Pros
The hourly rates are great when compared to other places. The materials and slides and copies and stuff are all prepared in advance by admin. They also actually pay you for preparation at a separate rate (looking at what you’re going to teach, reading books that your students are reading, setting up your room etc. for higher level students especially can be time-consuming; less time-consuming for lower level but still paid fairly). This is almost never done elsewhere, as most companies expect you to just prepare for lessons in your personal time. JPREP pays you to use your personal time.
Cons
If you’re not used to people coming in and out of your classroom every minute, it’s extremely jarring. And by this I mean administrative staff. They just waltz in and out or are always looking in. Sometimes they’re helpful and offer assistance to students, sometimes they’re not. And it just feels like they’re doing timekeeping. It might be a part of their job description but that’s not made clear. They can sometimes talk to teachers like teachers work for them. I don’t know if they think they can do what teachers do, so have an air of disrespect. But some of them can be very rude. This is minor compared to the larger gripe. The next thing is management’s formal observations—they never tell you when they’re going to show up. They just do. They rock up just before your class and say, “I’m observing you today.” It feels like it’s in a bid to keep teachers on their toes (you know, because they pay you for preparation, so it shouldn’t matter). But it’s also an act of emotional terrorism, as you have to have these observations multiple times a year and you never know which week they’re going to come. If you’re a person who suffers from anxiety issues, a lack of notice for a formal observation can make you get nervous, do poorly, get a bad score and ultimately get fired; or your hours reduced because you didn’t meet their criteria. 4 observations a year (or more) is excessive, especially if you’re a part time worker doing a day or two.
