Let's Japan.org Debunking Eikaiwa and Ramblings in Japan

As mentioned in the forums, NOVA lost it's appeal in the Supreme Court.

The top court on Tuesday dismissed an appeal by prominent English language school NOVA and ordered the group to return about 300,000 yen in prepaid tuition fees to a student who cancelled a contract.

Here's an interesting look at how we see the news. The English press in Japan reported on a finding in a survey about how young Japanese women have been injuring themselves on purpose. Here's how the Kyodo News reported it:

The Yomiuri had an article on geothermal power titled Given that Japan is completely dependent on foreign oil and that global warming is a serious problem, it's only natural that alternative energies be sought out. But looking at the headline, “Benefits of geothermal power eyed,” you'd wonder what those benefits are. Here they are:

The Japan Times had a couple of articles today on the March in March, a union drive for equal rights in the workplace for foreign workers. It's a must-read since it exposes eikaiwa for what it is: a dead-end McJob. The first article is here.

This sums up the essence of the problems in eikaiwa:

Let's Japan has been pretty dormant for a while with only a handful of articles posted in the past year or two. The forums have been the main source of activity. The reason is simple: I have moved on. I've been out of eikaiwa for 10 years now and I cannot honestly say I know much about the industry any more. I've purged my eikaiwa demons. It's time for someone else to carry the torch.

LJ isn't going away. The site has been given a faceift and I hope to write more about Japan also want to invite other LJ users to blog here as well.

It seems that Nova is in serious trouble. The front page of the Asahi shimbun this morning carried an article about Nova being raided on February 14 by the Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry (METI) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on suspicion of violating the Specified Commercial Transactions Law.

Update I, February 18, 2007

Update II, March 24, 2007

An LJ reader has sent us a letter from the Kanagawa BOE stating that all foreign teachers will have to re-apply for their jobs. The reader offers the following comments.
-Shawn

All Kanagawa PFT's are losing their jobs as of March 31st. Ostensibly the reason is that the Kanagawa BOE is having trouble finding enough teachers to fill the positions it has. Also, this "on the job training" stuff is tough. Too difficult for the poor folks at the Kanagawa BOE.

Update February 23, 2006. Interac has been awarded the ALT contract for Kanagawa.

It turns out that the major eikaiwa schools have been breaking the law for well over a decade. The eikaiwa gray train is about to come to an end. For over a decade, NOVA, GEOS, and AEON have not been enrolling their instructors into shakai hoken, Japan's health insurance and pension plans, plans which they are obligated to enroll you in by law.