Korean Job Discussion Forums

idonojacs · Joined: 07 Jun 2007

A) Sent your kid to school sick?

B) Sent your kid to school sick, day after day?

C) Told your sick kid to just sit in the front row in front of the teacher, wrap a blanket around your shoulders, put your head down and go to sleep?

D) Were a teacher and came to school sick, day after day?

What would happen in Korea if you:

A) Sent your kid to school sick?

B) Sent your kid to school sick, day after day?

C) Told your sick kid to just sit in the front row in front of the teacher, wrap a blanket around your shoulders, put your head down and go to sleep?

D) Were a teacher and came to school sick, day after day?

dutchy pink · Joined: 06 Feb 2007 Location: Incheon

My mom did A and B for 12 straight years.
Every morning I would tell her I'm really sick and she would just shrug and send me off to school.
Sometimes I even told her at night that I wasn't feeling well and probably wouldn't be able to go to school tomorrow.
She didn't care. She was ruthless.

Mr. Pink · Joined: 21 Oct 2003 Location: China

These days:

In Ontario, Canada they will send your kid home if there is any chance other kids will catch what they have.

The thing you guys without kids bitching about is: what do you do when you have a job and depend on the school to look after your kid for the set hours they typically do?

Trust me, until it happens to you from the parent's side, you won't appreciate the situation.

Scotticus · Joined: 18 Mar 2007

A) Set up a card table in the street in order to promote your product.

B) Grab women by the arm to bring them to your table.

C) When they say, "no" you continue to forcefully pull her towards the table.

Sorry, it's just that I fantasize about crushing these assholes' tracheas every time I see this happen. Respect for women ftw!

littlelisa · Joined: 12 Jun 2007 Location: Seoul

In Quebec public schools, there were *always* some sick kids who were there anyway. Pretty common. Sometimes the colds lasted a while, and the kids were still sent to school. I haven't seen any there with a blanket aroud themselves asleep on their desk, but if you take out the blanket part...

They only got sent home if they were REALLY sick. Like throwing up or something.

The teachers came to school if they were sick too. They only took sick days if they were really sick. But a regular cold? Yeah, they came in and taught anyway.

It's becoming more common for kids (and adults) to go into school (or work) sick.

Homer · Guest

Barking Mad Lord Snapcase · Joined: 04 Nov 2003

One night, you are going to be served by a waiter with the flu.

Scotticus · Joined: 18 Mar 2007

Ya-ta Boy · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: Established in 1994

If you ask a classful of adult students how many days they stayed home from school sick and you will get a shock. Not more than one or two will raise their hands...and then ask if being hospitalized with a broken leg counts.

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

When I was 17, I had tonsilitis and my mum sent me to school.... but then she was the music teacher at the same school!

I only went for one day when the doc, whose daughter also went to the same school, and told her dad that I was at school, phoned my mum up and told her to keep me at home for the rest of the week. I went to a small private girls school, so people knew each other... my mum was quite adamant that I should be at school but the doc said that tonsilitis is contagious and therefore I should be at home.

Twas a good week. I did little, just lounged around in my room watching TV and binged on the ice cream that my dad (retired by that time) so lovingly brought to me!!!!!!

Homer · Guest

Barking...

Landros · Joined: 19 Oct 2007

I stayed home probably 5+ days per year because of having a cold or something. Just stay home!

And Saturday is not for school. that is plain insane. Weekend starts friday.

More Sick Days are needed in Korea!!

And no opting out or pressure at the office not to take them. or bonus pay for not taking them.

SuperHero · Joined: 10 Dec 2003 Location: Superhero Hideout

older kids (13+) can easily stay home alone. Younger kids cannot and if both parents work it's not easy to take time off. Unless the illness is contagious or life threatening sending them to school is not a big deal.

Scotticus · Joined: 18 Mar 2007

idonojacs · Joined: 07 Jun 2007

Sorry if I did not make myself clear.

Back home, for us expat ESL teachers here in Korea, means back in our home country, ie, the US, Canada, NZ, Australia, Britain, S. Africa, etc.

In those countries, "school" means a place where children up to about age 18 are educated in order to receive a high school diploma. I should have said "public school," ie a government funded school, although in some countries "public school" has a different meaning. There are also "private schools," ie schools that are not government funded, but that perform the same function as a public school in that they teach all subjects necessary to receive a high school degree.

In the US, public schools provide school age children with ESL courses, when necessary. I know of no English hagwons in the U.S., as there is no need for them. Hagwons that teach other subjects after school hours are also unknown to me. You can hire a private tutor for a subject you are having trouble in, but this, too, is rare. More often, you would see a teacher after school for extra help or take a remedial summer school course. There are, however, special schools to help with preparation for the SAT.

There are special classes for adults who need help learning English, usually government funded.

When I was growing up, if you were visably sick, you were sent to the nurse's office, which EVERY public school had. If you had a fever, or were otherwise sick, your parent was called to pick you up and take you home. If the parent had to work, a relative or neighbor would look after you.

Any parent who sent their kid to school sick repeatedly would have been reported to Social Serivices, an investigation would have been made, and legal action could possibly have been taken, including, if necessary, putting a child in a foster home if he or she had been subject to neglect or abuse.

If you ask anyone from my generation how many times they went to school sick, they would almost all say "None." I would. I never saw a student attend school sick.

Teachers, of course, are allowed to take sick days. Every school system, public and private, has substitute teachers on call to take over a class from a sick teacher. If necessary, a principal or assistant principal, would take over those classes, usually temporarily until the substitute arrived, but perhaps for the day in a smaller school. If a public school refused to allow a teacher to take a sick day, it would be a violation of their contract with the teacher's union and a violation of state law. The teacher could take the school to court and get compensation.

Correct me if I am wrong, but as far as I can tell, there is no such thing as a substitute teacher in Korea.