It's April, which means new recruits in companies across Japan. And as the new school year starts, new foreign English teachers all over Japan are settling into their positions in Japanese public schools, getting shocked out of their socks. The newbie English teacher social media chatter has begun! Statements riddled with sparks are starting to fly across Facebook: "Why does that Japanese teacher I teach with keep telling the students the answers? Is parroting English phrases really helpful? Rote memorization of English grammar is not learning!" Yada, yada, yada.
These teachers need a warm, dry, convenient place to go to get answers to these perennial questions. While the Japan Helpline website urges you to "Call 24 hours a day, from anywhere about anything, anytime from a simple question to emergency assistance," I think they'd have a hard time answering some of the Emergency English questions teachers are likely to have.
Let's say, for example, a bout of English Teacher Frustration (ETF) attacks you in the middle of the night. You're so upset by the theory of rote memorization, you can't sleep. What about critical thinking skills, you ask yourself. Don't these people know the difference between studying foreign language skills versus acquiring them? Isn't the mere act of rote memorization to pass exams mired in shades of verisimilitude? Or maybe you are tired of all the difficult questions about English grammar your Japanese colleagues ask you. Perhaps you need to know the Japanese word for "bugger off." Or you're suddenly receiving gifts for no apparent reason.