keen to take on a sales role with Peppy (if they allowed it) but if the company gets value from my work, and they do, then I want them to recognize my efforts as work time.

      I make sure to put down my check-in and check-out times to reflect the actual times but the fact that I can only put my lessons down as my work hours is the only thing that keeps me under 30 hours a week. That's all you need in Japan to get company insurance. As it stands, my health insurance last year was 8 payments of ¥44,000. Far for more than ¥120,000 you're estimating. I've been in Japan for 4 years mind so that might have bumped it up but I'm single and in good health so I think you ought to check your figures on the insurance front. Also, I've been on ¥250,000 since I started with Nova 4 years ago so it wasn't my previously earning megabucks that bumped up my premiums. Admittedly, they are good with the ¥40,000 reimbursement but it's a pittance after all.

      Delete
    4. I do have a fairly low workload really, which is what I've said all along. I know some people have bigger ones, but teaching 51 classes a month still isn't a full time job. Just ask any school teacher anywhere in the world.

      Office days here are used for all sorts, because everyone has at least some, but surely even if you're making resources for everyone, they can still be used for your classes too, as welcome activities or to help teach the work well. I can't believe you actually spend 15+ hours a month making posters! It sounds like a great idea for everyone to make resources to share during office days. And if that's the case, your lessons must benefit from work others do too, which ought to make lesson planning easier.

      I very rarely turn up just 30 minutes early either, but lesson planning is fairly easy. Once you have a load of games and activities you can rotate round (which you must have if you've been in Japan 4 years), I don't find it takes that much preparation.

      A quick bit of maths...If you teach 17 days, that means you must have about 4 office days, which totals about 73 hours a month. That allows you an extra 3½ hours per teaching day to plan, look after early kids etc before you get to an average of 30 hours a week.

      I agree it would be lovely if Peppy did help, but you can't argue that they have an obligation to.

      PS - Have had another look at costs, and it seems that I was mistaken and that ¥20,000 per month is more common. I'm not sure why yours is so much more than that, but I don't pretend to understand the complexities! I still think that allows you to save a fair amount though.

      Delete
    5. Tethered to my phone on the way to work now so I'll keep it brief. The massive walls of text I wrote sidetracked my main point anyway. I realize 51 classes isn't arduous. Neither is a 40 or 50 hour week full time job like I was doing when I worked my way through college in my final year. But arduousness is irrelevant.

      I can and have shown my PS my SAS and I was able to justify every hour as being of value to the company and done at the request of our office's staff. It's a rare week when I go under 30 hours and yet he shakes his head and says I still have to write in only my lesson hours as work hours. Look at your company handbook.

      I understand if you think I'm lying because my situation is different to yours. OK, but I'm not lying about the law or what's in the company administration guide. You can verify those for yourself.

      It simply doesn't matter if the job is easy or fun or I knew what I was getting myself in for when I started. I don't quite understand your point about the company and its lack of obligation to help but I can tell you they have an obligation to provide me, about half my fellow NTs and a slightly higher proportion of JTs with health insurance based on hour hours.

      Delete
    6. My point is, that you can spend as much time as you like improving/changing the curriculum or adding to lessons, but Peppy neither expects or wants you to do this. I agree that the lessons aren't always great, but that's what Peppy wants you to teach. They aren't contracting you to change it. They want you to teach what's given, and to do that you don't need to work over 30 hours a week.

      I know what the law and the admin guide say, and if you really were expected by Peppy to work for 30 hours plus a week then you'd have an argument, but if you're choosing to make extra work for yourself, that's your decision. Even if it's of benefit to the company, unless they demand you do it (which they don't), they're under no obligation to treat those as work hours.

      I'm sure there are some JTs who do deserve health insurance, and the way Peppy treats it's JTs is another matter altogether. However, I find it very hard to believe that there are any cases (certainly not 50% as you claim) where Peppy actually expects NTs to regularly work over 30 hours.

      Delete
  13. Peter and Tommy, no one in our area works 4 classes, 5 days a week all month. Nor have I covered at any schools outside our area which came close to that. It just doesn't happen around here. Now our area might be quieter than yours but I guess that comes from being up north where sales are less frequent and there are less people but that's the pay off for being in the sticks I guess!

    Tommy I think you're exagerrating somewhat with the amount of prep you have to do. Preparing for lessons - well since the entire lesson is already planned out for us I don't see how you can spend more than half an hour on any class to add better games or whatever (and then you're sorted for the month). Taking care of students is 15 minutes per class maximum. Cleaning takes what, 5 minutes? We get paid to go to meetings and this is included in our work days for the month. Preparing for meetings - well maybe your PS is a hard ass, but you say you've been lucky with him so perhaps not, but we barely have to do any prep. No more than sharing your plan for a class in the term which you should have anyway.

