Teacher Vacancies in the Tamagawa Academy English Predominant (EP) Program
Available Positions starting from April 2025: Homeroom Teacher with experience or interest in teaching music to children at primary school either as a specialist or in a supporting role.
Length of initial contract: 2 years
About Tamagawa Academy
Tamagawa Academy was established in 1929 and built upon a balanced educational philosophy encapsulated in Zenjin (‘Whole person’) education. The school has been an authorized International Baccalaureate World School since 2009 and currently offers the IB Middle Years (MYP) and Diploma Programmes (DP) bilingually in English and Japanese.
About the EP Program
In 2016 the primary school started an optional partial-immersion program called ‘English Predominant’ (EP) in grades 1-5. The program follows the Japanese National Curriculum and Tamagawa Academy’s unique approach to primary education, not the IB Primary Years Programme. However, to prepare children for the language and learning demands of the IB MYP from grade 6, around 60% of lessons are taught in English.
There are 53 teachers in the primary division, of whom 19 are non-Japanese teachers. EP classes have two homeroom teachers – one Japanese and one non-Japanese. Lessons are 45 minutes long and teachers have twenty lessons or fewer each week.
Almost all of the children come from Japanese families and start with no English in grade 1. They are expected to reach CEFR B1 level (intermediate level) by the end of grade 5. Although they make rapid progress in English, teaching is far closer to TEFL than working in an international school. Candidates with experience in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to young learners, especially in Japan, will be at an advantage. Candidates applying from international school teaching backgrounds or home country teaching backgrounds are welcome but need to be aware that Tamagawa Academy is a Japanese school.
Job Requirements
| Homeroom Teacher and Music Specialist Job Requirements | Essential | Desirable |
|---|---|---|
| English at native level | ○ | |
| A valid teaching certificate for elementary school-aged children | ○ | |
| Qualifications and/or experience in Teaching EFL to Young Learners | ○ | |
| Experience teaching English | ○ | |
| Experience teaching primary-age children | ○ | |
| Experience / interest teaching music, especially singing | ○ | |
| Ability to play piano and/or other instruments | ○ | |
| Understanding and/or experience of teaching CLIL | ○ | |
| Experience teaching synthetic phonics | ○ | |
| Experience living and working in Japan | ○ | |
| Ability to speak Japanese | ○ |
Description of Duties and Responsibilities: Depending on your interest, please refer to the attached files
Job Description for Homeroom Teacher with a role in Music.PDF
General Employment Information
Number of openings: 1
Compensation: Salary (in accordance with the school's rules and regulations), transportation expenses
Social insurance: Health insurance, pension, workers' accident compensation insurance, unemployment insurance
Contract period: April 2025 – March 2027 (initial contract only: 2 years)
After the initial contract, contracts may be renewed annually for a further 3 years by mutual agreement (for a total employment period of five years).
※Depending on circumstances and performance, teachers may be offered tenure after the initial contract or at any other renewal point in the five-year period.
Holidays: Sundays, Saturdays, national holidays, August 1 to August 31 and winter vacation
Vacations: Annual paid vacations, congratulation or condolence leave, etc.
Personal information: Personal information submitted will be used only for the purpose of employment selection and will be handled appropriately in accordance with the school’s privacy policy.
Measures against passive smoking: No smoking indoors, separate smoking areas (outdoors)
Official Recruiter: Yoshiaki Obara, Tamagawa Gakuen Educational Corporation President
What we offer
- A generous salary
- Private health insurance
- Subsidized tuition fees for the children of staff (roughly 50%)
- One-way economy class airfare for employees hired from outside Japan
- Relocation allowance for employees hired from outside Japan
- Sponsorship of Tokyo special teaching license for teachers who show commitment and potential
- A comprehensive in-house professional development program
- A beautiful campus less than 45 minutes from central Tokyo
- A friendly and relaxed work environment
Hiring Process
- Deadline for Applications: Friday, October 18th 2024
- Once required documents have been submitted, you will receive an email confirming your application.
- Applicants who pass the initial screening will be notified within a week of the submission of their application documents and a first interview will be arranged. We encourage applicants to visit the school for a face-to-face interview. If this is not feasible, a video interview will be arranged.
- Candidates who pass the first interview and wish to proceed with their application will receive detailed information about salary and conditions of employment.
- The second stage of the application process is a demonstration lesson. Applicants who are unable to visit the school in person must submit a video of a class and/or a lesson plan.
- Candidates who pass the second interview and are happy to accept a position will be recommended to the board and a final confirmation interview with the President of the Academy and other board members will be arranged.
- After this interview, applicants are sent an employment agreement which must be signed and returned to confirm appointment.
Qualified candidates should apply by submitting the following documents to the contact listed below.
- A resume/CV completed using the attached form.
- The contact information of at least 2 recent professional referees who can confirm your teaching-related experience and abilities. All referees should be education professionals at a recognized institution who directly supervised you. Please ask referees to submit their reference directly to us using the attached format.
- A copy of your teaching certificate(s) and/or licenses
- A short covering letter outlining your educational philosophy
Contact for all enquiries and application information:
Damien Pratt, Lead Teacher for Academic Affairs (K-5 Bilingual Programme)
email: bles@tamagawa.ed.jp
