Korean Job Discussion Forums

[blurgalurgalurga]

This is an interesting article from today's Korea Herald. Sounds like this dude really got a bum deal...

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/

see headline "Sledge to the English Teacher Problem."

That this fellow is not qualified to teach here is totally insane, IMHO.

[SHANE02]

Couldn't he get an F visa. It sounds like he has a korean child, so i'm assuming he's married to a Korean woman.

[Horangi Munshin]

Maybe his wife isn't a Korean citizen anymore. If that is the case he couldn't get an F2

[yingwenlaoshi]

What can you say?

I can see both sides of the argument:

-It's probably a good thing. I've met too many francophone Canadians in Asia who have no business teaching English.

-It's a bad thing if it's an anglophone who decided to get his degree at a French-language university.

-It's a bad thing if it's a francophone who majored in French at an English-language university (maybe) or who graduated from an English-language university in certain studies. A lot of Chinese people, and other nationalities, graduate from English-speaking universities with hardly any level of English. What's to say a francophone's English is any better than theirs?

So I say, "Too bad, so sad." There are a lot of people in the world who have an excellent level of English who do not qualify for teaching jobs in Korea. If you're anglophone, or have excellent second-language English skills, find other work.

Next.

[Mr. Pink]

I don't get why he can't get an F-2 visa either.

Perhaps he should come to Korea and teach French

[Young FRANKenstein]

[Homer]

I read the same letter in the joongang daily last week....

I agree with what the author says about the rules. He seems to approve the changes but to disaprove of how they are implemented (no testing or way to prove qualifications).

Having done my grad degree in Montreal...I can tell you that many montrealers of french origin are bilingual and can teach English here. I have met a few in Busan and Seoul over the years (prior to this change I guess!) and many of them had little or no discernable accents.

Now this dude did the job before (right?) and has teaching experience....I think he makes a valid point...he should be able to take some test or some interview.

As for his situation, if his wife is now a c-citizen, he is out of luck...you cannot work on the F-3 (unless I am mistaken).

In the end...too bad as he seemed highly motivated and more than qualified. These rules are bureaucratic in nature and bureaucracy does not exactly foster flexibility...in fact it fosters rigidity.

He could teach french of course but unless I am mistaken the market for that is smaller no?

[RedRob]

[Snowmeow]

[Homer]