Chapter 4: Foreign enough: Migrant nonnative English-speaking teachers in eikaiwa

Through examining the narratives of over forty teachers, Natasha Hashimoto delves into the complex issues facing migrant (non-Japanese) NNESTs, including herself, working in the eikaiwa industry. This chapter goes into detail on the complex working situations that many migrant NNESTs experience and the various ways in which they negotiate discrimination and instability within eikaiwa schools.

Chapter 14: Charisma man or critical pedagogue? Eikaiwa and unexpected paths of professional development

Kyle Nuske’s narrative documents his gradual evolution as a critically-aware educator throughout his journey as a young, inexperienced eikaiwa teacher up to his present position as a university professor. He shows how he became increasingly aware of a number of questionable critical issues and assumptions in his particular eikaiwa teaching context and that his heightened consciousness of race, gender, and sexuality in ELT had a huge impact on developing professional identity. Additionally, he found that the pedagogical skill set cultivated during his time in eikaiwa aided him in introducing analysis of the same critical issues to his university students in a nuanced and respectful way.

Chapter 13: Two narratives of professional identity in eikaiwa

In this chapter, Patrick Kiernan presents two very different but equally complex narratives illustrating the professional identity development of long-term eikaiwa teachers. The lived experiences of these two professionals reveals a great deal about the ways in which teachers negotiate multiple desired and undesired identities over the course of their careers. The complexity found in these teacher narratives provides a convincing counter perspective to the overly simplistic and often derogatory way that the professional lives of eikaiwa teachers are framed in both the ELT field and Japanese society at large.

Chapter 6: Developmentally appropriate practices vs. parental wishes: The eikaiwa owner's quandary

In this chapter, Lesley Ito provides insight into the tensions that she must negotiate as an eikaiwa owner in responding to demands from parents that clash with her teacher beliefs. She describes how she has been able to use her professional expertise to negotiate these difficulties. She also shows why, due to her concern for the wellbeing of young learners at her school, she has continued to resist “common-sense” assumptions on standardised testing from parents and society-at-large.

Chapter 11: The interaction of training and observation in one teacher’s development

Marc Jones discusses his story of professional growth in a large chain eikaiwa school and the affordances for training, reflection, and observation that he was able to capitalise on during the early stages of his career. Through his personal experiences in eikaiwa, Marc presents provides examples of ways in which he was able to proactively utilise the resources around him to stimulate his own pedagogical growth in a teaching environment lacking in formalised professional development opportunities.

Chapter 1: Moving beyond “McEnglish”

In this chapter, Daniel Hooper and Natasha Hashimoto (the editors of the volume) explain what they mean by McEnglish and how this volume intends to fill the gap of scholarly work related to teaching in the eikaiwa (conversation school) context in Japan.

Chapter 8: Exploring the differences between eikaiwa and business English

In this chapter, Chris Maschio draws on over ten years of experience in both business English and eikaiwa and challenges a number of prevalent assumptions about these teaching contexts. He paints a detailed and nuanced picture of the realities of teaching as an eikaiwa or business English instructor while also noting how these educational sectors have evolved over the last two decades.

Chapter 5: Japan has four seasons: Nihonjinron and native-speakerisms at the eikaiwa gakkou

Focusing on his experiences and research on the apparent interaction between native-speakerism and nationalism, Martin Cater addresses how learner beliefs in eikaiwa can be shaped by larger influences from the ELT industry and Japanese society. He discusses how native-speakerism and the Japanese nationalist ideology of nihonjinron can be seen in the stated beliefs of Japanese English learners and how these ideas are sometimes promoted by eikaiwa schools. However, he also gives examples from his personal experience of how these problematic ideologies can be disrupted through grassroots action by teachers.

Chapter 3: Just for the casuals? Leisure and learning in eikaiwa

Through a narrative telling of his journey as an eikaiwa teacher and researcher, Daniel Hooper takes on the issue of “fun” or “leisure” within eikaiwa teaching in this chapter. He claims that while the notion of eikaiwa teachers being “fun” is often marked as cause for eikaiwa being positioned outside of “serious” education, the socially-constructed identity of the “entertainer” is by no means restricted to eikaiwa. Furthermore, he also argues that “fun” has undeservedly been given a bad name in the field and that, even in the face of social/professional stigma, eikaiwa teachers can craft their own valid “educator” identities.

Foreword

In this foreword, Kubota shares some portraits which reveal the multiple and diverse stories of eikaiwa learners, which are influenced by broader forces, such as language ideologies and various relations of power. In addition, she draws on her previous research related to the struggles of eikaiwa teachers and suggests that in order to understand the world of eikaiwa more fully, multiple players and structures need to be examined. She ends her chapter by saying "This ground-breaking book illuminates this other side of the eikaiwa world by uncovering the diverse yet hidden voices of eikaiwa teachers. Their stories of marginalities, ambitions, and possibilities help us understand how these teachers pursue their careers as professionals, engage in education, and negotiate challenges" (p. 3).