Korean Job Discussion Forums

[oatmeal]

So I just received word from my co-teacher that only some rural schools in GEPIK will have this new 'Phone Call with GEPIK Teachers' Program starting in Sept. 2017.

I don't really object to it, I'm just curious what this is. It appears that from Monday to Friday, we'll have to talk over the phone with students for 10 minutes each (4 per day = 40 minutes) from 3:30 pm to 4:20pm.

The paper states the objective is to try and help students be more comfortable in speaking English over the phone. The sample questions provided were very routine questions like your usual, "How was your day?" or "What did you do today?" and a bunch of other general questions.

Has anyone else received this notice yet from your school? I probably got mine really early and you won't hear about it until July or even August.

I wonder why not just use something like Skype or Kakao? Why not do a speaking program or simply a 1 on 1 in person conversation for 10 minutes each?

I'm all for supporting and helping GEPIK find more creative ideas to teach English or make it fun, but I wonder who made this idea and approved it and why?

[CentralCali]

Are you sure this is actually from GEPIK and not some local "brilliant idea"? After all, "The document* says..." is rather nebulous.

But let's say it is legitimate. In that case agitate long and hard for this to be included as class time counting towards your contracted limit. Also insist that the phone to be used is the school phone, not yours. If you use your own phone, well, congatulations, you just volunteered for many unpaid phone sesions at odd hours.

*I posted this four years ago (sorry; I don't know how to link to a specific post):

Speaking of "document":

A Document!
(sung to the tune of Going to the Chapel)

Chorus:
Getting a document, a document later today!
Getting a document, a document later today!
Gee, I can hardly wait; we're getting a document!
Getting an h-w-p file!

"Spring" is here,
I am here,
The room is cold.
The kids outside laugh as if they knew.
Today I'll get "the document"
and I'll never be freezing anymore.

Chorus:
Getting a document, a document later today!
Getting a document, a document later today!
Gee, I can hardly wait; I'm getting a document!
Getting an h-w-p file!

Bells will ring,
the sun will shine.
Whoa, there's no students, no heat here.
I'll deskwarm straight through the winter.
and I'll never be freezing anymore.

Getting a document, a document later today!
Getting a document, a document later today!
Gee, I can hardly wait; we're getting a document!
Getting an h-w-p file!
(Backup singers only:) Yes-uh, Yes-uh
(Everyone:) Getting an h-w-p file (fade out, repeating "h-w-p file", but with the last audible sentence, shouted:)
"But I can't open the damn thing!"

[oatmeal]

100% legit letter from GEPIK and backed by the Head Coordinator of GEPIK.

No, we are not using our own phones and it is not going to be 'extra' classes. They said they will change the after school programs to accommodate for this new phone program, so it's still going to be within our contract ours. I like the way my after school classes are currently and hope they don't get rid of them for this. I wouldn't mind just adding this on top of what I already have.

Just eyebrow-raising that's all.

[J.Q.A.]

There was a time when working at a public school here was the antithesis to working at a hogwan....now, they have meshed together.

[isitts]

[oatmeal]

Well what my CT told me was the english after school classes would be replaced with these phone calls. I didn't like the sound of that. I much prefer my after school classes as is. They are a lot of fun for both the students and the teacher. We get to do activities and games that we could never have the opportunity to do in curriculum class.

If the idea is for me to now sit in an empty room with a phone to my ear for 40 minutes talking to students one at a time, that is going to be real depressing lol.

[isitts]