    Even if I believe that you both do 20 hours a week, every week, that's still half of a normal working week in Europe. We get paid a full time wage for doing nothing like a full time job and even if you factor in health insurance it still doesn't reduce it sufficiently to say we're hard done by.

    Peter could you elaborate about what other “radical variations” you see?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John, I'm near the top in my area for the amount of classes I teach but I'd say there are a couple of people with more hours. I don't do as much of the extra stuff like Wish Academy, web lessons, kindergartens or the other offsite stuff that Peppy is into. Perhaps you don't have those things in your area. Ia m in the sticks and in my experience, that is where the really long days and massive classes occur. It's the scools in places like downtown Osaka that struggle because thay have an ECC Kids next door. Peppy is on their own in the inaka and own the show. No idea why things are so quiet for you.

      John, the lesson isn't planned out for me. There is a manual which is so old that it doesn't reflect the way the lessons are taught. WTF is a Peppy Book for phonics? Where does it mention happyokai? None of that stuff is in there but has to be planned for. And even before the changes like the removal of the Peppy Book for NTs or the introduction of happyokai, the manual and the textbooks were never very good. They are put together by former NTs and JTs who are assigned the task of creating materials. Any materials. The goal isn't to make something good as to make something. Period.

      I spend a lot more than 5 minutes cleaning. You guys don't have a cleaning checklist or is it just for the JT's? We have to vacuum and leave the class each day as though it were our last at the school. Often it is the case that your PS will have to send you somewhere else and they'll cover your class or some other reason. There are also meetings going on in the classes during the day that we are unaware of. Whatever the case, I can understand why it is but cleaning for me isn't just a quick wipe of the bathroom and sticking my bento box in my bag. I can write out lesson reports while kids remain in the classroom but it's unprofessional to start vacuuming and such while they are there.

      Sure we get paid to go to meetings. The same as classes and trial lessons too. And since we're paid, the hours should be included in our work hours and if those work hours go over 30 a week, we should get company insurance as the law requires. Nova did this shit too and I put up with it but it was when they started pulling some more of that kind of nonsense that I left. My boss is no hard ass. Some of the stuff he asks for is a bit much but generally we accept that some stuff just is the way it is. For example, the sales staff shouldn't have to do their meetings in a classroom that has been left by a native teacher who assumes nobody else will be there. However, because of the way things are, my hours are creeping up and I can only imagine my work is making more money for the company. meanwhile, they're treating me like insurance will break the bank.

      Delete
    2. Tommy,

      Web lessons etc attract more pay so I don't think they're really relevant to our discussion. It's not like Peppy forces you to do any of those extra things and of course they'd count as more work hours if you did do them.

      No the text books aren't very good, but neither is the entire curriculum, however that is what we have and therefore is what we have to plan around. Yea things like the Peppy Book are missing but it is pretty much only used for phonics which is a very minor part of a class (allocated 5-10 minutes maxmimum)so I don't really believe it is a big gap and it doesn't take long to plan and do an activity with phonics anyway.

      I don't know what you do in your lessons but unless its a red/yellow class I struggle to see how the classroom can be in that much of a state by the end? Yesterday I had a class of 12 aqua kids and we used playing cards, blocks, cups, chips, chopsticks, picture/phonics cards, alphabet letters, 2 girls got picked up 10 minutes late, and I was still able to tidy up sufficiently and entertain the girls before my next class started. Some of the stuff I tidied as I went along (as any sensible person would) but alot of it needed to be put away at the end.

      Our meetings are included in our work hours. If you count up the paid days you have in a month and have a meeting when there are no other classes then that counts as a whole work day. Yea you get a little screwed when you have classes on the same day as a meeting but not so badly.

      As for what you said you have to do in your office days, how can you possibly say that isn't worthwhile and helpful work for you? If you're planning trial lessons and developing new activities/worksheets then you can use those activities in your lessons.it can't possibly be wasted time. You even said it yourself, you develop stuff for everyone to use...everyone includes you! Whatever we say about the Peppy curriculum it is certainly formulaic and lends itself very well to passing activities between classes and levels with minor changes, so practically anything you do can be used for any class (maybe kangaroo and touchstone excluded).

      Aside from all of that, we're both sitting here at 1:30pm writing 300 word blog posts to someone we don't know for no particular reason. If our Peppy lives were so arduous I don't think we'd bother....

      Delete
  14. I am starting with Peppy October 2012. Does anyone know what the housing is like during training? My recruiter said it is about $300 for the two weeks.

    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi,

      During training, you'll be sharing an apartment with another trainee. They vary a bit, but all have a small kitchen, living area and a bedroom or two. Depending where you are, you might be sharing a room, but most apartments have 2 bedrooms.

