Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Terri Payk]

Hi! I am involved with a group that is putting on a four hour Saturday seminar for English teachers in the Bundang and Suji area. It's going to be a great info session. Do you know where I could find a list of hagwons in the Bundang and Suji area?

Thanks!

[eamo]

You could try the yellow pages.

www.yellowpages.co.kr/

Will there be any drinking at this seminar??

[JackSarang]

If you live in Bundang or Suji you can pick up any of the free advertising papers on the side of the street. The majority of the area hogwans advertise in those papers regularly.

Whats the seminar about? The Bundang/Suji area or Teaching?

[Eunoia]

The other week my hagwon received a letter from the Seongnam Si Board of Education (or whatever they call it), telling us that ALL of the teachers and directors in Seongnam (which includes Bundang, not sure about Suji) were required - BY LAW - to attend some kind of seminar that was to be held this coming Saturday (Sept. 20). Penalty for not attending was a modest fine, I think only about 5,000 Won.

Now, I've been in Korea for a few years, and have never heard of anything like this before. As it turns out, however, the seminar was cancelled because (1) nobody at the Seongnam Boad of Education could tell my boss what the seminar was supposed to be about (i.e., they had no idea what was supposed to happen there), and (2) they couldn't find anyone who spoke English to present the seminar.

Is this the same "seminar" to which you are referring? What is the deal with it, anyway? What are we supposed to do for four hours on a Saturday ? Are we going to be paid for our time (ha ha, dream on)?

To be honest, unless I can get some further clarification as to what exactly we're supposed to do at this seminar, I'd personally rather pay the fine than give up my Saturday morning (and by extension, my Friday night). Days off are a valuable commodity here, and unless you have something REALLY special and worthwhile planned, I think I'll pass.

[Terri Payk]

eamo, JackSarang, Eunoia

eamo, Thank you for your suggestion about the yellow pages. I'll look into that. The seminar will be for four hours in the late afternoon/early evening on Decemeber 6th. There will be a main speaker and then several 45-60 minute workshops to choose from, depending on your area of interest - teaching young children, adults, adding creativity to your lessons, great places to visit in Korea (for newcomers who haven't yet had time to search out the great sites in the country), etc.

Terri Payk

[Terri Payk]

Eunoia,

The seminar I'm talking about is not the one you mentioned. No one is hogging-tying anyone to come to it! No penalty fees for absentees.

About your question "Will we payed for our time spent there? ha ha" -
as any dedicated teacher, I spend hours thinking about and looking for better ways to teach English in my class.

Like you and the rest of teachers in Korea, I appreciate time off, but as I look at it, if four hours on a Saturday afternoon save me hours later of researching, reading, on my own time anyway, etc. that, in my opinion, is time well spent.

Were you a teacher before you came to Korea?

Terri P.S. I posted a reply to eamo/JackSarang about particulars on the seminar itself.

[Eunoia]