Korean Job Discussion Forums

Unreal · Joined: 01 Jul 2004 Location: Jeollabuk-do

My school is pretty good but they seem to think that foreign teachers grow on trees and can treat them worse than the Korean teachers and expect them to stick around, which is part of the reason I'm leaving next week. They've asked me several times to find new teachers for them (I posted 2 advertisements on free sites) but they refuse to pay for advertising or recruiters.

Right now I'm really enjoying overhearing my supervisor's phone conversations as he frantically tries to get new teachers for next week. Two months ago he told me that he wants to find "a beautiful, young woman from England with a teaching degree". Now he's trying to decide over an old man with one foot in the grave or a woman who's just been fired and is not giving concrete answers to why she was. Our school is (supposed to be) one of the top high schools in our province and the principal demands the best teachers but when it comes to providing for these all-star teachers, comes up shorter than most hagwons (eg. no housing).

Anyway, I know nobody really cares when you say "I told you so" but I predicted that this would happen six months ago and damn it feels good to be right once in a while.

Yu_Bum_suk · Joined: 25 Dec 2004

I had a similar situation. I had served notice and they couldn't find anyone within 30 days. They asked me to stay on even though they knew that I was leaving out of disgust. I told them that I wasn't working one day longer than necessary at that place and that if they hoped to find and keep teachers they'd have to start showing them a bit more respect. I had never seen the director smoke so much or flip out as often as in the two weeks before I left. It was such an absolute pleasure to watch.

Unreal · Joined: 01 Jul 2004 Location: Jeollabuk-do

Update: prospective teacher just cancelled. School semester starts this Friday.

rothkowitz · Joined: 27 Apr 2006

It's like they're selecting Christmas puppies,but,how much of their budget are they willing to spend?

They have enough money but they keep a good chunk of it.

So they end up with the funny looking spotted one with distemper.

No,matter.Change it next year.

Hollywoodaction · Joined: 02 Jul 2004

Same with my school. A couple of the new teachers that they thought they had hired for the coming semester have passed up on the offer at the last moment. It's a bit of a relief even though we'll end up with extra classes because it shows them that they should appreciate the fact that we enjoy working for them.

tomato · Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2007 11:32 pm Post subject:

Is there a trend toward asking foreign teachers to look for replacements?
On my present job, I was hired not by the employer but by the current teacher.

Gatsby · Joined: 09 Feb 2007

What's the verbal equivalent to having your fingers crossed, Tomato?

It appears those ads need need some sort of secret code word, obvious only to native English speakers, to inform the unwary of their insincerity.

Perhaps if they were signed Benedict Arnold, except I gather the British consider him a hero.

Adventurer · Joined: 28 Jan 2006

Missile Command Kid · Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Location: Daegu

regicide · Joined: 01 Sep 2006 Location: United States

ChopChaeJoe · Joined: 05 Mar 2006 Location: Seoul

It seems like such a small thing -- be trated with respect and compensated fairly.

Why is that so often difficult?

I love teaching, but the director's world and the world of teaching seem to connect only tangentially.

Koreans would have a much better English program if not for all of the b.s. I hope it's just immaturity and not an inbred dishonesty.

cmr · Joined: 22 Mar 2006

I would only help my school or any school find another teacher if:

1- I really liked the school and felt that it was good place to teach.
2- They paid me just like they would pay a recruiter to find them a teacher.

yingwenlaoshi · Joined: 12 Feb 2007 Location: ... location, location!

Even if you're able to train your boss so everything's on the up and up and you're getting treated right, what's to make him try to go back to what he really wants to do with a new teacher.

Nothing.

From trying to inform teachers on this board what they are entitled to and give advice on how to go about things, it just seems that many are scared and ignorant to go after what its theirs. So any advice you would have for a replacing teacher might go through one ear and out the other.

So, in short, don't bother. Let your boss's fingers do the walking while you walk out the door.