Korean Job Discussion Forums

[alphalfa]

For some time now there has not been any communication (in English) of a friendly natural nature between the three female Korean English teachers and myself. The strange and unusual older male Korean co-worker often initiates a conversation with me every day. How bad is it with the three female co-workers , you ask? Well, the only thing they will say is 'good morning' as they enter the office each morning and 'see you'
at the end of each day. The rest of the time nothing is said to me. Even during lunch time there is no communication. This is bad manners on their part IMO. Manners are the awareness of the feelings of others - if you have this awareness , you have good manners. It's frustrating to say the least that they would not talk to me given that they are 'teaching English' to students. They are an unfriendly bunch to be sure!
All of this got me thinking about the five reasons Korean coworkers in the public school English departments here don' t speak English to me and perhaps you too. Here's what I came up with:
[1] afraid to ~ culture , shyness.
[2] afraid of native speaker.
[3] don't want(or need ) to talk in English. I (and you) should learn to
speak Korean instead.
[4] English of any amount should be reserved only for when they (the
KT's) teach an English class.
[5] personal dislike for native speaker.

From the above list [3] , [4] , and [5] I believe are what pertain to my situation here at my middle school in Incheon. It's an poisoned environment here for reasons unknownst to me.
**
I brought in some Tim Horton's coffee for them to try. They showed
complete disinterest. I also purchased t-shirts [cost:W60,000] displaying my own design on the front for each of them(on Thursday prior to Chuseok). Again, disinterested response from them. The spirit of giving and any personal satisfaction I felt in giving was completely destroyed by their words and actions. **


How about your list of reasons ~ real or imagined.

[KYC]

Whatever the reason is, I don't analyze it. To be fair, I haven't pursued any active interest in getting to know them either. I am a shy person as well. I will not initiate the conversation.

[roybetis1]

I had a situation like this in Anyang. It ended up with me quitting. One of the reasons they said, was that I wasn't "friendly" enough. According to them it was my responsibility as a foreigner to initiate conversations and be smiley and happy and enjoy endless conversations about what foods I don't like.
Silly me, I was concentrating on being a good teacher.

Also, I've noticed that Korean women won't talk to a single male, foreign or not, in the workplace unless it's absolutely clear that they're unavailable. Appearances are very important here, and people gossip. Men and women even eat at different tables in my school.
I suggest making it clear that you're only interested in a working relationship. Always refer to them as Ms or Mrs, never by their first name. Ask one or two questions like how are you, but never beyond "How wass your weekend". and make sure to look disinterested at their answer. Smile, look happy and keep them at arm's length. Good luck.

[renzobenzo1]

Yes I can relate.
Funnily enough the head of the English department here at my public school has the worst English speaking abilityof the 5 teachers. She is a kind lady though and makes me feel relaxed and welcome.
The other 4 teachers can be friendly sometimes but it is very few and far between but we get on ok and usually just talk when we go to the class together.
There can be some lonely times here sometimes and it can be tough so I just try to take every day as it comes.
As someone said imagine teaching somewhere you feel welcome and included....oh can't wait for that day-it might be Thailand, might be the Philipines next....who knows.

What I have learnt is that money isn't everything so I'll probably just save as much as I can this year and go somewhere for the lifestyle next year even if it means earning less...

[billbill]

When I first showed up at the school, every teacher besides my coteacher kept me at a distance for a week. After I got into the flow of things and such, I was able to make friends with some of the Korean teachers.
I thought they were scared to talk to me because I may come off as harsh or abrasive, but they assured me it had nothing to do with me. Actually, they made it very clear that they just couldn't talk with me around my coteacher.
I may have the opposite experience of some people, it seems like only the female teachers make any attempt to talk with me. Men and women eat at the same tables and I haven't run into any problems with addressing women by their first name. If it's their preference, I have no argument.
It has really taken many weeks for most of the teachers to come around and warm up to me. I really didn't mind that much, I lead a pretty busy, solitary existence.

[jajdude]

[nomad-ish]

[htrain]