Korean Job Discussion Forums

[midgie]

I have read hundreds of posts from people who hate their school/employers/hours/students, etc... Does anyone work at a hagwon they like and feel they are treated well at? I am living in Canada, have already done a year in Busan at ECC (where the Saturdays, overtime and 4 year olds nearly did me in). Can anyone recommend a good school in Busan? I don't mind lots of hours during the week, just don't want to be lied to and get stuck with every Saturday again and don't want to babysit 4 year olds. Anyone have better luck?

[monkinwonderland]

While I've not met anyone who likes his/her school, I have to imagine they do exist somewhere. However, you're not likely to find them on Dave's ESL.

[JD1982]

I teach at two small public schools.

I hate one, but love the other. It's a crap shoot when it comes to landing a good public school job I guess.

[ttompatz]

[Alyallen]

[trubadour]

My hagwon is OK, but its not in Busan.

[pest2]

hopefully you're not actually going to another hakwon. Try public school but just make sure you inspect the apt. they're putting you up in first. I like 2 out of my 5 schools pretty well. 2 are OK. 1 suks.

[LuckyNomad]

I absolutely love both schools I work at. I live in Kwangwon Province and teach at an all boys Middle School and at an elementary school. Here's why I love it:

I get about 3 months of vacation a year plus plenty of holidays, exam days(when I don't teach), plus sports days and field trips etc.
I usually teach 4 classes a day. When I'm not teaching, I just sit at my desk surfing the internet and nobody cares.
The majority of the students are great and I have a good relationship with pretty much all of the teachers. Though I don't have any bad relationships with any.
The apartment they gave me is quite large too.
I've never had a bad experience in this country.

[Jizzo T. Clown]

My public school is awesome! Great hours (18 hours/week), good coworkers, cheap food, decent students, lots of unexpected time off...

I really don't know why anyone would rather work in a hagwon unless they like staying out all night drinking or are afraid of the larger classes.

for the record, I haven't worked in a hagwon in Korea because I came to the conclusion that that's a dangerous route to go. I also worked for language schools in Japan (not so bad) and China (slave labor), and wanted to try something more "respectable."

[The_Conservative]

[thegadfly]

I work in a hakwon, but I am quite happy.

There are problems, like any other job, but the hours are pretty low (23 contact hours), I am treated well, and the school values education, so I am being paid to actually be a teacher, not a pronunciation monkey.

I honestly prefer hakwon work because I like being a marketable commodity -- I taught in the US public school system, and innovation is not especially welcome there, as it rocks the boat. Here, if I try something new and it works, I am rewarded (financially or in other ways), and if I try something new and it fails, it is all on me. My current gig is especially nice, but even when I worked at Wonderland I made some extra money because of my "contributions to the operation of the school and development of the curriculum."

I am not sure if you can swing bonuses or perks in a public school gig, and with the larger class sizes and infrequent class meetings, it would be difficult to judge the effectiveness of innovation. I guess I equate the Korean public school system with the US public school system (that whole "public school" thing), so perhaps I am misleading myself.

[lowpo]

[The_Conservative]

[Masta_Don]

I like my hakwon. They treat me with respect, help me with everything like train tickets or buying guitars online, and I go out eating/drinking with my boss often enough.

[LuckyNomad]