J-CALP Instructors
Rie Tanaka
Founder & CEO, Head Japanese Teacher
I graduated from Musashino University with a degree in Human Relations (Psychology) and completed the 420-hour Japanese Language Teacher Training Course. I also passed the Japanese Language Teaching Competency Test, obtained TOPIK Level 6, and completed the Level 2 Home Care Worker Training Course.
After working in the food service and nursing care industries, I began my career as a Japanese language teacher in 2007. Since then, I have taught in a wide range of educational settings, including Japanese language schools, corporate training for global companies, NAT-TEST item creation, Japanese teacher training courses, and JLPT preparation textbook development. I have guided learners from the beginner to advanced levels across diverse contexts.
In 2015, I relocated to Seoul, South Korea, where I served for over six and a half years as the Head Japanese Instructor at a prep school specializing in university admissions. During this time, my students achieved an acceptance rate of over 90%, with successful admissions to top universities such as Waseda, Keio, Tsukuba, and the MARCH group; leading art universities including Musashino Art University and Tama Art University; and graduate schools such as Juntendo University and Kyushu University.
Since 2020, I have focused on online education, providing more than 4,000 lessons to over 150 learners from more than 40 countries. On major teaching platforms—including italki, Verbling, Preply, and Fiverr—I have consistently maintained perfect ratings and have been recognized as a Top 1% Teacher, Professional Teacher, and Fiverr’s Choice.
Currently, as the founder of the educational brand “J-CALP online education,” I provide high-quality, small-group, and specialized Japanese instruction. In addition to teaching, I work as a translator, contributing to game and website localization projects for major Korean entertainment companies.
Greetings
Through my experience in various Japanese language education settings, I have often felt that
“there are learners who cannot be reached by existing teaching frameworks,” and that
“when we understand each learner’s background, they can grow far more efficiently.”
Even within the same classroom, learners differ in their native languages, cultures, and learning goals.
Yet many educational environments are built on the assumption that everyone should learn the same content in the same way.
As a result, I have long felt that many learners are unable to fully realize their potential.
Now that the world is connected online, language learning no longer needs to follow a uniform structure.
We live in a time where learning can be redesigned to match each individual’s background.
Without the limitations of distance, we can deeply understand a learner’s native language, culture, experience, and goals, and create the most suitable learning approach together.
J-CALP was born from this educational shift.
Our mission is to support each learner by understanding their personal background and providing efficient, meaningful, and individualized learning.
We are not simply “teachers of Japanese.”
We strive to be supporters who help expand the possibilities of each learner’s life through the study of Japanese.
Wherever you are, whatever background you come from,
we hope to provide learning that allows you to grow at your own pace and truly feel,
“I’m glad I studied here.”
With this commitment, we continue to walk alongside every learner—sincerely and wholeheartedly.
Our team of experienced and unique instructors is here to support you.