      I can't remember how much it cost, but Peppy pays, and then takes it gradually out of your wages. Your "training loan" covers that accommodation, plus your first month's rent, and usually comes to about ¥70,000 to ¥80,000, which I think is about $800-$900. You pay it back, ¥10,000 per month, out of your wages.

      Hope that helps! Ask away if there's anything else you're unsure of!

      Delete
  15. Thank you! :)

    Do you remember how everything went when you arrived at Nagoya airport? Was there someone there to meet you and help set up things like a bank account, foreigner card, utilities, etc.?

    How much luggage did you take? I am thinking about a large and medium checked bad and a duffel or backpack.

    When did you get your apartment address?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We didn't arrive to Nagoya airport, we got the train there so we had to get to the office ourselves. But I'm sure the meet up will all go fine! They'll just take you to the office to do some paperwork, then drive you to your training accommodation. It all seems to run pretty smoothly.

      Things like bank account/utilities/foreigner card/mobile phone you can't set up until you finish training and move to the area you'll be living in. On the day you move, you'll be met off the train by your PS (perfomance supervisor, the person in charge of all the Native teachers in your area), and they'll take you to your new apartment, where utilities should already be set up. Then that day or the next one, they'll help you get everything else sorted.

      I brought a biggish suitcase, a biggish rucksack and a small duffel bag. Basically, as much as the airline would let me!! I'm actually planning soon to do a blog post on things I wish I'd brought with me/things I wish I hadn't etc, so stay posted!!!

      Ours was a bit of a special case, but we got told we were in Sendai about 2.5 months before we came, but then didn't find out our actual address until over halfway through training. Mostly, people find out where they'll be about a month before coming, and then get their address sometime during the first week of training, although apparently people sometimes get the contact of the person they're replacing, so obviously then you could find the address out earlier.

      Delete
  16. Hey Susie,

    I really like your blog! I applied to Peppy on the 14th and haven't heard back from them yet. Do you know about how long it takes for them to contact you for an interview (or if they bother to send a rejection e-mail to applicants who don't make the cut)? I've looked at other eikawa and Peppy is the one I like the fit of best, so if I don't get a reply I'll probably just re-apply a few months down the road.

    Do you think someone having little to no experience with kids is a big disadvantage? I run a lab and train undergrads, but obviously that's quite different than teaching a classroom of youngsters.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello, sorry I never saw this comment!

      I hope you've managed to find a way to get to Japan, whether through Peppy or someone else.

      Obviously experience with kids is always going to be an advantage, but I know some teachers who had none before they came so its definitely not an insurmountable hurdle!

      Delete
  17. Thank you! VERY useful information, I'm trying to do the same as some of the horror "stories" out there by that one man of many disguises is just wrong. It's an amazing opportunity especially for any young person.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad you think it's useful. I agree that it would be awful if people were put off by horror stories from years ago. Peppy might not be perfect, but it does offer a good opportunity!

      Delete
  18. Hi, Susie!

    This is Peter from the previous posts who was asking questions about Peppy. I just wanted to drop by and say hi! I'm in Kitakami, Iwate now and I have just finished my teacher training. Man, those two weeks were crazy!

    It seems like all is well with you. It's too bad that you guys will be leaving soon but I'm sure you and your boyfriend have had a great time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Congratulations on getting to Japan! I hope you settle in well and have a great time in Kitakami! I think you must have the same PS as us? He's great, I love Tom!

      We have had a lot of fun here, still 2 months to go! There are loads of gorgeous places to explore ^^

      Delete
  19. Wow, never knew we had the same PS! I thought they would be different since I'm with Tohoku Chuo! Unless Sendai is part of the same region? Hehe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, Sendai is part of Tohoku Chuo too at the moment, although it won't be from January when the areas move round. We'll have left by then though!

      Delete
  20. Hello Susie,

    I really enjoyed reading your experiences with the program, along with everyone else in the comments below. I have a few questions I would like to ask you.

    I graduate in May, so when do you think is a good time for me to apply for Peppy Kids? I heard they hire year around, but I'm not sure how long the process takes.

    Also, how many references do we need to get for this program? What do they base their decision on when calling people in for an interview?

    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello!

      I'm glad you found this helpful!

      If I was you, I'd apply as soon as possible really. There's no harm in it, and you can specify on the application form (I think) or at the interview (definitely) when you'd be hoping to start. We applied about 9 months before we eventually ended up going (we pushed it back due to work at home), and whilst I know people who did the whole process within less than 2 months, I know I felt happier having it all sorted early!

      I'm afraid I don't know about what they base their decisions on. I guess it's on previous experience with kids/teaching, enthusiasm for living in Japan, etc; all the usual things you'd expect! I think we needed two references, and they only contact them after you've had the interview.

      Hope that's helpful!

