The AJET team at the December 2011 Opinion Exchange
The JET Programme is administered by a complex team of several different branches of the Japanese government, CLAIR, MEXT, MOFA, and MIC, all of whom have a specific role in its administration and management. Twice a year, AJET has the opportunity to participate in an open discussion with representatives from each of these ministries in order to shed light on a variety of topics, ranging from issues that JETs face in their day to day lives, to ways to improve the operations of the Programme itself.
On December 12th and 13th, the Winter 2011 Opinion Exchange meeting was held in Tokyo. This years discussion topics included an analysis of the PA system, a report on limitations in elementary school English education, and a report on ways that the ministries can support what AJET does for JETs on a volunteer basis. The discussions were very productive and shed light on the importance of AJET and the ministries’s collaboration on issues that affect one of the largest international exchange initiatives in the world.
Donny Anderson, (Translator) Matthew Cook (Chair) and Adam Chludzinski (Block 11 Rep)
Peer Review of the PA System – AJET surveyed and interviewed Prefectural Advisors from all over Japan in order to better understand the working conditions and challenges that PAs encounter. Based on the results of our survey, AJET identified four main themes to discuss with CLAIR, MEXT, MOFA, and MIC at our biannual opinion exchange meeting in December. The themes discussed included the selection and training of JETs appointed as PAs in their first year on the program, delineating PA roles during disaster situations (particularly in the aftermath of March 11th), and more.
To view the report click here.
To read the discussion click here.
To download the presentation notes, click here.
Foreign Language Activities at the Elementary School Level – The findings in this report were directed at the Ministry of Education, and included recommendations about how AJET could assist them in providing large scale solutions to problems within a system that is dependent on localities for its policy changes. This report was entirely fueled by the responses and views of elementary school JETs working in the field, and highlights many trends within English teaching.
To view the report, click here.
To read the discussion, click here.
2011-2012 AJET Council
General Activities Report – This year, AJET presented a detailed breakdown of all the recent changes to our organizational structure via the General Activities report. The purpose of this report was to make our operations more understandable for the ministries who support us, and reach out for financial and logistical assistance. Since AJET functions on a 100% not for profit basis, with no government budget, we rely on support from the Programme’s coordinators in many ways. Ultimately, we were all reminded of our organizations’ common goals, and received new support as well as the promise of continued cooperative assistance.
To view the report click here.
To view the AJET Brand Guide click here.
To read the discussion click here.
The Winter 2011 Opinion Exchange Meetings were interpreted by Donny Anderson, Erica Nakanishi-Stanis, and Denise Schlickbernd.