What are the responsibilities and job description for the Bilingual Japanese-English Editor position at Cheng & Tsui?
Company Overview
Cheng & Tsui is a leading Boston-based educational publisher specializing in Asian language and culture learning materials. For more than 46 years, we have supported educators and engaged students through the publication of high-quality instructional resources. Our offerings include textbooks, workbooks, teacher resources, supplementary materials, digital learning resources, and more. Grounded in research-based practices and standards-informed design, our programs are developed to meet the needs of diverse learners and support teachers in delivering effective, engaging, and inspiring language instruction.
Position Overview
The Bilingual Japanese-English Editor plays a key role in the development of instructional materials for Japanese language learning products across print and digital formats. This position involves contributing to the creation, review, and refinement of a wide range of instructional content. Working closely with educators, freelancers, and internal teams, the editor helps maintain high standards of instructional design, linguistic quality, and cultural authenticity. The role also supports content development for digital learning environments and cross-functional collaboration across projects.
The ideal candidate brings native Japanese proficiency, strong bilingual working proficiency in Japanese and English, a passion for creating high-quality, learner-centered materials that reflect contemporary Japanese language, life, and culture, an understanding of and experience in effective K-12 instructional design, and a collaborative mindset.
Key Responsibilities
● Collaborate with educators, freelancers, and internal teams to support content development, editorial review, production workflows, and overall project goals
● Write and edit level- and age-appropriate instructional content for Japanese language learning materials, including fun and effective stories, exercises, activities, cultural notes, lesson plans, and other curriculum components for different proficiency levels
● Review Japanese content to ensure linguistic accuracy, natural contemporary usage, consistency, cultural authenticity, and alignment with project specifications
● Review exercises and activities for Japanese language learning to ensure they are feasible, instructionally effective, and provide meaningful communicative practice for learners
● Source visually strong, clear, and culturally authentic visuals, including photos, illustrations, and other media, using designated stock photo sites and other approved resources
● Adapt and refine content for a range of product components and delivery formats, including print and digital learning resources
● Stay informed about current standards and frameworks in foreign language education, including ACTFL, state standards, AP, and IB, and demonstrate a willingness to continually learn and apply relevant insights to projects
● Attend a reasonable number of foreign language teaching conferences and webinars to stay current with evolving pedagogical approaches, classroom practices, and broader market trends in both print and digital language education, and share and apply relevant insights and new contacts to projects
● Contribute to the development of editorial and cross-functional processes, including creating and updating related documentation, and providing sales and marketing support as appropriate
● Complete other related tasks and responsibilities as assigned by the manager
Required Qualifications
● Bachelor’s degree in Japanese, linguistics, Japanese literature, language education, journalism, communications, or a related field relevant to writing, editing, and instructional content development
● Native proficiency in Japanese, both written and verbal, with strong English language skills
● Excellent Japanese writing, grammar, spelling, and proofreading skills, with a high level of accuracy and attention to detail
● Strong understanding of contemporary Japanese language and culture, including youth culture
● Familiarity with Japanese language teaching and learning in the U.S. context, especially in the K-12 grades, or demonstrated interest in language pedagogy through relevant coursework, training, or related experience
● Strong organizational and time management skills, with the ability to plan and execute work efficiently and meet deadlines
● Effective communication skills and the ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a remote work environment during 8 am - 5 pm US EST hours
● Proficiency in Google Workspace and Microsoft Office
Preferred Qualifications
● Experience teaching Japanese in U.S. classrooms, preferably at the middle and/or high school level
● Experience developing Japanese or world language instructional materials
● Familiarity with U.S. educational standards and frameworks, including ACTFL, AP, IB, and state standards
● Knowledge of current trends in world language instruction, such as proficiency-based approaches, communicative language teaching, and thematic and task-based learning
● Editorial experience in copyediting, proofreading, and adhering to a style guide
● General familiarity with online learning platforms and educational technology
Compensation & Benefits
Salary and title commensurate with experience. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. For full-time employees, we offer a 401(k) plan along with health, dental, life, and disability insurance.
How to Apply
Please email your resume with a cover letter in both English and Japanese, along with personally created language learning exercises or other writing or manga story samples to careers@cheng-tsui.com, noting “Bilingual Japanese-English Editor” in the subject line. No phone calls accepted.