Korean Job Discussion Forums

[hewieder]

I am being offered a position at LexKim English School.
The benefits are much better than most hagwon schools BUT I asked to have some contact info from previous teachers and they have a policy against it.

I have read some things online about the school, both good and bad, so I'm not sure if this should be a big deal.

[nicwr2002]

It means they are hiding something. Accept at your own risk.

[DaeguNL]

ask if you can speak to a current teacher, but take what they say with a grain of salt.

a good question to ask is "what are some of the good AND bad things about working for this school?"

[Blanca]

Just ask the current teacher for the email of the person THEY emailed before they started. Hey presto - you have a former teacher's email address. If they won't give you a current teacher's email address, avoid like the plague.

[MedellinHeel]

Ask to speak with a current teacher.

Understand they are in the office most likely and wont be able to explicitly say bad things about the school.

Hence you need to ask yes or no questions.

Is management overbearing and anal?

Have you always been paid on time?

Do you have discipline problems with kids?

Are anal retarded parental complaints a issue?

Are holidays always honored?

etc etc

[Aine1979]

If they will give you details of a current teacher, and they have been there for more than a year, have recently renewed their contract or are planning to stay on, I would take what they say as reliable. However, if it's a teacher you are replacing, or one who is about to leave, I would be very skeptical, as they will be unlikely to be totally honest with you.

If the school has a policy of not passing out previous teachers details, which in a way is understandable, why don't you ask if they could pass your details on to a former teacher and ask them to contact you. If they refuse this, I would walk away.

[SeoulNate]

If it is the lex kim in Gangnam, I've never heard anything negative about it. They work the teachers hard, but the pay is a lot higher than other places and none of the other BS.