      Delete
  21. Thank you for responding!

    9 months? Wow, but eventually you went so that's great.:)

    I actually applied maybe less than a week ago, so now I have to wait for a response. How long do you think it would take for them to notify me about it? I have a friend that is also in the program, and she told me it took about 2 months to hear from them about an interview.

    The application its self was quite...simple. I was surprised. I also applied to JET and that application was a nightmare. So, I thought it would be a good idea to apply to my second choice, just in case I don't get into JET.

    Anyways, when exactly would they need the references? Do they have to be work related or it can all be from school?

    I'm sorry I'm asking a lot of questions. There is so little information from people about this program out there.

    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No problem!

      I think we heard back pretty quickly, but I can't remember exactly.

      Yeah, compared to the JET application, I think any application ever is pretty simple! JET was a nightmare! I think most Peppy people are people who applied to JET and didn't get on.

      I think we had to take the details of the referees to our interview, then they contacted them afterwards. It might be different at different recruiting offices though (we were in England). I think they could be anything, so I suppose two from University would be OK, but if you have any experience with kids (work or voluntary) I'd suggest putting someone from that as one reference.

      I'm happy to answer questions, so just me know if you have anymore :)

      Delete
  22. Hello. I have accepted a job with PKC and they have recently told me they are reducing the wage to 240000 per month, after promising 250000. You have stated you could save 60000 per month, is this from one wage or does it include your partners wage also?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's from one wage, so we save double that between us. We're pretty frugal on a day-to-day basis (we cook everything ourselves, not much eating out or drinking or shopping, we don't use the air-con or heating a lot, etc) but as my blog shows, we have been on lots of holidays, day trips and weekends away!

      To start with, you probably won't save that much (due to start up costs) and if you stayed a second year then the amount you could save would go down as health insurance and city and municipal tax would all go up. But, as a rough average over our first year, I'd say its easily doable.

      Delete
  23. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Hello!

    I have my interview next week with PKC. Your post has been really helpful and I am really excited about my interview - I was nervous about the demo lesson and have been put at ease reading this. I have never taught kids before so I hope I stand a chance as they sound like one of the better places to teach english in japan - I was considering Gaba but after reading all the reviews on Peppy I think it puts Gaba to shame! Great post :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hi, I recently applied to PKC, and was offered a position. However, I'm not sure that I want to accept, because they seem to be deceiving me about the pay. Originally they had offered me 240,000 but in the contract it stipulates that only 185,000 will be payed for working the standard hours, and the 240,000 will only be payed if I work more than the standard hours, which is not guaranteed. I feel like I've been given the "bait and switch", and I don't know if I trust the organization now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 185,000?? a month and then you have to pay for monthly rent and utilities?? did you accept the job??

      Delete
  26. Hi there, I recently heard about this program and have not been able to find any information about families applying for PKC. My husband and I are interested and we have an 8 year old who would be coming with us, if we were successful. I know with JET, families are welcome, while with other companies, such as Amity, this is discouraged. Do you have any information on this subject? Thank you :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. hi susie ^_^ thanks very much for this post.. i learned a lot ^_^
    hmmm..just a question, were there trainees who didn't pass the training and sent back home??

    ReplyDelete
  28. hi susie :) just a question, is the pay less if the teacher is let's say an Asian? because i read somewhere the it is less..is that true?

    ReplyDelete
  29. Hi Susie, thank you for being very informative.
    I have one question that I have been searching for on their official site, and I want to know if you had to pay for your apartment before you left for Japan, and if so, how much?
    Thank you so much...

    ReplyDelete


  30. Nice to meet you,Susie!

    Hello,Susie Happy Thursday!My name is Nada and I am from the Philippines as well. I saw your Japan adventures and it was all interesting! XD
    I just have few inquiries,though.I know you are very busy,but still,i would like to take the risk.
    I am very intetested to work at Peppy Kids School Club...
    Questions are...
    1.I live in the Philippines,and I heard that you should fly to New York and LA.Iwas wondering if the company is open for interview via Skype?
    2.If i managed to pass...(well,to be honest,im not really confident but i just want to give it shot.) is PKC going to cover the ticket to Japan or it would be me?
    Thank you in advance and God Bless!

    ReplyDelete
  31. What were some of the grammar questions? Thanks for all the posts - I am just curious if there was just one example> thanks

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hello, I hope your still visiting this post since I have a question about PKC pay. I have heard that it is 250,000 yen /month but then I hear that you only work 4 hours/day and like you said maximum 15 hours/ week. Seems like the pay would be much smaller than 250,000 /month. Does PKC just pay an insane amount per hour or is there something I'm missing because my husband works for Nova and gets paid ~210,000 / month but works close to 38 hrs per week. thanks for the response.

    ReplyDelete