Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I have one who I think has reached the point where he can. (I have another who probably could if she had a bit of help with research and referencing). All in all he'd have to be the best Korean English teacher I've ever worked with in the public school system. Not only is his English level far higher than the average KET, but he's a damn good EFL teacher, too.

Now, today I'm doing some editing for him on a 17-page paper. It brings me back to my days as a uni TA, wading through stacks of undergraduate papers. His paper at least has proper paragraph structure, but there are references missing everywhere, the system of footnoting is all wrong (missing page numbers for quotations, etc.), Wikipedia is one of his major sources, and there are the usual problems Koreans have with articles, prepositions, and capitalisation.

If it got turned in for a first- or second-year class at a Canadian university I'd imagine it would get a C, possibly a D, provided the marker didn't reckon his faulty referencing to constitute plagairism.

And this is by far the best piece of writing I've ever seen from a Korean public school English teacher that wasn't throroughly edited by a foreigner.

But wait, it gets better.

In six months he'll be graduating with a PhD in English literature from a national university.

Canadian first-year student with C average = Korean PhD in English? I'd say so. At least our future here looks pretty secure indeed.

[Bibbitybop]

I know for sure one could. I'm guessing there another one that could, too. That's 2/6. Not bad.

[boatofcar]

As far as the format of the paper goes, I think one out of the four coteachers I have could write a passable paper. Do Koreans learn something similar to APA guidelines for citing sources and all that?

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[Natalia]

[htrain]

[Boodleheimer]

none of mine.

[safeblad]

yeah... i work in an office where all the koreans speak english, even to other koreans. I dont think any of them would have a problem obtaining some of the worthless BAs that some foreign teachers have here.

[safeblad]

[ddeubel]

YBS,

I'm not even going to address the question. Why?

Precisely because I believe it wasn't posed in the right spirit. It seems to me that almost every second post of yours has some "Korean teacher bashing".

I would ask that you examine your own fixation. Usually those who constantly berate negatively have their own issues.

They are Korean English teachers. That's all. Some good, some bad. But in no way should we think that they are not up to any job or essay simply because they don't have native fluency. A Phd is NOT about the language of the essay but about the ideas. This is the gem of the liberal spirit and educational ethos that has developed through history and especially so during the enlightenment. Imagine if Maimondes was trashed because he couldn't produce and write in English well.

DD

[The Perfect Cup of Coffee]

One of my three Korean co-workers asked me yesterday what an essay was. And no, I'm not joking.

[Whistleblower]

Just briefly scanned the thread but I thought I would mention this. Some Korean adult student asked me to write his PhD Proposal document as he couldn't do it. It's got to be in English.

I expect the student to come back to me later this year or early next year to write his thesis (also has to be in English). So I am not surprised that Koreans ask people to write a thesis for them in English 'cos they can hardly write a thesis themselves.

[The_Conservative]

I wonder if any of the foreign teachers here could do the same thing...IN KOREAN.

[skconqueror]

[The_Conservative]