PLS Newsletter - November 2nd, 2022

We can confirm that the PLS Autumn Forum will once again be held online this year.

Our workplaces bring together staff, students and parents/guardians from diverse backgrounds. In these environments, multiple languages are spoken daily, and there are various cultures behind each language. In order for us to communicate with each other effectively, it is essential to have good intercultural understanding.

The theme of this year's PLS Autumn Forum is "The Cross-cultural Workplace".

We hope to provide an opportunity to discuss this kind of work culture together, from how it makes our work lives richer to ideas on how to limit misunderstanding.

We hope that this online event will be a meaningful gathering for all participants. PLS staff are working hard to make it so, and we very much look forward to your participation.

Date: 27 November (Sun)

Time: 10 am - 12:30 pm

*After the Autumn Forum, a free information exchange room will be open from 13:30

Platform: Zoom

Fee: ¥3,800 for the first attendee per school, ¥2,800 per subsequent attendee (tax included)

We would be grateful if you would register your intentions with us via the form below.

• Please submit the form even if your school does not intend to participate.

• If your school will have more than five attendees, please send the form twice.

Pre-Forum Questionnaire

We would be very grateful if attendees could fill out the pre-forum questionnaire below.

The questionnaire takes about five minutes to complete.

We are looking forward to receiving responses from everyone: not schools as a whole, but from individual owners, managers, and all teaching- and non-teaching staff.

Deadline: 18 November (Fri)

(for both attendance notification and questionnaire)

Participating sister schools will be notified of Zoom IDs and passwords.

The Cross-Cultural WORKPLACE
- Intercultural Communication -
Wanting to know more, wanting to connect

Schedule

09:45 Zoom meeting room opens

10:00 Opening remarks

10:15 Keynote Speech by Chairperson Masumi Ormandy

11:00 Discussion Panel (language: mixed English/Japanese)

Panelists Bruce Oertel (Apple Tree English School, Kyoto), Gemma Hems (Ocean Forest English School, Tokyo) and Asuka Wilson (English Plus, Yamanashi) will talk about communication in multicultural workplaces, including some episodes from the pre-questionnaire.

12:00 Summary

12:30 End

13:30 Afternoon Session (optional, extended participation)　

Sister School Discussion (language: Japanese)
*An exchange of ideas on the forum's theme and other recent news and information.

Cultural Aspects in Teaching Students in Japan (language: English)
*An exchange of ideas between participants and Co-Chairperson Ray Ormandy on cultural considerations in teaching in Japan.

The afternoon session is optional and free to attend for participants of the morning session. We will provide a link to access the afternoon session separately. All participants are encouraged to attend if they have time.

14:30 End of Afternoon Session (planned)

Please note:

We will be implementing Zoom's language interpretation function for part of the Forum. This will be the first time we will be using this feature at this scale. If you are using the app version of Zoom instead of the browser version, please ensure you have the latest version installed on your device. Older versions of the app may not work correctly with this new feature.

We look forward to seeing you all at the forum.

Contact: Saki Imamura

We are pleased to announce that the Gaijin Pot Jobs group-purchase service pack will be available once again for 2023. Thanks to your support, this is the 14th year of the promotion. This is a special discount opportunity that is only available once a year, so we strongly encourage you to take advantage.

https://jobs.gaijinpot.com/index/index/lang/ja

This is a special group discount package which enables us to acquire Gaijin Pot credits at a cheaper rate than direct purchase.

What you get:

• Special discounts on job posting credits.

• Consultation support from PLS Tokyo when posting Gaijin Pot Jobs job adverts.

(Advice on posting content, screening applicants etc.)

Credits valid: 1 December 2022 - 30 November 2023

Application deadline: 18 November 2022 (or when credits sell out)

How to apply:

Please fill in the attached application form and return it to us via e-mail or fax.

Please note that this offer is only available for applications made by 18 November.

We hope that you take advantage of this opportunity.

Fax: 03-5306-5738

Contact person: Saki Imamura