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ALT Life February 26, 2020

11 Common Questions Students Ask the ALT

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ALT Life

11 Common Questions Students Ask the ALT

1. Why did you come to Japan? Students are curios why a foreigner is in their country. Although some students are just influenced or just copy the question from a famous TV show (You wa nanishini Nippon e).

2. Do you like Japan? To which you always ( I suggest) answer Yes, I do. I like Japan. Imagine if you say no. Lol. Like, why are you even here?

3. What Japanese food do you like? To which most students expect you to say I like sushi. And if you do, you’ll make their day. Especially the elementary students.

4. Do you like sushi? Just to confirm if you really do like sushi. Make the students happy-say Yes.

5. Which do you like better, your country or Japan? This is one of the difficult questions smart and curious students ask. I usually say I like both. Which is true. They’d love it if you provide reasons for your answer.

6. What things surprised you when you came to Japan? Another surprising question usually asked by junior high school students. Be prepared.

7. Can you speak Japanese? If you say yes, they might just just speak to you in Japanese. Why bother when you understand their language anyway. I never said no so I don’t know their response. I always say “A little” with the hand gesture and they always want a proof. They giggle when they hear you speak Japanese.

8. What is your favorite place in Japan? Most Japanese are proud of their country and they want to hear from you what place/s in Japan are indeed beautiful and worth visiting.

9. What are famous places in your country? Some students are also very interested in foreign cultures that they want to know your country.

10. What color do you like? And everything under the sun. Just replace the word color and be ready to answer. This is one of the elementary students’ favorite question.

11. Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend? This is the junior high school students’ favorite question. They always wanna know. They get more interested when you say yes. And if you say no, they might be disappointed.

Are you an ALT? What other questions have you encountered from your students?

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Conversation starters

Unique, article-specific, language-matched conversation starters from reader perspectives that fit the article language, dated around when each story began finding readers. Clearly labeled sparks for the real conversation.

Last little spark

I came for “11 Common Questions Students Ask the ALT” and stayed for students asking the ALT why she came to Japan, whether she likes Japan, and other curiosity-shaped questions. Some questions sound copied from TV, but honestly that is still better than silent panic. The article even leaves a breadcrumb in “If you say yes, they might just just speak to you in Japanese..”

ALT classroom listener

The heart of “11 Common Questions Students Ask the ALT” is students asking the ALT why she came to Japan, whether she likes Japan, and other curiosity-shaped questions. The article captures how classroom English often begins with simple questions that reveal real cultural curiosity.

Detail-noticer

The detail “What other questions have you encountered from your students?ALT Life Previous storyHow I learned Japanese in 3 monthsNext...” makes the article feel specific because it points back to students asking the ALT why she came to Japan, whether she likes Japan, and other curiosity-shaped questions.

Feeling-first reader

It feels playful because the questions are predictable, awkward, sweet, and very human.

Human aside

Some questions sound copied from TV, but honestly that is still better than silent panic.

Question asker

The question I would put under this one: What do students really want to know when they ask the same question every year?

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