On 4 October, ALTs working for the Kitanagoya City Board of Education received a letter. Titled “Report on ALT Staffing System for the 2025 Academic Year”, it stated, “As part of administrative and financial reforms, we have decided to implement a policy of placing ALTs through dispatch companies starting in the 2025 academic year.”
The letter concluded, “We will request the dispatch company selected by Kitanagoya City to employ current ALTs working for Kitanagoya City, so please consult with them if you are interested. However, please be aware that employment will be subject to screening by the dispatch company, and we cannot guarantee employment.”
Kitanagoya City has long directly employed ALTs for English education. These ALTs have diligently served in the city’s public junior high and elementary schools, with many living within the city. They have engaged with parents and students not only in schools but also in the local community, and all of these factors have supported English education in this city.
The city now plans to dispose of all this and bring in dispatched ALTs who will only share time with teachers and students during English classes.
The General Union has witnessed throughout the country what such choices bring about. The degradation of English education is inevitable in exchange for some financial savings.
The ALTs who have been dedicated to English education in Kitanagoya City until now will be legally unable to work in the city’s schools for at least one year, even if employed by a selected dispatch company. All current ALTs in Kitanagoya City will disappear from the city’s schools.
Concerns about this severe situation have been raised not only by fellow ALTs but also by Japanese teachers, parents, and city council members.
This is an issue of education – a matter that affects the future. The General Union will work with as broad a range of people as possible to protect the assets of English education in Kitanagoya City, maintain its quality, and preserve the employment and livelihoods of ALTs.