Benesse BE studio

Our instructors are employees rather than students, but the stories I like to hear best are from those who have continued their careers in education back home. I've talked to several who, after teaching children here in Japan, have gone back to teach in public schools or pursue a doctorate in education. I must admit that I feel a guilty pleasure when they tell me that they miss teaching young kids in Japan, but I'm proud that their experience with us can be a step towards those goals.

Our company only operates in Japan, so I can only speak to locations in Japan. However, I would choose one of our school locations in the greater Tokyo area, but somewhere more on the edge of Tokyo or surrounding prefectures.

The good thing about Tokyo is that it has all the food, museums, and nightlife you could want; the bad news is that it's expensive for day-to-day expenses. Living right in central Tokyo can get pricey, so being more in a suburban area, while having access to the entertainment that central Tokyo provides, would be the most ideal.

There are plenty of teaching programs in Japan. However, what makes Benesse BE studio so special is that we focus on young learners, and many of our students are in the 3- to 6-year-old age range. We often look for teachers that not only have an interest in working in Japan but also love working with young children.

Our trainers and mentors care about helping our teachers improve their skills, but they're also personally invested in the teachers' concerns. It's not always easy to live and work in another country, so when our team visit a school and give feedback about their lessons, they often make sure to leave time to talk about how they're doing and provide emotional support as well.

I think recruiting and developing staff that cares about customers is the key, whether the customers are students, parents of students, or anyone else. It's easy to go through the motions with teaching overseas, blindly following a lesson plan or activity without putting much thought into it. But we try to impress on our staff the importance of really knowing your students and making a personal connection.

The same can be said for employees. Committing to treating employees as cherished individuals, not just as someone filling a position, clearly pays off long term. It's not always easy to remember, but that's the kind of attitude I try to bring to work every day.