Native name | シェーン英会話 |
---|---|
Romanized name | Shēn Eikaiwa |
Industry | English schools |
Founded | 1977Chiba Prefecture, Japan | in
Headquarters | , Japan |
Area served | Japan |
Services | English conversation instruction |
Owner | ZE Holdings Company[1] |
Number of employees | 1,106 (2016[1]) |
Website | www |
Shane English School (シェーン英会話, Shēn Eikaiwa) is a chain of English conversation schools in Japan and other countries.[2] It was founded by Shane Lipscombe[3] in Chiba Prefecture in 1977.[4] Formerly part of the Saxoncourt Group, it is now owned by the cram school operator Eikoh. As of March 2017[update], it has 206 branches located all over Japan, and is also present in Taiwan, mainland China, and Vietnam.[5] As of November 2013[update], it had about 20,000 students throughout Japan.[1][6]
In 2001, after an education ministry panel recommended English education at elementary schools, the company offered courses for Japanese elementary school teachers to prepare them for teaching English to their students.[7]
In 2010, the company was purchased by the cram school operator Eikoh because they wanted to move into the teaching of 5th- and 6th-grade students due to the new compulsory English teaching at that age level.[8] At that time, it operated 199 schools in the Kantō region — of which 46 were franchised—and had four subsidiaries: Shane Corporation Japan, Shane Corporation Kita Kanto, Shane Corporation Higashi Kanto, and Shane Corporation Minami Kanto.[8]
In March 2017, two teachers filed a suit against the company, claiming wrongful dismissal.[9]