Two UH Hilo alumni now teach English proficiency in Japan, credit undergraduate study abroad experience with preparing them well
The two UH Hilo study abroad alumni are now serving as assistant language teachers in Japan for the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program sponsored by the government of Japan.
By Susan Enright/UH Hilo Stories.
Two University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo alumni are participating in the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) sponsored by the government of Japan.
Kylan Constantino (Japanese Studies, 2025) and Brennyn Belay (Environmental Science, 2025) are on one-year, renewable contracts teaching English proficiency in the Japanese educational system. Constantino is currently an assistant language teacher working in Fukuoka Prefecture in Kitakyushu City at Tochiku High School, and Belay is in the Prefecture of Gunma teaching elementary and middle schoolers.
Since 1987, the JET Program has sent more than 79,000 participants from around the world to work in schools, boards of education, and government offices throughout Japan. The program offers a unique cultural exchange opportunity to meet people from around the world while living and working in Japan.
From study abroad students to becoming teachers
As students at UH Hilo, during their 2022-2023 school year both Constantino and Belay studied in Japan at Tokyo Gakugei University through the UH Hilo study abroad program.
Belay says studying abroad was an amazing experience.
“I have learned so much about the world, people, and myself,” says Belay in an essay he wrote in 2023. “I feel so lucky to have met the people that I have, and done the things I have. My time studying here in Japan, attending Tokyo Gakugei University really has been an amazing experience. It has inspired me to continue with my major of environmental science, but also to keep an open mind. The world is so full of opportunities, if you don’t keep your eyes open, you might miss them.”
Constantino says his study abroad experience was the main reason he applied to JET in the first place. “I am very thankful to have had that opportunity,” he says of his study abroad experience.
Now back in Japan as a teacher, Constantino says the school where he is teaching, Tochiku, is considered to be a highly academic school.
“I can tell that very well through my first couple lessons here and interacting with a good part of the student body,” says Constantino. He is looking forward to teaching more classes and getting to know the students and faculty a bit more.
“I mainly teach the first years with lessons once a month or so, but I also get invited once and a while to go to teach the second and third years along with doing immersion lessons where I teach a subject other than English in full English so the students can get a feel on how a full class in English would be like.”
He says he hopes to gain teaching skills and a familiarity with the Japanese work and school system so he can discover if the right career path for him is teaching in Japan or in America.
Upcoming JET informational event at UH Hilo
Representatives from the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu will visit UH Hilo for an informational event on the JET program on Thursday, October 2, 12:00-1:00 p.m. at Kilohana Academic Success Center located inside Mookini Library. The event will be an in-person information session about topics such as benefits, requirements, and advice for applying. The JET coordinator will be available to answer questions about the JET program. For more information, contact Carolina Lam.
Story by Susan Enright, a public information specialist for the Office of the Chancellor and editor of UH Hilo Stories. She received her bachelor of arts in English and certificate in women’s studies from UH Hilo.
