Are you a student, or are you working at a school? I ask because if you’re working, I want to know how you get away with reading at work… I just started a new job at a school and I have a lot of time on my hands at work… but cracking open a book just feels plain dirty.
I think he, like myself, works as an ALT at a school. I dont see how opening a book and reading would be bad. So long as you arent like, bringing in your switch and playing mario kart in your down time between classes you should be fine.
Ill watch Youtube/Netflix(in japanese), read books, manga, study ect. Depending on the media Ill try to talk to my kids about it. I even booted up a rom of pokemon blue and was playing through it for a little bit. But considering its illegal to rom in Japan I stopped since Im a public servant.
No one will bat an eye at you reading
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I work in IT for a school in the US and after 8 years I’ve finally hit a point where I’ll straight up play video games on my computer (very old ones mind you) or bring a psvita. The kids aren’t allowed to come to my office anymore (middle school, so they goof off) so it’s not like it’s going to look inappropriate to anyone. 
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Finally sort of git back to reading the last few days between trying to read before bed and reading between calls/ on breaks at work.
Just finished ミラーさん II (Companion novel for みんなの日本語 blue beginner textbook).
A re-read for me though I understood a lot more this time around so less lookups needed. Starting to notice some of the less basic grammar concepts and internalising the basics so I no longer need to translate.
Next up, finishing Dragon Quest Monster+ volume 3 then the last 2 volumes of the series. It’s a continuation of the original Dragon Quest Monster game (known as Dragon Warrior Monsters in the UK) from the Gameboy colour back in the 90s.
And you’re welcome! I don’t know that I’ll be joining the event myself - my weekends are often somewhat busy, so they don’t really tend to be my reading time - but I might poke my nose in if I get a moment, to see what people are reading (and snacking).
Working! But yeah, Special_Guest has the right of it - I work as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) at a high school in Japan. Obviously I have classes and class-prep to take care of, but I also wind up with a lot of down-time/deskwarming because I just don’t have the same breadth of responsibilities that the local teachers do.
I wouldn’t guarantee that no one will bat an eye because I have heard of ALTs whose schools are touchier about what they’re allowed to do. That said, we often get a lot of leeway regarding what we do in between classes. I often use the first bit of the morning to do my wanikani and bunpro reviews/lessons, and then I might read, watch youtube, make sure my personal planner/calendar is up to date, etc.
The teachers that sit nearby or teach with me are aware that reading manga (which is 95% of what I read at school) is reading practice for me, and if they weren’t I imagine it’d be pretty obvious from how often I stop to look up vocabulary on my phone. The biggest concern would probably be the kids seeing it - professionalism and all that - but the position of my seat and a lucky bookshelf makes it so that my desk and my person are basically invisible to the kids unless I deliberately stand up or push back from my desk.
Again, I don’t go so far as to bring games to work, and of course if someone comes to me with something that needs my attention I put anything I’m doing aside immediately. But overall they don’t really seem to mind - certainly no one’s said anything to me about it in my 4 years here.
Didn’t they release another one of those recently? Or am I mixing things up?
Yesterday’s half an hour got me through about 1/3 of 地縛少年花子くん volume 3! Can’t really brag about the speed though, there just wasn’t a lot of dense text to worry about.
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Im unaware of your speaking abilities but I find it funny that I can generally get the gist of everything they are saying around me. But, Im not at a speaking level where I can easily respond. I would say its my weakest skill since I dont get a lot of good convo practice.
but anyway, they ever speak around you and then seem really surprised when asked a question? Because they seem so shook every time that I understood enough to ask the question. Like, dont you see me sitting here with Japanese in hand/on-screen?
But yea, we have similar schedules though I dont ever do so much that I gotta fill in my personal planner. When Grad school starts again Ill have to write which weekends my classes are but Im pretty Inaka so I cant get out that often.
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This probably makes it sound more involved than it is - I keep a paper calendar/planner, so I have to go through periodically and make sure any plans are written down, that’s all.
Absolutely. My speaking skills also lag behind my comprehension - and, to be fair, my comprehension often depends on the topic at hand - but this is absolutely a thing.
Oftentimes it’s…slightly frustrating (although the teachers who I actually teach classes with are less likely to be so shocked pikachu face about it), but I have had a few occasions where it wound up making everyone crack up because it caught them so off guard. So those are fun.
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I see! I’m relieved because I just started as an ALT. One of my schools is really chill and gets a kick out of watching me do my little Japanese learning side quests, but I get anxious because the teachers around me seem really absorbed in like… actual work lol. But they probably understand that my day looks a little different from theirs because at the end of the day I am an assistant…
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That’s probably the hardest part! One of the schools is extra chill and even likes to be like “wow today you learned ___” when they happen to walk by me while I’m studying, and they might even help me practice it. The other one everyone is really quiet and no one really talks to me, so I’m sure I can get away with it too because I don’t even think anyone would pay attention to me reading in the first place. But at both schools I’m sitting so that the kids can look in through the window and see me perfectly. A lot of them do look in when they pass and call out to me and I feel like a fish in an aquarium, but it’s so cute.
