Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Freaka]

I posted this in the General Discussion Forum, but I think it belongs here in this forum.

To clarify the question, I'm asking, who is truly qualified to teach English in Korea?

[livinginkunsan]

Anyone who isn't mute and can write their alphabet

[Ozabout7or8]

I think the rules are pretty good as they are. Employers will discriminate between employees based on teaching credentials and as the market tightens up they will do so, universities already do in most cases.

There was already a thread about why there is a 4 year degree and I explained in there that it is as much about ensuring quality "people" into the country as it is anything to do with their teaching credentials. This is because the subset of people with 4 year college degrees on average is more desirable from immigrations point of view (less criminals, deviance or violence and more educated) than those without.

If it ended up preventing demand from being filled they would relax it but it is set at a pretty good level at the moment.

[Jizzo T. Clown]

Maybe a better question would be "Who shouldn't be allowed to teach English in Korea?"

[Freaka]

[Ozabout7or8]

Freaka, it is a little thing called the Free market that allows those foreigners into Korea who don't have the requisite teaching credentials.

If you want every teacher who arrives to have the proper credentials then you will cut half the teachers out of the country. Then little Miss Kim and Mr Park will have to go back to learning English-ee from their substandard tapes and Korean Teachers who are afraid to even use their English in the classroom.

I would however support a FREE Korean government programme to upskill all English Teachers, Foreigners and Korean, with TESL courses run online or in most major Korean centres on weekends and out of Office hours and institute a CPD requirement for E2 Visas where teachers are required (just like regular public school teachers) to get a certain number of training hours per year in time that is PAID FOR BY THEIR EMPLOYER.

See, the solution I have proposed here is decidedly left-wing which I am, as you can see by the signature at the bottom of my postings. Your method Freaka was the Right wing 'stick-method' whereas i psoposed the more people-friendly 'carrot-method'.

Just takes a little out-of the box thinking right?

[Freaka]

[Ozabout7or8]

[Jizzo T. Clown]

Well some may blame the lack of qualified teachers. Others may blame the lack of opportunities to use English outside the classroom. How many people can speak a language fluently if they've never had the chance to use it? Once a week for an hour doesn't count.

btw, this isn't only a problem in Korea, it's most of Asia.

[Freaka]

Freaka, slow down. Whoa...just take a breath and read my post again, which I have copied for you below. You will see that I agree with your desired goal but have proposed a DIFFERENT METHOD of achieving it. The method I proposed was more of a carrot approach, where as your was a stick approach. The right-left analogy comes because the similar methods of solving problems of all kinds are used by governments and whereas left governments try to get the solution by helping people to be able to reach the target, right wing governments are more happy to simply legislate against something and watch people suffer or otherwise as a result of the new law.

Your idea of a solution is not the only way...that was my point.


Oz, again, you dare assume that I am suggesting some sort of Right wing solution to the problem. Simply put, it's a FACT that Korean students aren't learning proper English despite all the time and money that they are investing into their education - why? Part of the problem is that many of the people who are teaching English in Korea are not qualified to teach English to Koreans - why? Because in theory and in practice, a capable foreign language teacher should be fluent in both languages. Is this expectation so outrageous?

If I had a child who was learning a foreign language here in the States, at the very minimum, I would expect my child's foreign language teacher to be fluent in both English and in the language that they are teaching. Here in the States, all foreign language instructors are required to be fluent in both languages. Certainly, they're not all great teachers, but at least they meet the bare minimum requirement.

And by my suggesting that I think Korea needs better teachers, at what point did I imply that the government should intervene and prevent all the unqualified foreign teachers from teaching in Korea? Isn't this what you were referring to when you pointed out my "stick figure" approach? Well, your assumption was entirely incorrect. All I said is that something is not working, and that part of the problem is that many of the current teachers are not qualified to teach English in Korea. Again, it comes down to how one would define qualified. (See my bare minimum explanation above.)

I am not so pretentious as to think that I have a solution to the problem, but at least I'm willing to acknowledge that a problem exists. In your original response to my question, you seem to suggest that a degree and English fluency is all that is needed to teach English in Korea. I disagree.

[davehere22]

as far as i know, a 3 year degree in uk and ireland is the same as a four year degree in the usa

not sure about other countries

can anyone back this up


i think its right

[BuHaoChi]

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[Freaka]

Hi BuHaoChi,

"Now, onto to your cousin. You can�t necessarily blame foreign teachers for your cousin�s lack of English skills. The Korean education system, with it�s emphasis on rote memorization (great for science and math but bad for language and art) and its tunnel-vision approach to producing good test-takers as opposed to good members of society and free thinkers are mostly to blame. Remember: most foreign teachers in this country have little-to-no control over the curriculum they teach. So, increasing qualification would not really change anything. You could have the best teachers in the history of mankind over here, and if they�re still shackled to Korean-generated curriculum, the results will no doubt be the same."

I never said that the blame lies solely with the foreign teachers. If you read my responses to Oz, I clearly stated that the teachers are only a part of the problem. My main concern with the teachers is that as a bare minimum requirement, any teacher who wants to teach a foreign language in any country, should be fluent in the language that they are teaching and should be fluent in the language of that country. If you think about it, the requirement isn't so outrageous! In fact, it makes perfect sense! And one has to wonder WHY English teachers in Korea aren't subject to the same standards that foreign language teachers in other countries are subject to. Growing up in the States, my French foreign language instructors were all fluent in French AND English. Could you imagine trying to learn French from someone who doesn't speak a lick of English???????

"Also, you have to remember the demand side of the equation. Hagwon and public schools are just giving their customers what they want (this, coupled with the mistaken belief that anyone is able to teach English�not true). Apparently, Korean parents aren�t very discriminating (or are very misinformed) when it comes to selecting a program or a teacher or there WOULD be higher standards. If the customers want higher standards, the hagwon will provide them."

Again, I never suggested that only the teachers were to be blamed for the problem.

"So, in conclusion, you�ve identified the problem (poor quality English education) correctly, but your solution is off. The problem lies in Korean society and policy, not with the Westerners."

I don't have a solution and never claimed to have a solution.

[Ozabout7or8]

[Jizzo T. Clown]