Korean Job Discussion Forums

[alphalfa]

Here at my middle school many of the subject teachers expect me to speak Korean to them. My English co-workers know that I can speak a little Korean as I've been in Korea a long time. And so, these same people let the other subject teachers know this. This topic was discussed at lunch time today with me.

Korean/English teacher: "You don't speak Korean to the other teachers"
Me: " I don't because (a) my ability to speak Korean is not so good, (b)if I start to speak (and continue to speak) Korean to them THEY EXPECT ME to understand everything they say. " I have been in many situations where once the person knows that I can speak some Korean, that same person continues on with a conversation with me in KOREAN! They will often try to ask a different question , seeing as I did not understand their previous one." It's a stressful and somewhat embarassing situation for me as you might expect"
Korean/English teacher: " You know, it's difficult to carry-on a conversation with foreigners in English(in Korean mind)"
Me: " I don't expect those with a limited ability to speak English to have a long conversation with me. I simply would ask that these people TRY to speak English to me. For example, greetings (Hi,how are you?) or inquire
(What are you doing/Where are you going?)...I do understand what these expressions are in Korean BUT don't have such high expectations of me to speak KOREAN."

So, long story short - they want (expect)me to speak Korean to the other subject teachers BUT these same subject teachers display no effort in speaking English to me(I'm too shy...can't speak English well EXCUSE)
What rubbish!

your thoughts ...

[jajdude]

You've got the same thing they have. I think you and they should make a little effort to speak the other's language. You know their English is poor. Remind them your Korean is not good. They haven't taught their language to foreigners, but if they expect you to communicate in Korean, then tell them you'll need them to be like a teacher of a basic ability student in a foreign language. Just a thought or two, may not be so helpful.

[ChuckECheese]

You're hired to speak English and teach English. No matter how fluent you maybe in Korean. You should stick with speaking only English.

You're not there to accomodate them. They must accomodate you.

If you don't like to them speaking Korean to you, you should just shrug your shoulders and give them a dumb smile and say, "I don't understand."

[ttompatz]

[xCustomx]

[passport220]

I respect the Korean people and their culture. I generally like the Koreans I have met one-on-one. However, I HAVE NO FRIGING INTEREST IN LEARNING TO SPEAK KOREAN!!!

It is always one of the first questions out of someone�s mouth. I tell the teachers who would really like me to speak Korean that I will not learn because I do not want to cheat the students. I want students to understand when they enter an English speaking environment it is unlikely that anyone will speak Korean, not even a few words. If it is a struggle for a student and me to communicate��.welcome to the real-world. If you want to talk to me, you need to learn to speak English. If you want someone that can speak both, make it a requriement of the job and I will teach in Thailand.

[Qinella]

Alphalfa you are complaining about them doing the exact same thing you are doing. Did you realize that? Neither you nor the co-workers wish to be placed in an uncomfortable language situation. Why try to blame them for it rather than just accepting it for the awkward situation it is?

Personally, I think the onus is on you to speak Korean. I think the reason why is a bit obvious.

Please ignore ChuckECheese, who seems to regard himself as a professional linguist offering valuable, scarce knowledge. You are in their country. Don't expect them to speak your language.

[bosintang]

I'm tossed up about this one.

One one hand, I want my students to be immersed in English even if it's only for one hour, and if I've seen any progress in my students from the Grade ones I taught who are now Grade 2's it's there confidence in the classroom. One supervisor, a man with a lot of international experience himself, told me when I first arrived that I should only speak English. To paraphrase him, if I spoke Korean, there was no point in me being here.

That being said, I do greet Korean teachers in Korean, and do reply when Korean teachers talk to me in Korean, but 90+% of my communication is in English.

On the other hand, I wish my Korean was better so I could fit in better, I coul deal with discipline issues better, be more motivating to the students, and just in general, have a decent social life!

[ChuckECheese]

[SuperHero]

How I wish my Korean colleagues would expect me to speak Korean. You don't know how good you've got it. Speak Korean with them and watch your ability improve, provided you put in some study time in conjunction wiht your regular practice you'll see rapid improvement.

You've got yourself an excellent opportunity, take it and don't let go.

[hana]

I have that problem too, except for I actually do look Korean, and when I try to use the limited K-vocab that I know, it comes out with an accent (of course) and the people end up thinking that I'm retarded. The teachers keep on telling me that they would like to speak to me more, but can't because they don't know English well and that I should learn Korean, tho I'm not sure why the same people keep on telling me the same thing. Don't understand why we can't just greet each other (in English or Korean) and just end it there. Not everyone wants to hold deep, long convos with people they see only once or twice a week.

[kiwiliz]

To be really fluent in Korean in order to have a conversation you would have to study the language for about 4 years.
One year in Lorea would just provide you with the basics.
I thought about learning Korean but it would take my brain years to learn a reasonable amount to be of any real use, I know enough to be polite, and have survived for almost a year without any major problems.

My Korean co-teachers have had English lessons at school, they atleast have a head start and generally they want to improve a wee bit.

I see no reason why, just because I have a job in a different country, people feel I HAVE to learn the language.

[Mark7]

You might need to learn Korean to improve your English teaching skills, because there are alot of words that you could easily translate while teaching. Most Korean students never have been to a foreign nation where English is spoken, so it is more effective to try to compare their world with the English-speaking world.

Learning Korean because it can open up their world to yours. By learning Korean, you can inspire them because you are trying to learn their world while they are trying to learn ours. You become a role model to them and are inspired by it, and perhaps they want to learn English more.

You need to stop being self-centered and start adapting to their language not only for your survival, but to make your teaching experience a wonderful one.

[nautilus]

I speak a bit here and there to keep them sweet. However its about 70-30 in my favor.

[pest1]

It is very simple. You don't have to speak Korean to the teachers at your school if you don't want to. They don't have to speak English to you either. You will just not communicate. The Koreans probably don't care you don't talk to them. They have each other to talk to. If you want some conversation you would have to make the effort to speak their language. If you work for an English hagwon then the Korean English teachers should make an effort to speak English. But if you work at a public school there is no reason the other subject teachers would have to speak English. You can shrug your shoulders when they speak Korean to you. So can they when you speak English to them. It just depends on who is more desperate to make conversation. If you don't want conversation then suit yourself.

You don't have to learn any Korean if you don't want to. That just means if will be difficult to go to a restaurant to order food or go to a store to buy something. If that doesn't bother you then suit yourself. Part of the function of a language is communication, those who desire to communicate will always make more efforts.