It's Teacher Switching Time!

Recently, a big event occurred in Japan. Around late March, early April, teachers will find out whether or not they will be switched to a new school. Usually, Japanese teachers are rotated to about 4 or 5 schools, and spend around 5 years at each, according to Japanese people. However, some people are exceptions and some can be at a school for only one year, or be like one of the teachers I work with, and be here for like nine years. In any case, it's a big deal. My school is close to the biggest city in Miyazaki so most teachers don't want to leave. So, it's around 1pm at my school where everyone finds out, but that's during lunchtime so I don't want to miss it. I quickly get my food and come back to my office, all of the teachers are there waiting. It was the most stifling that the room has ever been! The teachers were chatting, pretending to not be nervous but it was obvious in how everyone was cautiously looking around, or doing some nervous tic. So, I walk in and I (jokingly) point out the insanely nervous atmosphere; some laugh, others nod awkwardly. Meh, that's normal.

In Japan, their teacher transferring culture is interesting. First off, everyone awkwardly stands around, waiting for the vice principal. The vice principal sits at his desk, gets a phone call from the principal, who is downstairs. The principal says the name of the transferred teacher and tells the vice principal to tell that person to go downstairs and find out the assignment. So the vice principal hangs up, then calls the teacher's name. After one teacher is called, the ones that aren't called all simultaneously let out a sigh of relief. The teacher goes downstairs for about five minutes, finds out where he/she is going, comes back up and tells all of the other teachers of their next assignment. Some are happy, most....not so much, but most people hold in their feelings until they can talk privately with someone they know.

I missed most of it because I got my lunch and I was convinced to eat it before it got cold, but everyone finds out later of course. So, most of the teachers that weren't switched let out 19 sighs of relief, since 19 teachers were transferred. I was happy; my favorite teacher (who helped me out since I got here, even when some teachers were being assholes) wasn't switched so I smiled and said, "Luckily you didn't get switched right?" He shakes his head and tells me that he did get switched to a different school so he has to clean out his desk. I was in shock, I didn't see him get called because I was eating so I foolishly thought that he was gonna stay. I was so disappointed, but he didn't seem to sad about it; he only spent one year here.

So teachers found out their new schools on March 19th, and have to be out by March 30th, and the new teachers come April 1st. I was a bit disappointed about it, but nothing could be done.

Another teacher that I found out was getting switched was my supervisor, and I was there when his name was called. It was a bit shocking, but I wasn't really sad about it. I mean he wasn't the greatest supervisor; not listening to me, saying stupid crap, being a bit negligent when it came to team teaching classes, not doing his job when he's supposed to, but can't wait to do his job when it isn't necessary...some other things too. He was also the head of the English department, but was the worst out of everyone in it, he was only the head of the department because he's the oldest. He was also a bit of pushover in class, until about like..Febuary (mind there were little to no team teaching classes after Febuary). I found out he's going to an industrial school, and that sucks for him. Industrial schools are just for kids that are going straight to factory jobs right after graduation, so they're rude, violent, and actually on par with some American students when it comes to being disrespectful. My students, at their worse, just talk a lot and ignore the teacher, but all of the teachers act they're the worst students to around, and they always ask me if I knew students that were "as bad" as these students are....and I'd chuckle and just go, "Ah...I know a few." In any case, he's not that great with discipline and if he can't handle agricultural students, they're going to eat him alive. I just hope he doesn't end up quitting midway.

It was quite the strange day, there were no classes or anything, so people were just sitting around and talking with each other. The thing is, it's strange how it's guaranteed that every teacher will eventually be switched, makes it hard to form genuine friendships, doesn't it?