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Tbh I think it does look unprofessional to read a physical book at your desk so I read digital books or printouts haha… only time I read physical books is if literally no one is around (like exam days)
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I thought of this too. I also think e-readers also have a lot of plausible deniability, like I could be looking at something for work for all they know. I tested it out recently and I don’t think anyone is really looking at me that hard and e-readers are discreet.
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I read on my PC rather than an e-reader because I think it’s the same issue really, but yeah its not so much what you’re doing but how you look doing it.
I think teachers don’t mind you reading books on a PC (depending on workplace obvs) if it doesnt look like youre j chilling
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Yea dude, dont be obnoxious about it and itll be chill. Everyone understands your role there and so long as you fulfill it most other teachers wont mind what you do doing your downtime. When I first got here I was super concerned about going home early (The normal day time of 4:30) and so I was staying until like 6 pm the first week before the teachers started being straight telling me to go home. I actually made little flags that show if Im free or busy. So long as it says free, if they need help with anything (copying/grading/ect) they can ask, if it says busy then they know Im actually working on something important. This is more for grad school than anything else.
Now I lean into the fact Im the foreigner of the school. I’ll bring and make coffee for the teachers of the floor Im on (My school has a teachers room per building level and then assign teachers to a certain grade level. Despite going to all three years, I sit with the second year teachers.) I will wait around corners and spook the students. Ill pretend to be a Yankee and talk all aggressive while they are cleaning and get in their way.
But then during all this other tom-toolery, when its time for Eiken I set up study groups during lunch and after school, I have a pen-pal program, and actively engage with the students in English in and out of class. I have a few students who dont go to classes and I find time to hunt them down and speak with them in my broken ass Japanese. During school events the students will track me down to participate and outside of school when they see me theyll come up and say hello ect.
See I would think the digital book looks worse. But with the physical books, I can just go out into the hall during lunch or after school and just ask the students to read with me. I will also highlight my books to mark things to ask about so it looks a little more like studying. I also dont like reading digitially and prefer a book when I can. Granted, Ive been eyeing Migaku for ease of looking up words while reading to add to Anki which would require reading digitially. Ive been in a bit of a slump when it comes to studying new words/reading and I think that comes to being in that transition period of things are either a little to easy or WAY to hard. Maybe m just burnt out, who knows.
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personally my lunchtime is sacred hahah so I am not spending it w/ students but I think it also depends on the set up of your school
If I were to read a physical book, I would do it in the staff break room or the library, but most of the time I am at my desk and I think reading a book there looks unprofessional.
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Yeah, I get what you mean with the physical books, but for me reading a manga on my pc feels equally obvious - anyone who’s nearby or who walks behind me can see my screen, after all - but more like…devious/trying to hide it, I guess? Not at all to say that’s what y’all are doing, that’s just my brain’s knee-jerk vibe.
Like sure, my coworkers can see when I have a volume of manga out (if they’re paying me any attention, which they’re often not) but they can also see that I put that aside as soon as something comes up that needs my attention.
It’s even sparked conversations a few times with teachers that I don’t actually have classes with - there’s a couple of ハガレン fans at my school, so they were very excited when they saw me with 黄泉のツガイ, lol. Also I focus better with a physical book than virtual, so if the point is for me to study then a physical book is a much better option anyway.
I do often still feel kinda guilty for it, but the kids can’t see me and the teachers know I’m practicing, so it just is what it is.
…I guess we could say that every situation is different, huh.
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Its one of the few times I feel I can interact with the students outside of the classroom in an opportunity to really build rapport with them. I dont think I could get away with half as much as I do because of this.
Also yea, ESID, in part my school is super laid back
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I only read novels at work tbh, I feel like reading manga is a bit too much for work, but I heard my pred did it
but yeah, ESID as you both said
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(Sorry if I gave any JETs psychic damage by dropping ESID XD)
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Back to book news though, I did find the third volume of Zatch Bell 金色のガッシュ for cheap the other day and pick it up. Its a fun read and I always forget that late 90s early 2000s humor is just built different in comparison to today.
Im pretty sure I give my block damage every time I mention the sheer amount of relative freedom I get. When school is cancelled or during Holiday, I dont have to go in. They are always complaining about having to kill time at the BOE(Where they also have to look more professional) whereas I just get to stay at home and vibe. Im technically allowed to go into the city next door “For work or home related purposes” and so Ill go to a cafe and vibe.
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And speaking of unprofessional, one of my teachers is straight up, arms folded, head on desk napping right now. So reading a book is certainly more professional than that lol.
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